Lindsay I. Brockington, Miss UVI 2000-2001, has been selected as one of only 10 U.S. college queens who will represent the nation's more than 100 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) next month in the international Miss Malaika Beauty Pageant in Sun City, South Africa. The competition will be broadcast live to more than 380 million viewers worldwide.
The Miss Malaika Beauty Pageant is an international competition designed to celebrate and unite Africa and the people of the African diaspora through their rich, diverse culture and beauty. "Malaika" is the Swahili word for "angel." The competition is open to all young women between 18 and 30 years old who view themselves as of African origin and who are single, matriculated students with no children.
Ms. Brockington, a sophomore majoring in speech and theatre at the University of the Virgin Islands, will travel to South Africa on Dec. 8 with nine other U.S. contestants for the semifinals of the competition, which will be held on Dec. 16. The finals will take place in South Africa in March 2001.
"This is absolutely the best thing that could have happened," Ms. Brockington said of the opportunity to travel to South Africa for the pageant. "Apartheid is definitely over in South Africa, though only recently, and I look forward to observing the changes that have taken place there."
Ms. Brockington was picked to be a U.S. contestant by representatives of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund, which solicited applications from queens at each of its 40 member HBCUs. She was one of only five college queens chosen by the fund to participate in the Miss Malaika competition. The other five U.S. contestants were selected by representatives of the United Negro College Fund from each of their member schools.
In September, Ms. Brockington traveled to Atlanta where she was a finalist in the 2000 Black College Queens Competition, sponsored by the National Black Alumni Hall of Fame.
The Miss Malaika contestants will be judged in four categories: interview, tropical wear, traditional dress and formal wear. The winner of the competition will serve as an international spokeswoman for issues relating to AIDS, poverty and peace.
To assist with incidental expenses in connection with Brockington's trip to South Africa, please contact the UVI Office of Institutional Advancement at 693-1040.
