Transgender owner of Miss Universe takes the stage, declares pageant will 'celebrate the power of feminism' — and observers have strong reactions

Anne Jakrajutatip — a multimillionaire transgender woman who recently purchased the Miss Universe pageant — hit the competition stage Saturday in New Orleans and announced a new era has commenced

Jakrajutatip — a 43-year-old biological male who reportedly always felt like a woman — told the cheering crowd that after 70 years of the pageant being run by men, "it's the moment, really, for women to take the lead."

“Welcome to the Miss Universe Organization. From now on, it’s gonna be run by women, owned by a transwoman ... for all women, really, around the world to celebrate the power of feminism ... gender equality, creativity, a force for good, and of course the beauty of humanity," Jakrajutatip said.

Jakrajutatip may have misspoken with the start of a subsequent point — "When I was born, as a trans woman" — then added "who got bullied and sexually harassed by my own teacher when I was young, plus I was not accepted by society because they did not want to embrace my differences. But guess what. ... I chose not to surrender. I turned pain into power, and I turned life lessons into wisdom."

The pageant's new owner added that on "this stage called Miss Universe competition, we can elevate our women to feel strong enough, good enough, and qualified enough, and never be objectified again."

Here's an edited clip of Jakrajutatip's remarks:

Miss Universe Owner Anne Jakrajutatip Message at The Miss Universe 2023 #annejakrajutatip #trendingyoutu.be

Jakrajutatip in past interviews spoke of attending an all-male school in Thailand, getting bullied by classmates, heading to Australia to study — and there beginning a gender transition. Notably Jakrajutatip reportedly chose to keep a deep baritone voice.

Jakrajutatip bought the company that owns Miss Universe for $20 million.

How are folks reacting?

As you might expect, observers on Twitter have been sharing some strong reactions to Jakrajutatip's speech:

• "The new boss of the Miss Universe contest proclaims it will now [be] run by women and will celebrate feminism, inadvertently forgetting perhaps that he is, in fact, a man," noted Peter Whittle, founder and director of the New Culture Forum.
• "With this guy running things, you should expect to see a lot more dudes competing for Miss (soon to be “Mx”) Universe," tweeted Delano Squires, a contributor to TheBlaze. "THIS is 'trans patriarchy' in action."
• "Listening to that transgender Miss Universe owner lecture the public on what it means to be a woman really takes the cake," commentator Ian Miles Cheong stated.
• "I regret to inform you that this video of the new Miss Universe owner is entirely real," Not the Bee tweeted.
• Journalist Alana Mastrangelo added that "it’s like a dystopian nightmare we can’t wake up from" in regard to the "new owner of Miss Universe, a biological male."

In case anyone was wondering, Miss USA R’Bonney Gabriel won the pageant:

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