Aleah Green crowned as 42nd Miss Unity
Aleah Green, a junior broadcast journalism and African-American studies double major, stands in front of the crowd holding her bouquet of flowers, trophy, and special awards after being crowned the 42nd annual Miss Unity Scholarship Pageant winner at the Hoff Theater in College Park, Md. on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019. (Jasmine Boykin/The Black Explosion)
Aleah Green, a 20-year-old from Spring Valley, New York took home the Miss Unity crown, winning against seven other contenders. She walked away with free in-state tuition (valued up to $4,000) and an assortment of other prizes.
“It's truly an honor to be crowned the 2019-2020 Miss Unity and I hope to live up to the legacy of the many women that have held this position before me,” Green said.
The theme for this year’s pageant was “Salute To Power,” which cast a light on what it truly means to be a woman. The pageant’s bulletin listed the theme to describe a woman who “may a light shine from the prism of truth, to reflect the positive growth and restoration of [her] confident belief in [her] ability, function and role in society.”
Her fellow competitors were: sophomore voice/theater major Leilani Glendenin, freshman biology major Bunkayo Olaborade, junior computer science major Helina Abebe, junior family science major Celeste Iroha, junior philosophy major Destiny Ward, junior marketing and finance major Goodness Ihekweme, and junior Dance and pre-dentistry major Miejo Dambita.
The eight contestants were judged in six different categories: participation, platform and introduction, talent, evening gown, question and answer, and the “pageant booster,” which is given to the contestant who raises the most funds through Miss Unity Scholarship Pageant ticket sales and advertisement revenues.
During the question and answer portion, every contestant had 30 seconds to respond, individually, to the following question:
“Which do you find the most valuable: strength, bravery or resilience? And explain your answer.”
Destiny Ward, a junior philosophy major, earned the highest score and won the Question & Answer special award for stating,
“I think that resilience is the most valuable trait of the three because you can be brave and you can take risks but you will experience failures, trials and tribulations, and downfalls. You have to be able to preserve and overcome any obstacle that comes your way.”
Ward walked home with two other special awards. She won the Best Talent Award with her monologue found in Tyler Perry’s “A Diary of a Mad Black Woman.” Ward said she gave this performance with the spirit of hip-hop greats such as Lauryn Hill, Nas and Jay-Z. Ward also received the Pageant Booster Award for gaining the most fundraising monies out of the entire group.
Green wowed the crowd with a bright smile and a confident walk during the introduction round allowing her to win the Platform and Introduction special award.
Green dedicated her platform to human trafficking and more specifically, the protection of Black women’s bodies from modern-day slavery.
For her talent piece, she performed an original spoken-word piece inspired by Jamaican-American poet June Jordan titled “Taking Our Bodies Back,” which was written to “empower, educate and encourage.”
Green also won the Best Evening Gown Award with her long, gold sequined gown.
Contestants voted Goodness Ihekweme, a junior marketing and finance major, as Miss Congeniality. The award is given to the contestant selected for her friendliness, compassion, helpfulness, cooperation and confidence.
The reigning Miss Unity, Jeyda Muhammad, a sophomore architecture major, passed down the crown to Green.
The first Miss Unity Scholarship Pageant was held in the Fall of 1979. Its purpose, according to the pageant’s pamphlet is “to promote unity among students and student groups and to promote cultural awareness and appreciation of the contributions and achievements of all women.” It also stated, “to involve the University of Maryland community in a meaningful cultural/social interaction [and] promote campus unity.”
Anne Reese Carswell, associate director of the Nyumburu Cultural Center, believes traditions like the Miss Unity Pageant allow Black students to enjoy things that you might not find at a predominantly white institution like the University of Maryland.
“We have to do things for our community. Just because [Black students] do not attend an HBCU [historically black college or university], does not mean we don’t have to have some of the things that they have at an HBCU,” Carswell said.
“I can't wait to get started on fulfilling my platform. I think missing women and girls along with human sex trafficking is gaining a lot more attention on social media. I want to work in a space that helps to protect and heal survivors and ensures no one has to go through that again,” Green said.
This story has been updated.