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Miss Trans Global

Formation	May 1, 2020; 3 years ago (2020-05-01)
Founder	Miss Sahhara, (since 2020) ( Executive Producer/ President)
Type	Beauty pageant
Headquarters	London, England
Location	United Kingdom
Official language	English
Current titleholder	Piano Sarocha Akaros of   Thailand
Affiliations	TransValid, TransBeauty Magazine
Website	MissTransGlobal.com

Miss Trans Global is an annual international pageant for transgender women. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} According to itself, it is the biggest international advocacy pageant for transgender women. The event broadcasts live on multiple social networking websites from London, England. It has gained traction for transgender advocacy, raising awareness about queer culture and LGBT concerns, particularly in countries where transphobia and homophobia are prevalent. ^{[5] [6] [7] [8] [9]} The pageant presents itself as a safe space for transgender women to share their lived experiences through speeches, talent shows, and art. ^{[10] [11] [12]}

Mela Habijan of the Philippines won the first edition of Miss Trans Global in an event held virtually on September 12, 2020. ^{[13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]} Sruthy Sithara of India won the second edition where she was the first Indian transgender woman to win an international transgender pageant. ^[19] The current winner is Piano Sarocha Akaros of Thailand, who was crowned on Saturday, November 4, 2023, in London, United Kingdom. ^{[20] [21]}

History

The pageant was founded by Miss Sahhara, a transgender activist, and beauty queen who was behind Queen of Nations, another pageant for transgender women which has been held in the United Kingdom for the past 13 years. ^[22] According to Sahhara, she and her team thought of holding the 10th edition of Queen of Nations in 2017 online. Instead, they decided to launch a new title which is mainly geared towards transgender advocacy, education, and trans-empowerment through multiple digital platforms. They aimed to create an inclusive and accessible space for all transgender women from diverse backgrounds to express themselves on an international stage without leaving their homes or country. ^{[23] [24]}

According to Miss Sahhara, "Miss Trans Global was conceived in 2017 but realized during isolation in 2020. Our communities around the world are often either stuck at home with transphobic family members or homeless due to family rejection. Many of us are misunderstood at home and marginalized in society. Also, we have limited earning opportunities. So, we decided to help address some of these issues by engaging our online global community through the Miss Trans Global Digital Pageant".

The organizing team includes Sally Adams, a media and entertainment lawyer, Rica Paras, an information technology professional, and Imanni Da Silva, a model, artist, television presenter, and social activist.

The exclusion of transgender contestants in pageantry

In 2019, transgender pageant winner Anita Green ^{[25] [26]} filed a suit against Miss United States LLC on the grounds of gender identity discrimination. Green entered a franchise of Miss United States after participating in Miss Earth United States, ^[27] but was refused entry because of the competition rule which states that only a 'natural born female' is allowed to participate. ^{[28] [29]} A federal court dismissed Green's discrimination case against the pageant. ^[30]

The court filing submitted by Miss United States constantly misgendered Green and used derogatory words to invalidate the complainant's gender identity. ^{[31] [32]} Miss United States also says that allowing transgender women to compete in their competition would "undermine its vision" and would undermine their "message of biological female empowerment." ^[29] John T. Kaempf, the Miss United States pageant's lawyer praised the dismissal of Green's lawsuit, stating that the pageant "is not anti-transgender." "Miss United States wants to be able to hold a pageant that is only for biological females,". He stated that the organization "believes there can be a Miss Black USA pageant, a Miss Native American pageant, or a transgender pageant." ^[33]

In an interview with KGW, Green said, "I compete in pageantry to show that there are many different types of beauty... To me, that rule was saying that transgender women aren't women, and that sends a very harmful message." ^{[34] [35]}

Unperturbed by the news of the dismissal of her case, Green said “she is not giving up on her fight for justice for transgender women, and she is very proud of her achievement in raising awareness about the discrimination transgender women face in pageantry”. "This case brought awareness to an issue many people were and still are unaware of," Green told Oregon Live, "and that issue is that discrimination against transgender people is still actively happening in the private and public sector even within the pageant circuit." ^{[36] [37]}

The exclusion of transgender women from female only spaces

Some transgender activists have affirmed that the exclusion of transgender women from female-only spaces such as sports, pageants, and bathrooms has necessitated the creation of dedicated spaces for transgender people. ^{[38] [39]} Others argue that it may foster segregation.

Sociologist and feminist campaigner Finn Mackay stated in an interview with The Guardian, that reducing womanhood to fertility and genitals trivialises the damage done by patriarchy influenced by politics when it comes to sexuality and gender. "They do it for ideological reasons, as part of a campaign for trans exclusion. When people turn round and say: 'This is a dog whistle' – of course it is! Otherwise, why would you be chatting about people's genitals?" Mackay asked. ^[40]

Recent success

Miss USA, a franchise of Miss Universe, started allowing transgender women in their pageant in 2012. The pageant's first transgender state representative was Kataluna Enriquez, winner of Miss Nevada USA. Enriquez served as a judge in the first edition of Miss Trans Global. ^{[41] [42] [43]}

Goal

The main premise of Miss Trans Global is to "revolutionize pageantry" by including transgender women in mainstream beauty pageantry, and to raise awareness for trans issues. Many of the contestants are also transgender rights activists. ^{[44] [45] [46]} Their advocacies are heavily influenced by transphobic violence, including domestic violence, discrimination, and the murders of transgender women globally. An associate of the Miss Trans Global's team, Yunieski Carey Herrera, was murdered by her partner on November 17, 2020, in Miami, Florida. ^{[47] [48] [49] [50] [51]} She was crowned Miss Trans Global in 2019.

Advocacy

According to the organisation, the top 5 winners of Miss Trans Global work as spokespersons on transgender and LGBT issues worldwide. They claim to work closely with activist organisations such as TransValid, TransBeauty Magazine, ^{[52] [53]} TransGriot, ^[54] to educate cisgender people and inspire transgender people globally. The organisation started an initiative called 'For Trans Women by Trans Women', where a group of transgender women from different countries come together to raise awareness about issues that affect their local communities. ^{[55] [23] [56]}

The organizers said that Miss Trans Global "is not about a beautiful face and perfect body" but rather "about activism, charity, and intelligence". ^[57]

The pageant says the winners will serve as spokespeople "and work digitally to influence positive changes in our community internationally." ^[58]

The pageant considers itself as a digital and physical space for transgender women from different backgrounds who are driven through activism to highlight the plight of LGBT people in their various countries. The participants share their lived experiences through the use of digital content production and publishing through the guidance of the organisation. ^{[59] [60] [61] [62] [63]}

Competition and selection of winners

The organizers of the competition described it as "the future of international trans pageantry", because of its accessibility and ease of participation. The contestants execute the various tasks at home and submit videos to the judges. The winners are selected based on the scores given by the judges. ^[54]

Competition format

Contestants are given a creative challenge once a week. They film and produce a submission video in accordance with the rules and guidelines stipulated by the pageant directors. The judges then review their performances and score the contestants accordingly.

Judging

The judges are seasoned female transgender activists and pageant queens who have fought for transgender rights in their various countries. ^{[54] [64]}

Awards

Miss Trans Global and its runner-up awards are the adaption of the female British nobility titles, namely: ^[54]

• Queen Global, Miss Trans Global — Winner ^[23]
• Duchess Global — First runner-up ^[23]
• Marchioness Global — Second runner-up ^[23]
• Countess Global — Third runner-up ^[23]
• Baroness Global — Fourth runner-up ^[23]

The organisation's definition of a queen is a transgender woman who uses their voice for the voiceless and someone who marries the ambition of helping marginalised transgender community that are often discriminated against due to misconceptions. ^{[23] [59]}

Inaugural event

The inaugural competition, which took place on September 12, 2020, focused on transgender people suffering in isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It included participants from countries around the world. Miss Mela Franco Habijan from the Philippines became the first ever winner of the competition, in a coronation ceremony streamed live on YouTube and Facebook. ^[23]

The pageant's inaugural judges were:

• Monica Roberts, a notable transgender rights advocate and journalist in the United States who died on October 5, 2020 ^[65]
• Candi Stratton, a flight attendant, beauty queen, and transgender rights advocate
• Michelle Ross, founder-director of CliniQ Counselling and Wellbeing
• Kataluna Enriquez, Miss Nevada USA and fashion designer ^[66]
• Victoria Maxima Caram, Miss Trans Star International executive director
• Amanda Uzoma McQueens, founder of Friends in Diaspora for Friends in Africa ^{[64] [24] [23]}

Titleholders

Edition	Country	Titleholder	National Title	Venue of Competition	Entrants
2023	Thailand	Sarocha Akaros [67]	Miss LGBT Thailand	Rhoda McGaw Theatre, London, United Kingdom	10
2022	Brazil	Natasha Cardoso	Miss Trans Global Brasil	Virtual event, London, United Kingdom	6
2021	India	Sruthy Sithara	Miss Trans Global India		16
2020	Philippines	Mela Franco Habijan	Miss Trans Global Philippines		18

List of Runners-up

	The Civilization of ASIA	Global Diamond	Global Sapphire	Runners-Up
Miss Trans Asia				Second Princess Global	Third Princess Global
2024	Yuuta Cabal Takemasa   Philippines	Vivienne Melanie Mesias   England	Not awarded	Not awarded	Not awarded
2022	Abi Dela Paz Orencia Sytanco   Canada	Trisha Jose   Netherlands	Virgen Mariana Cortes   Colombia	Rojean Buhian   Philippines	Amanda Kamanda   Uganda
year	Duchess Global	Marchioness Global	Countess Global	Baroness Global	Runners-Up
					First Princess Global	Second Princess Global	Third Princess Global
2021	Albiean Revalde   Philippines	Viviana Santibanez   Canada	Fazelyn Ja'afar   Malaysia	Karla Michelle-Delprado   Mauritius	Amanda Sandova   Indonesia	Lesly Quispe   Peru	Not awarded
2020	Rebeckah Loveday   Australia	Veso Golden   Ghana	Semakaleng Mothapo   South Africa	Danielly Drugge   Sweden	Not awarded

Miss Trans Global 2023 Results

Placements

Placement	Contestant
Miss Trans Global 2023	Thailand – Sarocha Akaros [67]
Miss Trans Global Diamond	France – Kevhoney Scarlett
Miss Trans Global Sapphire	England – Vivienne Melanie Mesias
Top 5	Canada – Diana Dee Barrera   South Africa – Chedino Rodriguez Martin
Continental Queens
Miss Trans Global Americas	Canada – Diana Dee Barrera
Miss Trans Global Africa	South Africa – Chedino Rodriguez Martin
Special Awards
Queen of Hearts	Wales – Eva Dee Jesus
Queen of The Ball	Argentina – Lucila Thompson
Gifted Idol of The Year	Nigeria – Alexandra Etim
Catwalk Queen of The Year	Scotland – Hardy Jat
Activist Queen of The Year	South Africa – Chedino Rodriguez Martin
Glam Beauty of The Year	England – Vivienne Melanie Mesias
Eloquent Queen of The Year	Thailand – Sarocha Akaros
Stylish Queen of the Year	France – Kevhoney Scarlett
Best National Costume	Italy – Rica Gandara
Popular Goddess of the Year	Canada – Diana Dee Barrera

Miss Trans Global 2022 Results

Placements

Placement	Contestant
Miss Trans Global 2022	Brazil – Natasha Cardoso
Miss Trans Global Diamond	Canada – Abi Dela Paz Orencia Sytanco
Miss Trans Global Sapphire	Netherlands – Trisha Jose
First Princess Global	Colombia – Virgen Mariana Cortes
Second Princess Global	Philippines – Rojean Buhian
Third Princess Global	Uganda – Amanda Kamanda
Special Awards
Popular Goddess of the Year	Canada – Abi Dela Paz Orencia Sytanco
Best National Costume	Netherlands – Trisha Jose
Stylish Queen of the Year	Canada – Abi Dela Paz Orencia Sytanco
Eloquent Queen of The Year	Colombia – Virgen Mariana Cortes
Glam Beauty of The Year	Philippines – Rojean Buhian
Inspirational Queen of The Year	Uganda – Amanda Kamanda
Super Model of The Year	Brazil – Natasha Cardoso
Time Keeper of The Year	Netherlands – Trisha Jose
Queen of Hearts - (Chosen by participants)	Canada – Abi Dela Paz Orencia Sytanco
Monica Roberts Warrior National Director of The Year	Philippines – Yanyan Araña

Miss Trans Global 2021 Results

Placements

Placement	Contestant
Miss Trans Global 2021	India – Sruthy Sithara
Duchess Global	Philippines – Albiean Revalde
Marchioness Global	Canada – Viviana Santibanez
Countess Global	Malaysia – Fazelyn Jaafar
Baroness Global	Mauritius – Karla Michelle-Delprado
1st Princess Global	Indonesia – Amanda Sandova
2nd Princess Global	Peru – Lesly Quispe
Top 9	Ghana – Charlene MacCarthy-Crabbe   United Kingdom – Vera Nicholle Joren
Top 13	Armenia – Monica Sarkisyan   Australia – Addison Joy Harper   Japan – Bianca Sumi   Mexico – Lorena Barajas
Continental Queens
Miss Trans Global Asia-Pacific	Indonesia – Amanda Sandova
Miss Trans Global Americas	Peru – Lesly Quispe
Miss Trans Global Europe	United Kingdom – Vera Nicholle Joren
Miss Trans Global Africa	Ghana – Charlene MacCarthy-Crabbe
Special Awards
Popular Goddess Of The Year	Mauritius – Karla Michelle-Delprado
Activist Queen Of The Year	Canada – Viviana Santibanez   Malaysia – Fazelyn Jaafar   Peru – Lesly Quispe   Philippines – Albiean Revalde
Best National Costume	Philippines – Albiean Revalde
Stylish Queen of the Year	Peru – Lesly Quispe
Eloquent Queen of The Year	India – Sruthy Sithara   Philippines – Albiean Revalde
Inspirational Queen of The Year	Canada – Viviana Santibanez   Japan – Bianca Sumi   United Kingdom – Vera Nicholle Joren
Gifted Idol of The Year	Ghana – Charlene MacCarthy-Crabbe   Mexico – Lorena Barajas
Super Model of The Year	Mexico – Lorena Barajas
Glam Beauty of The Year	Armenia – Monica Sarkisyan
Time Keeper of The Year	Canada – Viviana Santibanez
Queen of Hearts 2021 - (Chosen by participants)	Indonesia – Amanda Sandova
Best National Crowning Moment of The Year	Indonesia – Amanda Sandova
Monica Roberts Warrior National Director of The Year	Philippines
Remainder
Brazil	Mirelly Rocha
Nigeria	Adanna Electra-Joels
Romania	Ariela Stanciu

Miss Trans Global 2020 Results

Placements

Placement	Contestant
Miss Trans Global 2020	Philippines – Mela Franco Habijan
Duchess Global	Australia – Rebeckah Loveday
Marchioness Global	Ghana – Veso Golden
Countess Global	South Africa – Semakaleng Sma Mothapo
Baroness Global	Sweden – Danielly Drugge
Top 10	Philippines – Maria   Nigeria – Diva   Canada – Thalia   United States – Kamilla   Philippines – Niña
Top 15	Australia – Amy   United States – Alhya   India – Victoria   Philippines – Aloha   Philippines – Nikki
Remainder
Australia	Hunny
Nigeria	Jasmine
Uruguay	Renata

Gallery of Miss Trans Global 2020 winners

• 
  Miss Trans Global 2020
  Mela Franco Habijan
  Philippines
• 
  Duchess Global 2020
  Rebeckah Loveday
  Australia
• 
  Marchioness Global 2020
  Veso Golden
  Ghana
• 
  Countess Global 2020
  Semakaleng Sma Mothapo
  South Africa
• 
  Baroness Global 2020
  Danielly Drugge
  Sweden

See also

• List of beauty contests
• Miss Trans Star International
• Miss Continental
• Miss T World
• Super Sireyna Worldwide
• Miss Trans Israel
• Miss Trans Albania

References