Hold up. What is going on with the Miss Universe pageant? There was some sort of walkout? Because a man was being disrespectful to one of the contestants? Creating a genuine girl power moment that was captured on video? Consider us sat.
Let’s get into the Miss Universe pageant walkout, explained.
What happened?
In the now viral video, which you can still see on the Miss Universe Thailand Facebook page, Thai pageant director Nawat Itsaragrisil lectures the contestants on the importance of promoting the host nation, Thailand. He specifically calls out Miss Mexico, Fátima Bosch, by name, and accuses her of refusing to participate in a group photo shoot, which was to be posted on social media.
“You don’t like to post everything because your director from Mexico ordered you to not pay any attention, to post about the host country? If you follow the orders from your national director, you are a dumb,” Itsaragrisil said, per The Independent. When Bosch tried to respond, Itsaragrisil quickly shut her down, saying, “I didn’t hear you asking to talk.”
Bosch protested that she has “a voice” and said that Itsaragrisil was not “respecting me as a woman.” In response, Itsaragrisil called for security to remove Bosch. At this point, the other contestants can be heard gasping in surprise. Many of them, including 2024 Miss Universe winner Victoria Kjær Theilvig of Denmark, walked out with Bosch in protest.
Who is Nawat Itsaragrisil?
Itsaragrisil is a popular Thai media personality as well as the national director of Miss Universe Thailand and an executive of the Miss Universe Organization. He is also the owner of the Miss Grand International pageant.
As is usually the case with these sorts of things, this is not the first time Itsaragrisil has come under fire for his comments and treatment of women. For one thing, he has a history of body-shaming contestants.
In 2016 it was reported that Itsaragrisil body-shamed then Miss Iceland, Arna Ýr Jónsdóttir. “Stop eating breakfast, eat just salad for lunch, and drink water every evening until the contest,” he told her. Just this past May he reportedly body-shamed Miss Grand International winner Rachel Gupta, causing more widespread backlash.
Who is Fátima Bosch?
Bosch won the Miss Universe Mexico title back in September, representing the Tabasco region, where she was born, per Excelsior.
