Published: 2015-09-04 12:41:34

The argument that Jamaican beauty pageants favour light-skinned women as opposed to dark-skinned women renews each year when local beauties enter the Miss Jamaica World and Miss Jamaica Universe pageants.

What is not the norm however, is the contestants speaking out against perceived notions and possible biases that others claim exist.

But one finalist in the recently concluded Miss Jamaica Universe pageant is speaking out, claiming that light-skinned women are indeed preferred.

Twenty-seven-year-old Kinesha Goldson, who wore the sash Miss Pings Fabrics is the author of the letter titled "Beauty pageants skewed against black beauties" published in today's Gleaner newspaper.

In the letter, Goldson stated,"I experienced so much self-loathing and classism during my time in Jamaica as a contestant, and it really hurts my heart that a nation whose motto is 'Out of Many, One People' seems to have forgotten what 'many' looks like."

Goldson went on to state that she was disappointed when the top 12 beauties were selected because only two dark-skinned girls were included.

"I was disappointed by the selection of the top 12, not because I wasn't in it, but because out of 25 girls, only two girls with a skin tone reflective of the majority of the Jamaican population made the cut. The top six question-and-answer section could've been edited with a Spanish voice-over and you wouldn't have known the difference," Goldson's letter stated.

Kinesha Goldson was born to Jamaican parents but lives in Boston, United States.