Pageant Producers Deny Winner’s Religious Discrimination Claim

The organization behind the Miss USA pageants in North Carolina is pushing back after the state’s recently crowned winner claimed she lost her title because of her religion.

Brittany Boltinhouse, 27, was named Miss North Carolina last month and had been set to represent the state at the national Miss USA pageant on August 27. Soon after her win, however, posts from an X account believed to belong to her began circulating online, including one that contained a racial slur.

A Blaize Productions, the executive producer and state license holder for the official Miss USA pageants in North Carolina, later revoked Boltinhouse’s title, citing “recently surfaced information.” The organization then awarded the crown to runner-up Myla Hadley.

In a recent interview with Carolina Journal editor-in-chief Donna King, Boltinhouse said she believes pageant officials removed her because of her “belief system as a conservative Christian woman.”

Boltinhouse said she is an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon faith.

A Blaize Productions rejected that allegation in a statement released Saturday, saying its “decision was not based on Brittany Boltinhouse’s political views, religious beliefs, or protected personal viewpoints.”

“Our organization includes people from various backgrounds, political views, personal beliefs and values. We welcome and celebrate that,” the statement said.

During the interview, Boltinhouse described herself as a “proud conservative” and a “God-fearing” woman. She added, “I also love this country. That’s something I want to make clear,” and said she believes in “A nation under God.”

When asked about the alleged racist posts, Boltinhouse did not confirm whether they were from her, but said that ‘every teenager has made a mistake.’

‘Every person has made a mistake. But I’m not really here to talk about that. I’m here to talk about the woman I am today,’ she said. 

She continued that despite what happened ‘decades ago,’ Boltinhouse believes she is a ‘hardworking woman’ who won her titles fair and square.

A Blaize Productions asserted that it stripped Boltinhouse’s title purely because of her online speech and only after ‘careful review of the totality of information that came to our attention.’

The organization’s statement cited ‘previously undisclosed conduct and public content spanning multiple years that was inconsistent with the standards and responsibilities expected of a Miss North Carolina USA titleholder.’

Thom Brodeur, the chairman of Miss USA, previously addressed the matter in a lengthy Instagram message, explaining that the organization ‘does not tolerate racism, homophobia, transphobia nor language that strips any person of their dignity.’

‘A title here isn’t a trinket. It is a position of trust, extended by an organization and accepted by a woman who agrees to carry a standard in public,’ he added.

‘When that standard is broken, the title cannot continue as though nothing happened.’

He said that the decision didn’t come down to a ‘single moment,’ but rather ‘conduct over an extended period of time.’

Boltinhouse said that her short-lived pageant career with Miss USA, which began just last year, went from a ‘dream to a nightmare’ after the allegations surfaced.

Despite the media firestorm, she said she was glad the controversy happened to her, boasting that she could handle the scrutiny and had made peace with her unwanted departure from pageantry.

Boltinhouse also said she is still proud to have received the Miss Congeniality award, which is given to a contestant based on their character, and to have been the first married woman to receive that award. 

‘I won’t be judged for my past and I won’t be judged at all because I am the woman I am today,’ she said during her interview with the Carolina Journal. 

Hadley, the runner-up who was crowned Miss North Carolina after Boltinhouse was stripped of the title, thanked her fans in a statement on Instagram, saying she was grateful for ‘all the support and love they had shown throughout the entire process.’

‘I understand the seriousness and level of prestige that this title carries, and I can confidently say that both my team and I are ready to take this on,’ she said.

‘While this may seem like a two-week turnaround given the circumstances, I’ve been preparing to represent at Miss USA since I first competed with this organization.

‘I am ready to represent North Carolina. Thank you all again for your motivation, support, and well wishes.’