Deaf woman (Mia le Roux), has made history as the first deaf woman to win the Miss South Africa title.
Her win comes in the wake of a heated competition, which saw one of her fellow finalists, Chidimma Adetshina, pull out amid controversy and online abuse over her Nigerian heritage.
In her acceptance speech, le Roux shared that her achievement would inspire others who feel excluded to pursue their dreams.
She expressed a strong desire to support those who face financial difficulties or have disabilities.
Adetshina, a 23-year-old law student, withdrew from the pageant last week following allegations that her mother might have misused the identity of a South African woman.
Adetshina was born in South Africa to a Nigerian father and a Mozambican mother and had been targeted by social media critics, including a cabinet minister, questioning her legitimacy as a representative of South Africa.
She spoke out about experiencing “black-on-black hate,” a specific form of xenophobia in South Africa known as “afrophobia,” which discriminates against people from other African countries.
Le Roux, 28, who has profound hearing loss and uses a cochlear implant, spent two years in speech therapy before she could speak her first words.
Reflecting on her victory, she said, “I am a proudly South African deaf woman and I know what it feels like to be excluded. I now realize I was put on this planet to break boundaries, and I did it tonight.”
