Miss Massachusetts Hopeful Quits After 'Me Too' Joke During Pageant

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Me Too, God Too

July 9th, 2018 – A beauty pageant winner has turned in her crown in protest after a skit mocking the Me Too movement was performed during the Miss Massachusetts competition last week. Maude Gorman was in the running to represent Massachusetts in the Miss America event this fall and was backstage when the skit took place.

“I instantly knew I had to do something,” Gorman told CNN about the moment she heard the joke. “It was going to eat away at me if I didn’t…we were all shocked. We said, ‘Oh my god. I cannot believe that just happened. Did that just really happen?'”

What really happened on stage was a sketch performed by the night’s emcee where a woman is on her knees talking to a man dressed as God. The woman references the very recent, and very controversial, decision made by the Miss America Organization to do away with the swimsuit competition in support of the Me Too movement.

“Miss America did away with the swimsuit competition,” the host begins. “We may have very well seen the last ever swimsuit competition on stage. It’s very upsetting and I’m trying to understand, God, why it happened.”

“Me too, Amy,” the man dressed as God replied as he held up a #MeToo sign.

Gorman told CNN that she “instantly” knew she had to take action and made her formal resignation as Miss Plymouth County on Instagram on July 5th – telling her followers that she would not succumb to those who asked her to simply “let it go.”

Today, I officially resigned from the title of Miss Plymouth County 2018. While I’m grateful for the opportunities that @missamerica creates for young women, I am also internally conflicted; as the #metoo movement was mocked on stage during the final competition of Miss Massachusetts. As both a survivor, and advocate for victims rights and sexual violence on a whole, I refuse to stand idly by and simply “let this go”. Instead, I will stand up for every individual who has ever had the courage to speak out; and for every person who felt liberated by the #metoo movement. I will not allow ANYONE to take away that empowerment and liberation, or make it anything less than what it is: AMAZING. #metoo #missplymouthcounty #nomore #rainn #surviveandthrive

A post shared by Maude Gorman 🇺🇸 (@maudernliving) on Jul 5, 2018 at 9:03am PDT

Gorman is not just an advocate but a survivor who has been outspoken about her rape at age 13. She has spent years volunteering at rape crisis centers and continues to use her platform to help victims remove the blame from themselves.

The Miss Massachusetts MAO posted an apology to their Facebook account saying that the skit was not authorized by the board.

The controversy surrounding both the skit and the decision to remove the swimsuit competition have raged on over the week, causing the Massachusetts chapter to offer another explanation for the skit and Gretchen Carlson to defend the programming decision.

Taking to the Miss Massachusetts Facebook page again, Rich Allegretto issued a personal apology and explanation for his role in the Me Too skit.

For her part, Carlson, who recently became chair of Miss America Organization after an email scandal broke last December revealing the sexist, degrading views of the former CEO, doubled down on the decision to not make contestants perform in the swimsuit competition.

“We’re working through this in the best way we can,” she told Good Morning America regarding the public backlash. “We believe that physical appearance and beauty and being fit — that is empowering. We’re just not going to judge women on that.”

Watch the video, obtained by the Observer, and let us know if you think an apology was needed from the Miss Massachusetts organization for the Me Too skit.

A beauty queen gave up her title after a skit was performed at the Miss Massachusetts competition that made fun of the #MeToo movement https://t.co/DLisrZ5FaE pic.twitter.com/DjJwdl1vs2

— CNN (@CNN) July 9, 2018