An interesting aspect to American Samoa culture are the Fa'afafine. Fa'afafine are transgender individuals that live in American Samoa and other areas of the South Pacific. Fa'afafine assume a female gender role and are an accepted part of the Samoan way of life. Every year the fa'afafine association holds various talent and beauty pageants to support local causes. This was the annual beauty pageant, which included talent, fashion, and evening gown/Q&A portions.
Almost every contestant chose the same talent, which was lip-synching and dancing to some pop song. My favorite was the contestant that "sang" "Jesus, Take the Wheel" with American sign language.
The clothes were impressive
and in the end Trinity Ali was crowned Miss (Fa'afafine) American Samoa. It was a unique evening to say the least and an interesting insight into American Samoa culture. Samoa news has a good article about the pageant and the winner here.
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