Far from the superficial conventions of the old beauty pageants, Miss Germany has announced its new winner: the Iranian architect Apameh Schönauer, who took the stage full of joy at her coronation as Miss Germany 2024 with her shiny sash and a broad smile.
Mother and architect Schönauer She is characterized by her commitment and does not shy away from expressing her commitment to women’s rights and her commitment to the integration of immigrants into German society.
She herself is an immigrant, was born in Iran and moved to Germany with her family at the age of six. Schönauer talks about the initial difficulties of life in a foreign country, coping with adjusting to school and the temporary loss of his identity. On stage, she expressed her desire to support young women like her who are facing the challenges of immigration in Germany.
Through her organization Shirzan, which means “lioness,” Schönauer supports oppressed women and encourages them to share their experiences, inspire and support each other to achieve their full potentiall.
Schönauer’s victory represents a significant step in the more inclusive direction that the Miss Germany competition has taken since 2019. They abandoned standards of physical beauty and advocated for a more complex definition of beauty that focused on the personality and actions of the participants.
This year’s finalists break the traditional image of beauty queens a woman who has been living with a donated heart for two and a half yearsItra, who suffers from a rare autoimmune disease and uses a wheelchair.
This year the competition’s age limit was also lifted, making the oldest finalist 42 years old. According to the organizers, around 15,000 women applied to take part in a selection process that lasted several months.
But shortly after his victory, Schönauer became the target of criticism and accusations of “wokism” on social media. YesHer critics questioned her failure to conform to stereotypical beauty standards, and some said she wasn’t “German enough.” and they compare her with blonde women and other beauty queens, such as Miss Universe Germany 2023, Helena Bleicher.
Nevertheless, the Miss Germany pageant remains true to its new mission of inclusion and replaces the winner’s crown with a “Female Leader Award”, which includes a check for 25,000 euros. The web portal “Miss Germany” makes it clear: “We are looking for women who take responsibility and are role models and thus contribute to a cosmopolitan and modern society.”