The pressure to conform to an impossible standard of beauty was, and is, incredible. Why? Because if you do not nip, tuck, fill and blow-dry your way towards “beauty,” then you will be the exception to the rule, you will be “un-beautiful,” you will break the mantra that we all repeat about Venezuelan women being the most beautiful in the world, and that in itself is not a big deal, except, not being beautiful means that no matter what you do, you are a failure.

In the blog Caracas Chronicles, Audrey M. Dacosta writes about the culture surrounding beauty pageants and the concept of “beauty” in Venezuela. Audrey concludes:

It’s easy to see these young women and snark. It’s easy to feel superior, to blame them for the objectification of women in our society. The problem is that they are not the guilty ones. They are the visible victims.

Let’s fight this culture. Let’s stop saying “Venezuelan women are beautiful,” and start giving our girls other options.