Angela Ponce represented Spain at Miss Universe 2018 on 17th December 2018 at IMPACT Arena, Muang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi Province, north of Bangkok, Thailand, and become the first openly transgender to compete for Miss Universe crown. Even though she was not placed at the end of the event finale, she was highly applauded for her courage, and dedication towards the title. She said it was “an honor and pride” to be part of the history of the pageant.
Miss Universe 2019 Zozibini Tunzi has been vocal about her support to the LGBTQ community and during one of her live sessions, she hosted Geena Rocero during the Pride Month to make the discussion around the transgender community easy and understanding to the people. 31st March 2021 is recognized as the Transgender Day of Visibility and Zozibini took this opportunity to honor her pageant sister and the first openly transgender woman to compete for Miss Universe title; Miss Universe Spain 2018 Angela Ponce via her social media.
Zozi wrote, “Celebrating the first-ever transgender woman to compete at Miss Universe on this International Transgender Day of Visibility. The ever-beautiful Angela Ponce. You did that!! They must never forget. I just recently learnt that violence against trans people has surged 266% from last year. They deserve to live a life as humane, happy, and free as any other person. Stop with the violence! I’m going to say this in case it has not been clear. Trans rights are human rights. I intentionally turned the comments off on this post because I could already see the transphobic comments coming in and we don’t do that here on my page. I won’t give you the space to be hateful. We operate on love here. Have a good day #trangenderdayofvisibility.”
The pageant fanatics appreciated the reigning queen honoring the former queen who created a historic moment not only for herself but every Transgender woman as she stepped on the stage at Miss Universe 2018. Ponce currently works as a volunteer at a foundation in Spain that helps children and families deal with gender identity issues. Angela explained that the significance of taking part was far more important than winning the top prize. “My hope is for tomorrow to be able to live in a world of equality for everyone, simply for us all to understand that we are human and we must make all our lives easier together.”
Angela received a standing ovation as she walked on-stage on 17th December 20218 and was appreciated for competing at the competition. The diva mentioned, “This is for you, for those who have no visibility, no voice, because we all deserve a world of respect, inclusion and freedom. And today I am here, proudly representing my nation, all women and human rights.”