Why
To the extent that one of the most vapid symbols of 1950s America can still hold up a mirror to the modern world, the Miss USA pageant this week produced something like a turning-point moment. Miss Michigan, Rima Fakih, a 24-year-old beauty with raven hair, is the first Arab American to win the sparkly honour. Her family's religious observances include both Islamic and Christian elements.
Ms. Fakih is also the first practising Muslim to win the pageant, owned by Donald Trump.
The Story So Far
Ms. Fakih adds to the list of firsts that began with Mai Shanley, the first Eurasian woman to win Miss USA, in 1984; followed by Laura Martinez-Herring, the first Hispanic to win, in 1985; and Carole Gist, the first African American to win, in 1990. After a few days of indecision about whether Ms. Fakih actually is the first Arab American - some observers thought winner Julie Hayek might have been, but it turned out her surname is Czech-Norwegian - she claims the honour.
Born in Lebanon, Ms. Fakih and her family moved to New York in 1993, eventually settling in Dearborn, Mich., which has a large population of Arab immigrants. She has an economics and business administration degree, a solidly feminist view of birth control pills (they should be covered by health insurance plans) and the requisite slinky bikinis.
She owes part of her victory to the candid remarks of front-runner Miss Oklahoma (Morgan Elizabeth Woolard). Asked for her thoughts on Arizona's immigration legislation, which allows authorities to detain individuals merely suspected of being illegal aliens, Ms. Woolard replied that states should have the right to pass tough laws to deal with illegal immigration, but insisted that she's against racial profiling.
According to the experts, Ms. Woolard's answer pulled down her scores and allowed Ms. Fakih, a legal immigrant, to emerge victorious.
What's Next
No sooner had Ms. Fakih ascended the throne than she found herself in the midst of the inevitable digital dust storm over mildly racy photos of her pole-dancing - mostly clothed - at an all-women's fundraising event in 2007. She retained her crown, despite the much-Googled incident, which could not be convincingly spun as either a crime or a misdemeanour.
Her next stops include the Miss Universe pageant and a swanky New York condo, but mostly she plans to spend the year demonstrating that Arabs are "integrated into American culture."
As the pageant continues to tick off the socio-demographic boxes, the shrinking list of unrepresented groups now includes only native Americans and Indo-Americans, at which point the contest can declare itself fully au courant.