Newly crowned Miss Kansas, Alexis Smith, is reflecting on her courageous decision to call out her domestic violence abuser, who was in the audience during the beauty pageant.
A viral video captures the moment when 25-year-old Alexis Smith, a full-time cardiothoracic ICU nurse, stood on stage at the 2024 Miss Kansas Competition on June 8. As she responded to the host’s question about her vision as the next brand ambassador for the Miss Kansas Organization, Smith vowed to “eliminate unhealthy and abusive relationships.”
The beauty queen then bravely revealed, “Matter of fact, some of you out in this audience saw me very emotional because my abuser is here today. But that’s not going to stop me from being on this Miss Kansas stage and from representing as the next Miss Kansas, because I, and my community, deserve healthy relationships and we deserve a domestic [violence] -free life. Thank you.”
After her crowning, Alexis Smith shared a clip of her pledge on Facebook, stating, “Respect Reclaimed is about reclaiming your power and standing firmly in it. On the night of Miss Kansas, my journey took an unexpected turn when someone I have been healing from tried to disrupt my peace.
Also, read; Biden Backs Kamala Harris for 2024, Withdraws from Presidential Race
Instead of falling into silence, I chose to live out my vision for a better world. I took back my power—not just for myself, but for my dreams and everyone watching and listening.” She emphasized that her actions were about turning pain into purpose and using her story to empower others to reclaim their own power.
In an interview with KSNW’s Eddie Randle, Smith explained why she chose to confront her abuser publicly. “My family, every single woman in my family, was impacted by domestic violence. At the age of 14, I got into my first relationship, but it was also an abusive relationship that I was in until about 2018, 2019. It’s something that I’m still experiencing and dealing with today,” she shared. Smith noted that her new title provides her with a platform to make a serious impact on domestic violence issues.
Smith also highlighted the significance of the Miss Kansas crown, which stands for style, success, scholarship, and service. She expressed excitement about using her position to promote her social impact initiative and create a better community.
“A big part of that is service and going out and taking your community, and not only developing a better you but a better community as well, and talk about your social impact and your initiative. It’s something that I’m incredibly excited about to do on a large scale,” she said.
