The mothers of two beauty pageant winners – Noelia Voigt and UmaSofia Srivastava – have spoken about the reason why their daughters gave up their “dream jobs”. Ms Voigt, Miss USA 2023, and Ms Srivastava, Miss Teen USA 2023, revealed they were resigning from their roles amid claims of toxic workplaces. They said character has to come first “in light of recent events”. Now, appearing on Good Morning America, their mothers said both were allegedly “abused, bullied and cornered” ever since winning their respective pageants.
“The job of their dreams turned out to be a nightmare,” Barbara Srivastava, the mother of Miss Teen USA winner, said on Tuesday.
Barbara and Jackeline Voigt said they fear their daughters will be silenced forever about their true experiences at the Miss USA Organization because of the non-disclosure agreements (NDA) they signed.
The women said their daughters had received unwanted sexual advances from men and the representatives of the organisers said they could not control what the public said to its winners.
“I want to be clear. It’s not about what they didn’t get in prizes, it’s about how they were ill-treated abused bullied and cornered,” Srivastava added.
The women said they are speaking out to warn other parents against the realities of participating in major pageants.
On Tuesday, Miss Teen USA runner-up Stephanie Skinner said she also doesn’t want to crown.
Ms Srivastava had announced her decision on Instagram on May 8 and said in a statement that her “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization”. Two days before that, Ms Voigt had said she was resigning from her own title.
The Miss USA contest has seen a number of controversies and scandals in recent years, with multiple allegations of preferential treatment given to certain contestants.
