The Miss USA pageant dedicated an entire segment of its show Sunday night to the contestants who are first-generation Americans.
The contestants — including Miss Texas, Miss New York and Miss California — talked about what it was like to have parents who emigrated during the portion of the show before the swimsuit competition.
“Coming to America was going to be the best thing for our family, ” Miss Nebraska Hoang-Kim Cung said. “Just because of freedom, democracy, human rights and there’s so many more opportunities here.”
“I would love to let people know that we are accepting of all cultures, that it’s OK to be different, you should embrace it, ” Miss Arizona Maurren Montagne said.
“That is wonderful. That makes you beautiful and unique.”
Some watching saw it as a celebration of immigration, while others found it ironic.
I am loving how they're showing the colorful diversity of the Miss USA women . Race and origin does not matter…. All American all amazing
— Melissa King (@Melissa_M_King) July 13, 2015
http://twitter.com/BrittanyViklund/status/620398739530747908
A lot of emphasis on the cultural diversity of these girls. A lot of 1st and 2nd generation Americans. #MissUSA
— Elizabeth Vowell (@ElizabethWAFB) July 13, 2015
I find it really ironic that most of the #MissUSA contestants are 1st generation Americans.
— K Δ Y E L Δ (@kaye_swiss) July 13, 2015
NBC pulled the pageant after Donald Trump made a comment about Mexican immigrants during his presidential announcement.
“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best,” Trump said. “They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.”
Stream the rest of the pageant online at missusa.com.