Uproar following Ukrainian-born model’s victory as Miss Japan

“Japanese people have faced racism and it has been hard for them to be accepted. ”

Carolina Shiino said in perfect Japanese that she was very happy and crying after she won Miss Japan on Monday.

The model is 26 years old and from Ukraine. She moved to Japan when she was 5 and grew up in Nagoya.

She is the first person who became Japanese citizen to win the pageant, but her win has started a debate about what it really means to be Japanese.

Some people think her win shows that society is changing, but others say she doesn’t fit the traditional image of a Miss Japan.

She won nearly 10 years after Ariana Miyamoto, who became the first bi-racial woman to win Miss Japan in 2015.

In the past, people were unsure if someone with parents from different races should be allowed to win the competition after Ms. Miyamoto, who had a Japanese mother and an African American father, won.

Some people on social media are upset that Ms Shiino does not have Japanese parents.

“This person who was picked as Miss Japan is not Japanese, she is completely from Ukraine. ” She is pretty, but she is ‘Miss Japan’. A message on X, used to be Twitter, asked “Where is the Japanese culture. ”

“If she was part Japanese, then it’s no problem. ” Another person said that she is not Japanese at all and was not born in Japan.

Some people said her victory was sending a negative message to others in the country.

“I believe that Japanese people might misunderstand if a person who looks European is called the most beautiful Japanese. ”

Some people wondered if it was a political choice to select a model from Ukraine.

“If she had been born in Russia, she wouldn’t have won. ” No way Clearly, the standards are now decided by politicians. “Someone said it’s a very sad day for Japan. ”

Ai Wada, who runs the Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant, told the media that the judges picked Ms Shiino as the winner with a lot of belief in their choice.

Ms Wada said that she speaks and writes in nice and polite Japanese. “She is more like a Japanese person than we are. ”

Last year, Ms. Shiino posted on Instagram that she got Japanese nationality. She said that even though she doesn’t look Japanese, she feels Japanese because she grew up in Japan.

She was very happy to win the Miss Japan 2024 title and called it a dream come true.

“I am happy to be recognized as a Japanese in this competition. “