JKN Global Group, the company that oversees the Miss Universe pageant, has filed for bankruptcy after controversy surrounding transgender-identifying participants. The news comes just days before the 2023 pageant is set to take place.
The Miss Universe pageant has been under increasingly more public scrutiny since 2018 when the first biological man participated in the event. In 2022, the organization was acquired by JKN Global Group, a company under the leadership of Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip, a transgender-identifying biological male. The company also acquired both Miss USA and Miss Teen USA.
When Jakrajutatip first took over Miss Universe, he stated, “We seek not only to continue its legacy of providing a platform to passionate individuals from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and traditions, but also to evolve the brand for the next generation.”
The forthcoming pageant is set to challenge traditional norms by featuring transgender-identifying contestants, including two biological males from Portugal and the Netherlands.
Last month, after public condemnation, the Miss Universe organization made a statement to CNN regarding the inclusion of biological men in the pageant.
Trans women are women, full stop,” the organization claimed. “We are here to celebrate women, full stop. This has been true for more than a decade, and we’re proud to have made this change very early on, compared to other programs.”
As the Miss Universe pageant approaches, the focus extends beyond the traditional elements of beauty and poise, and instead becomes a place for men to wear womanhood like a costume. This trend has become all-too-common in American society, with transgender-identifying influencers like Dylan Mulvaney gaining popularity among the mainstream media.
This piece first appeared at TPUSA.
