Trans Miss SA contestant unfazed by backlash

Update

GEORGE NEWS - News that a transgender woman from George was competing in the 2025 Miss South Africa pageant elicited mixed reactions from George Herald readers.

On Monday morning, this publication published an article on its website outlining Jade Sateria, a 25-year-old radio news anchor who holds a BA in Communication Science from the North-West University and a Master's Certificate in Journalism from Agence France-Presse, and her journey entering the 2025 Miss SA pageant, as well as her quest to use it as a platform to advocate for women and LGBTQIA+ youth.

While some voiced support for Sateria, others resorted to Bible bashing. Others slammed pageants such as Miss SA, Miss World and Miss Universe for having "morphed into a total farce".

Then there was Nina Hanekom, who took a stab at the greater George community's apparent propensity for making hateful comments.

"These comments right here are exactly why I will never move back to George. Why raise a child in a town where such hateful comments are made by people that claim to follow Christ?" she said.

Meanwhile, Sateria had been watching the drama unfold on social media. While acknowledging that things had become messy in the comments section on Facebook, she said she was not surprised. She reaffirmed the taunting and teasing she had endured as a child made her strong enough to handle any criticism.

"It's astonishing to see how people have forgotten that we are also part of humanity," Sateria said. She explains while she was born with physical male traits, she has since childhood identified as a female and is romantically attracted to men.

Sateria is not the first transgender Miss SA contestant. In 2021, Lehlogonolo Machaba was the first. At the time, the event's organisers said trans women were eligible to enter the Miss SA pageant.

"However, in order to be eligible to compete internationally, the contestant must be in possession of a valid South African ID reflecting that their amended sex is female," the organisation said in a statement.

Sateria clarified she was in the process of having her ID changed to female while receiving gender-affirming hormone therapy.

Read Monday's article, "Trans Miss SA 2025 contestant's beauty with a purpose", on www.georgeherald.com.

Aspiring beauty queen Jade Sateria.