Forty years after beauty pageants were introduced in America in 1920, child beauty pageants paved their way into the industry. “According to Charles Dunn, publisher of Pageantry Magazine, "Every year beauty pageants show off 100,000 children under the age of twelve". Operated by “for-profit” organizations, pageants are provided at a local, state or national level. There is no concrete way in which a pageant must be operated. The management and rules are set for each specific pageant by the contest director. Depending on the competition size, prizes range from cash awards and trophies to tiaras and puppies. “Some of the criteria considered in judging a pageant are writing skills, interviews, personality, looks, confidence and talent, depending on the specific competition”.
The nation’s largest child beauty pageant, Universal Royalty pageant, features sixty contestants divided into different age groups ranging from 0-30 years old. Competitions are held monthly with an entry fee of $545. This does not include the outstanding costs of contest attire, lessons, travel, overnight accommodations, and food expenses, which several stage mothers claim can cost up to $12,000. Universal Royalty pageants also encourage family values by offering opportunities for fathers of contestants to enter “dad competitions”, which are free of charge and provide a small award for the winner. The director of Universal Royalty Annette Hill, a former child pageant competitor herself, promotes a professional and organized atmosphere for her contestants.
Practicing for hours weekly, and receiving money and prizes for performances, it is surprising that “child pageant contestants are not considered to be “working” children”. Beauty pageants are exempt from the federal child labour laws because of their individually set guidelines. We feel that there should be laws and regulations implemented in the pageant world, to ensure a consistently positive experience for kids. To avoid child abuse and exploitation, guidelines should be enforced to limit the number of hours regarding performance, practice and travel.
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