Black Beauties: African American Pageant Queens in the Segregated South

by Kimberly Brown Pellum

In 1984, Vanessa Williams broke the race barrier to become Miss America, but she was not the first Black woman to wear a pageant crown. Black beauty pageants created a distinctive and celebrated cultural tradition during some of the most dismal times in the country's racial history. With the rise of the civil rights and Black Pride movements, pageantry also represented a component of social activism. Professor Kimberly Pellum explores this glamourous and profound history with contributions by dozens of former contestants who share their personal experiences.

144 pages, Paperback

Published February 3, 2020

Reviews

[Roisin Walsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes reading books written by and for Americans is tricky, because they will assume the reader neeeds an explanation for things like the American Civil Rights movement (widely taught in schools across the world) and yet I am leaving this book still not knowing what a Homecoming Queen or Court is, because this is presented as general knowledge.
Plenty of nice pictures, and some interesting facts and quotes.