Miss Michigan Kathy Zhu was stripped of her title from the Miss World America beauty pageant for reportedly tweeting against wearing a hijab and other “offensive, insensitive, and inappropriate” posts.
Zhu, a 20-year-old University of Michigan student and Donald Trump supporter who emigrated to the U.S. from China when she was 5, had the Miss Michigan title revoked just a day after she was crowned, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Zhu tweeted that the decision stemmed from her “refusal to try on a hijab in 2018” at her college campus and past tweets regarding Muslims and African Americans.
MWA Michigan State Director Laurie DeJack announced the measure via an email to Zhu:
“It has been brought to the attention of Miss World America that your social media accounts contain offensive, insensitive and inappropriate content, and in violation of MWA’s Rules and Conditions, specifically the contestant requirement of ‘being of good character and whose background is not likely to bring into disrepute Miss World America or any person associated with the organisation. Therefore, and effective immediately, MWA does not recognize you as a participant of any sort or in any capacity as it relates to any and all events of MWA. Furthermore, let this communication serve as official notice to remove any mention of yourself as a participant in MWA from all social media platforms (including photographs of you wearing the MWA Michigan sash and/or crown, and any text claiming to be a participant of MWA events).”
Zhu wrote in one tweet that the African American community should “fix problems within [their] own community” because a “majority of black deaths are caused by other blacks.”
“I have seen this happen before,” Zhu told Freep.com. “It is just not okay to be prejudiced against people who just have a different political view as you.”
Representatives from Miss World America reportedly did not respond to requests for comments.
