Jasmine Flowers is a very busy woman these days. She works full time as a medical assistant and is in the middle of applying to graduate schools to become a physician assistant. The Suwanee resident also mentors young girls who are homeless. As of two weeks go, Flowers added even more to her plate — the responsibilities that come with being crowned Georgia’s Miss Black US Ambassador, designed to give women of color a platform to better their communities. In July, she will compete in a pageant for the national title. Flowers talked about what she hopes to achieve with her most recent opportunity and why this pageant speaks to her heart.
Q: What can you tell people who don’t know about Miss Black US Ambassador?
A: Basically, the organization is meant to give young African-American women the opportunity to have a platform to discuss issues that matter to them. My whole platform is to give underprivileged youth the tools necessary to get to and to complete college.
Q: Was college always an option for you?
A: My brother and I are the first students in our family to get four-year degrees. I always knew that what I wanted to do was going to require more schooling and my parents always wanted more for me. My desire to push kids to consider college is because my parents didn't necessarily have that and I was lucky enough to have it.
Q: What are your passions?
A: My professional passion is medicine. I have always loved medicine and looked at it like a mystery, trying to figure out what is wrong with someone. Personally, I have grown a big heart for volunteering. It went from being something that I did to put on my resume to something I really care about.
Q: What do you really care about?
A: I love learning and that is why I started mentoring and tutoring. While I was in college at UGA, I became a mentor for sixth graders. After I graduated, I started tutoring at an emergency girls' shelter. I love seeing the light bulb go off when kids understand something. I love coming back every week and seeing the girls' progress. I feel like I am helping them get where they need to be.
Q: Was Miss Black US Ambassador your first pageant or did you grow up competing in them?
A: I did a couple of pageants when I was younger and that was fun. As I got older, more things took up my life — music, being in orchestra and school. When I graduated from UGA, I decided that I really want to do another pageant. I really fell in love with this one because it focuses on being beautiful on the inside and what you are doing to change your community. Community service is weighted the most, not whether you are a size 2 or how you look in a bathing suit.
Q: How do you handle some of the questions and negativity about the role of pageants in today’s world?
A: Even before I decided to do another pageant, I thought, "How are my friends going to react? Are they going to be judgmental?" I really think pageants give you the opportunity to be who you are. Girls grow up not always having the most confidence. Putting yourself out there on a stage, you have no choice but to demonstrate confidence.
Q: Is gaining confidence especially important for African-American women?
A: I think that applies to all women. What I will say is that with African-American pageants, you don't have to fit into such a mold. They are more about embracing things that are cultural.
Q: There are other benefits, like scholarship money, right?
A: The state Miss Black US Ambassador organization awards scholarship money, then there is an opportunity for more scholarship money if you win at the national level. The biggest prize is the money and being able to promote your platform on a larger scale. I am a big believer that when the doors of opportunity open, you go through them.
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