A second from the 2024 Miss Kansas pageant is making the rounds on social media, which featured a strong onstage revelation.
Alexis Smith, of Butler County, was formally topped Miss Kansas on June 8, beating out 25 different contestants for the title, in accordance with CBS affiliate KWCH-DT and Garden City Telegram.
Smith, 25, is simply the third Black lady to win the title, per ABC affiliate KAKE.
Through the interview portion of the competition, which Smith shared on social media, she firmly acknowledged her aim as Miss Kansas could be to “eradicate unhealthy and abusive relationships.”
She then made a surprising declaration: “A few of you out on this viewers noticed me very emotional, as a result of my abuser is right here immediately.”
“However that is not going to cease me from being on this Miss Kansas stage and representing as the following Miss Kansas,” she continued. “I and my group deserve wholesome relationships. We deserve a home [violence]-free life.”
On July 16, a clip of the second obtained shared on Smith’s official X account, which then went viral.
Alongside the clip learn the phrases, “Respect Reclaimed!” — a reference to her group service platform — in addition to the message, “Our time is now for wholesome relationships.”
By no means miss a narrative — join PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to remain up-to-date on one of the best of what PEOPLE has to supply, from celeb information to driving human curiosity tales.
Miss Kansas Group & Invoice Rea
The submit, which has over 53 thousand views, drew reward from numerous social media customers.
“YOU GO GIRL. YOU make me pleased with my residence state ” wrote one commenter, whereas one other replied, “I simply obtained chills. She’s wonderful!”
Added a 3rd, “What a tremendous method to take your energy again. I obtained goosebumps. I do know there are different victims watching her now realizing they aren’t alone.”
In an announcement to PEOPLE, Smith says that: “As Miss Kansas, my platform is deeply rooted in empowering individuals to interrupt free from cycles of home violence and unhealthy relationships. My reply on stage displays my dedication to fostering a world the place each particular person feels secure, valued, and empowered to thrive.”
“By the Miss America program, I’ve discovered a strong platform to amplify my voice and advocate for many who could really feel silenced or alone,” Smith provides. “I’ll use my story as a catalyst for change kicking open doorways to encourage others and create a society the place everybody can reside free from worry and abuse.”
Talking with the Leader and Times, Smith mentioned that her work with home violence victims stems from her “personal private experiences…whether or not that was in my family or my very own experiences of falling into that cycle of abuse on the age of 14.”
In an interview with NBC affiliate KSNW she went on to say that “my household, each single lady in my household, was impacted by home violence.”
Opening up some extra about her personal expertise, she mentioned that when she was 14 she “obtained in my first relationship, but it surely was additionally an abusive relationship that I used to be in till about 2018, 2019. It’s one thing that I’m nonetheless experiencing and coping with immediately.”
In a statement on Facebook, Smith went on to say that on the evening of the Miss Kansas pageant, “my journey took an surprising flip when somebody I’ve been therapeutic from tried to disrupt my peace. As an alternative of falling into silence, I selected to reside out my imaginative and prescient for a greater world. I took again my energy – not only for myself, however for my desires and everybody watching and listening.”
“This isn’t about shunning others,” she added. “It’s about turning our ache into functions and channeling it in a means that unifies and uplifts.”
Miss Kansas Group & Invoice Rea
Smith instructed KWCH-DT she hopes to unfold her message to the youth in Kansas by utilizing her expertise in ventriloquism, which was her expertise through the Miss Kansas contest, to succeed in them.
“With the ability to create our personal particular ventriloquism dolls which might be stuffed with totally different traits of wholesome relationships that they need to see within the individuals round them,” mentioned Smith, who has been doing ventriloquism for 19 years.
Smith will now go on to signify Kansas on the subsequent Miss America competitors in Jan. 2025.
If you’re experiencing home violence, name the Nationwide Home Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is on the market 24/7 in additional than 170 languages.
