African American Pageant Research Paper

As an African American woman, people tend to doubt my ability to do certain things because of my race and gender. I have learned to not live in their narrow perceptions of me but instead break through those barriers, not just to prove it to them but also to myself. Though the saying is cliché I do whole heartedly believe that if you put in enough effort and time into anything you can achieve your goals. This was the belief I had when I entered into my city’s pageant. There was a girl running in my division who had won a previous title for the teen division two years before. I did not let this deter me and decided that I at least wanted to place in the top three for the pageant. For months I practiced and recited my speech and walk until I could do it all based on memory. The day of the pageant came and in the end, I won first place and reigned in my city for over a year. During the course of the year, I did volunteer work, such as working with Ronald McDonald House, Rely for Life, and …show more content…
By keeping a positive attitude, it is possible overcome many things. I learned this when I joined the cross country team at my school. To be honest I hate to run but I had decided to join the team in order to make new friends, since it was the biggest team on campus. At my first 3 mile race, I came in last place, but despite this, my team cheered my on until I got to the finish line. I felt so loved and supported by this kind act that I decided that I would do the same for them. I would cheer on the other teams when they looked at little defeated because although it was race, I felt it was important for everyone involved to feel empowered so they would do the same for another runner. At the end of the season, I was awarded the Ohana Award by my coach, which symbolized that he believe that I had helped to unite the team and that became one of my proudest