I am so glad to be here writing tonight. I had a busy weekend and kept thinking of coming back to write. I had the privilege of attending a beauty pageant called the Narcissus Pageant. This is a pageant for Chinese girls/young women from ages 18 to 26. The contestants were beautiful, took culture classes to prepare and were absolutely remarkable and brave to take on something like a pageant. Now, it might seem that I would have a problem with objectification, but this pageant was a real class act. It was about culture, and heritage, appreciation, and honor. Yes, I was there to support a specific contestant regardless of the fact that I was resistant to the idea of attending originally. After what I saw, I truly have respect for these young women as they will really benefit as ambassadors. My only qualm is this, and maybe you can help me understand: why would China or the Chinese culture promote women in this way when historically they are known for, well, not honoring women. Doesn't China still have the "One Child" policy? Is this policy the very reason that so many young female babies have been abandoned, orphaned, or killed because the favored first born child is expected to be male? Don't all the movies depicting ancient Chinese families showcase the low status of women being made to marry out of duty and arrangement, having bound feet, and the mother-in-law always scolding the young bride for not giving birth to a male child? I remember being highly offended when I read out of a Chinese poetry book something along the lines of "I have a cow to give me milk, I have an ox to plow my field, but what's the use of a girl like you." So, what is the point of a Narcissus Pageant given this profound lack of respect for women?
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