Miss USA contestants back Noelia Voigt, call for transparency from org
Miss USA contestants are calling for transparency from the organization amid Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voigt announcing that she would be relinquishing her crown, citing mental health issues.
Dozens of contestants have shown solidarity by posting a joint statement on their social media accounts. It reads: “The majority of the members of the Miss USA class of 2023 support Noelia Voigt’s decision to resign from the title of Miss USA. Prioritizing one’s mental health is of the utmost importance, and we stand behind her.”
The statement continues, “We are asking the Miss USA Organization to release Noelia from the confidentiality NDA clause of her contract, in perpetuity, so that she is free to speak on her experiences and time as Miss USA. We request a response within 24 hours.
“Our goal is to give Noelia her voice back. We are asking for full transparency for contestants in the class of 2024 and beyond.”
USA TODAY has reached out to the Miss USA Organization for comment.
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The message came hours after UmaSofia Srivastava, Miss Teen USA 2023, also announced her resignation, citing the fact that her “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.”
In response, Miss USA CEO and President Laylah Rose said in a statement shared with USA TODAY on Wednesday that “All along, my personal goal as the head of this organization has been to inspire women to always create new dreams, have the courage to explore it all, and continue to preserve integrity along the way. I hold myself to these same high standards and I take these allegations seriously.”
The statement continued, “Please be assured that the well-being of all individuals associated with Miss USA is my top priority.”
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Following Voigt’s post, social media users noticed that the first letter in each sentence of her statement revealed the phrase “I AM SILENCED.”
Alexis Loomans (Miss Wisconsin USA) – who was the second runner-up to the Miss USA title – Caroline Dixon (Miss Florida USA), Rachelle Di Stasio (Miss New York USA), Mackenzie Schutt (Miss Ohio USA), Jordyn McKey (Miss North Carolina USA), Monni Nyaribo (Miss North Dakota USA) and Madyson Rigg (Miss Montana USA) are among those who voiced their support by posting the graphic on social media.
“Everyone deserves a chance to speak,” Dixon wrote in her Instagram Story repost of the statement.
McKey wrote a lengthy caption alongside the statement, which she shared on both her personal account and the official @missncusa account.
“I STAND WITH HER! As someone who has struggled with her own mental health, I commend Noelia for prioritizing herself and setting a beautiful example that your health is paramount to anything else. I am deeply saddened by the lack of transparency by the Miss USA organization and pray we see change soon,” McKey wrote.
“We lost a Miss USA recently, that wore the same state across her chest that I do now and I take it very seriously to advocate for utilizing your voice and feeling able/ safe to do so. It is of the utmost importance to me to uphold myself to being open and candid as it is potentially helping save others in the process,” she continued. “We cannot silence a woman who has had the experience of what our next class of Miss USA contestants are walking into. It needs to be addressed.”
In 2022, Miss USA 2019 winner Cheslie Kryst, who was formerly Miss North Carolina USA, died by suicide at age 30.
McKey’s message concluded: “I take so much pride in being a woman in pageantry, and I pray that I see the day when my morals and beliefs will align again with the organization and the origin of why I started competing in the first place. I stand on transparency and I want to hear her speak, it could save lives.”
Rigg captioned the same graphic with a message that read, in part, “Today, we stand together, a little scared, very emotional, and with the full knowledge that we have the ability to be the change makers our system has always claimed to want to empower. @missusa @missuniverse the decision is in your hands. Do what is right.”
In a statement shared with USA TODAY earlier this week in response to Voigt’s resignation, the entity said, “We respect and support former Miss USA Noelia Voigt’s decision to step down from her duties. The well-being of our titleholders is a top priority, and we understand her need to prioritize herself at this time.”
The statement continued, “The organization is currently reviewing plans for the transition of responsibilities to a successor and an announcement regarding the crowning of the new Miss USA will be coming soon.”
