The power of a selfie

I believe any beauty pageant is a contest of shallowness that aims to reward how physically attractive you are. But I also believe that an international beauty pageant is indeed a contest of high financial and reputational importance, as the elected winner’s nation may benefit in many areas from her glory and fame.

To achieve such glory and fame, a pageant contester usually contributes in other ways than just posing, waving and smiling on a stage. She visits and show interest in nonprofit organization’s events, the related ”Miss Universe Cordaid Fund” being one of them. All while a crew with cameras is there to capture the moment, with the purpose of showing that “what’s on the inside is important, too!”

Doron Matalon represents Israel in this year’s “Miss Universe” contest. I’m not judging her decision to run for the crown, but I’m letting her know why I think she will never win this so-wanted crown.

Matalon comes from a democratic country. In 2015, this no longer raises many eyebrows amongst the most dedicated spectators of the contest. But it becomes a hot topic of discussion when the nation she represents is surrounded by thick frowns, rather than the usual wide smiles we are used to see in said contest.

Matalon enters the contest as a smiling individual, representing a nation and a geographical area that often sheds many tears. She represents a nation that is frowned upon by the international community, a nation that attracts most of its attention not due to charisma à la Doron, but due to constant reminders of the everlasting conflict in the area. A conflict that is typically broadcasted as one-sided, where the Israeli soldiers are cold-blooded killers, and the Palestinians whom are the counterpart, are sitting ducks in a cold-blooded killing spree.

I believe the crown will never rest on her head simply because she’s a former IDF soldier. “No one” wants a queen who once got her hands dirty and that knows not only how to wave and smile, but also how to handle a gun and aim correctly.

Should her background as a soldier and her nationality indeed be reasons for her loss in the competition, I can only ask this: Does shedding tears in a war mean you can never smile again?

Speaking of war: Did Miss Israel “photobomb” Miss Lebanon? A recent photo, a so-called selfie recently emerged, and has been heavily debated. It shows four amazingly pretty girls. Sadly, two of them represent countries in a current conflict. I really hope Lebanon will not punish their contester Saly for such a simple photo. The world deserves to see, that at least on a photo, the nations of the Levant can come together in peace, bearing smiles and not frowns nor tears.

Doron is by far the perfect winner of the crown. She’s a fighter, a democratic representative, she’s cute, she seems funny and interesting (yeah, I have stalked her on Facebook). And above all, she’s the living proof that in a country, Muslims, Jews, Catholics, Christians, and any religion or non-religion person can cohabite in peace.

I once heard the next quote: “The one who wishes to wear the crown… must bear its weight“.

Doron is strong enough to bear the weight of the crown, but if the world is not ready to see a multi-national selfie exempt of political measures of four individuals who hail from countries of conflict, then the world is not ready to see her bear it with pride and love.

Doron, I’m proud of what you represent, and I’m proud that you stand up front and smile, because even if the crown doesn’t get to you, you will always be a winner. You will always be the Queen of the contest, to me and to your country.