Beautiful little Jakiyah McKoy was probably over the moon when she won the Little Miss Hispanic Delaware title. In a cruel twist of fate, it was snatched away from her. Why? Apparently, there were “people” who complained that she doesn’t look like a Latina because she’s black. Latinos come in all colors except black, right? Like any other seven-year-old, she’s completely devastated.

As per her supporters in an article from the NY Daily News:

“Nuestras Raices Delaware has blocked her win after an outcry from people claiming that, because she is black, she is ‘not the best representative of Latin beauty,'” he wrote.

“The title is now pending while the committee ‘investigates’ Jakiyah’s heritage. Meanwhile, none of the other competitors were subject to such an investigation,” he added.

Nuestra Raices President Maria Parez, however, denied the allegations of racism.

According to pageant rules, a contestant must meet the  25% requirement. That means at least one grandparent MUST be Hispanic.  Jakiyah’s parents maintain that her maternal grandmother was from the Dominican Republic which meets that requirement. That didn’t satisfy pageant officials. Their argument is that the parents didn’t show proof that Jakiyah has Hispanic ancestry. Fair enough but claims are made that NO other contestant had to show proof of any kind. Pageant officials deny this claim. Jakiyah’s parents’ counter argument is that they can’t show proof because her Hispanic grandmother is deceased.   As a result, the beautiful child was dethroned. The strange thing is, they waited until after she won the pageant to make a big deal about her ancestry. That would leave anyone suspicious since the timing makes no sense. That also leaves her supporters to suspect that racist community outrage over her win is the real reason why she was stripped of her crown. If that’s the case, there is a chilling reality at play…they did not care about how this chaos would affect a little girl.

Is this a case of the colorism and racism that’s so prevalent among the Latino community?

Are Jakiya’s parent’s and supporters crying racism where none exists?

What does it say about any individual, group, or organization that gives a child such an honor only to take it away regardless of who should have done what?

Thoughts?