In celebration of Pride Month by the LGBTQ+ community, some beauty queens shared their opinions about the stigma of plastic surgery in beauty pageants.
In an online show “Queentuhan“, Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, Binibining Pilipinas International 2014 Bianca Guidotti, and Mutya ng Pilipinas Intercontinental 2010 Carla Lizardo discussed the topic of transgender women joining “traditional” beauty pageants with their guest, Miss International Queen 2012 Kevin Balot.
As they continued discussing the topic, they also gave their opinions on beauty pageant contestants undergoing plastic surgery to enhance their appearance.
For Guidotti, she said that the Filipino community generally accepts transgender women undergoing surgery to compete in pageants but for natural-born women, they have to deal with the social stigma.
“In the process kasi of transitioning, accepted na, like, you guys, you have to have surgeries to make your face a bit more feminine, make your bodies more… basically, to bring out the real you, inside-outside,” she said to Balot.
“The natural-born women, the stigma behind getting surgeries is much greater.”
Wurtzbach also agreed as she says that many natural-born women would want to decide to go under the knife but it would stop them because of their fear being judged by other people.
“There is a difference between going under the knife and the stigma. So, meron ‘yung feeling na, ‘you have to do it.’ But also, ‘Will I be judged for this? Are people gonna bash me?’ Di ba? Magkaiba kasi ‘yun,” she said.
“So, baka naman feeling mo, ito talaga ‘yung gusto mong i-express, ito talaga ako… Pero baka naman… iba pa ‘yung hurdle na ‘yun sa another hurdle, ‘What will other people think of me?'” she added.
Lizardo, for her part, believes that it is anyone’s right to undergo plastic surgery, especially if it would improve his or her self-confidence.
“Sa iyo naman ‘yun kung mapi-pressure ka to get surgery or not. I would think that, regardless who you’re going up against [in a pageant], if you’re not happy with yourself, if there is something you want to change, that’s fine. And I think if you feel that way about yourself, regardless if there is a trans woman joining, if it’s other women that you feel [are] more beautiful than you, then that’s something that you’ll really be more inclined to do,” she said.
“I don’t think just because, ‘Ay, there’s a trans woman here, I need to get surgery.’ Parang sa sarili mo ‘yun, e. Kung confident ka na, it doesn’t matter,” she added.
To sum it up, the three Filipina Beauty Queens were okay about contestants undergoing plastic surgery as they compete in beauty pageants.