More than 100 people, some highly respectable, some learned, with a Masters, no less, have tagged me or inboxed me the picture of a young and beautiful lady who I am made to understand was crowned the queen of beauty in the venerable Gusii land.
Many have asked me if that is the best we could produce? It depends, I have told them, on how shallow someone is. Because if you judge people on superficial notions such as physical beauty and laugh at them because you feel you are more beautiful or handsomer then I am going to disapoint you: Miss Kisii is beautiful.
Granted, I do steretypes and I am anti-political-correctness, I know where to draw the line. If she was lighter and slender, we will not be having this discussion. I am sure her complexion and the poor choice of the outfit have played a part in the derision.
But we being unrealistic here. How many light-skinned, slender women do you have as relatives? Does it mean that darker women cannot win a pageant? What are we telling other younger girls, giving them unreslistic illusions of beauty only apt on telly. Can we all look ourselves in the mirror and rate ourselves first before we judge others.
To me it is more. As a Christian, we are all beautiful and equal in God's eye and I hate any classification of people on shallow premises. Because that is how we end up profiling people on colour, sexual orientation, religion, tribe, since we assume we are better than them...
When you come down to it, remember you can criticise objectively without deriding. That is the true mark of intelligence and sophistication.
Same people laughing at her are the very people who laugh at those who speak English laced with local dialects. Those who believe that eloquent english is synonymous with intelligence despite all the evidence at every prime time news.
Next time you judge or laugh at someone, thinking they are not beautiful enough, remember you are uglier inside, which makes you a terrible person.
I stand with Miss World Kisii. And I love her. And yes, if I was available,, I would marry her.
Signed,
Silas Nyanchwani,
01/03/2016.
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