Miss Galaxy Queen is a beauty pageant held in Nukualofa,

Tongatapu Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% of the nation ...

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

, where contestants are members of Tonga's fakaleiti community. Organised by the

Tonga Leitis' Association The Tonga Leitis' Association (TLA) is an advocacy and education organisation in Tonga, and is the only organisation in the country dedicated to LGBTQ+ issues. Background The Tonga Leitis Association (TLA) was founded in 1992 by Joey Joleen M ...

(TLA) it raises awareness of LGBTQ+ rights issues and has become a regular event in the Tongan cultural calendar.

Background

Emerging from the 1970s disco scene in Tonga, the Miss Galaxy pageant was established in 1993, organised by the

(TLA) as a means to raise awareness of LGBTQ+ issues in Tonga, and to raise money for their programmes. Structured in a similar way to Tonga's Miss Heilala pageant, Miss Galaxy has become more popular of the two. In addition, whilst Miss Heilala contestants are expected to "exhibit their Tongan-ness", Miss Galaxy contestants express themselves as "cosmopolitan ... using English". Many of the Miss Galaxy contestants have a financial impetus to compete, in contrast to the Miss Heilala contestants who are often wealthier.

Organisation and sponsorship

The pageant usually takes place in July each year as part of the Heilala Festival. The director of the pageant is

Joey Joleen Mataele Joey Joleen Mataele is an activist for the rights of transgender women from Tonga. Activism In 1992, Mataele co-founded the Tonga Leitis Association, and became its executive director. She is also the Pacific Island Representative on the Interna ...

. The Patron for the Miss Galaxy is the Honorable Salote Lupepau'u Salamasina Purea Vahine Ari'i o'e Hau Tuita, the eldest daughter of Her Royal Highness Princess Salote Mafile'o Pilolevu Tuita. The pageant attracts audiences of up to five thousand people each year. A panel of judges rate the Miss Galaxy contestants in a number of different talent and appearance categories. International academics, celebrities and members of the royal family have acted as judges in various years. Originally held at the Dateline Hotel, a change in its ownership to an adherent of evangelical Christianity, in 1997 the competition moved to a new location - the

Queen Salote Memorial Hall Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mothe ...

. In 2010 the pageant was hosted at the Four Seasons Resort, 'Umusi for the first time. Contestants create costumes and model under several categories, including: 'Red Creation' which is a tribute to those affected by

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

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Condom A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of in ...

Creation' which is designed to raise awareness around condom use; 'Rainbow Attire' is a tribute to rainbow families. During the pageant event, the TLA sees its highest distribution of condoms. 'The pageant also has a HIV testing booth, where attendees can be tested whilst attending the event. Local Tongan businesses sponsor the event, a demonstration of their support for changing attitudes to LGBTQ+ rights. In 2002

Air New Zealand Air New Zealand Limited () is the flag carrier airline of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 30 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily around and within the Pacific ...

began sponsorship of the pageant and its official name became the Air New Zealand Galaxy Queen Beauty Pageant. In 2017 the pageant was sponsored by Digicel Tonga. The 2021 pageant's theme was 'Ending Gender-based Violence'.

Reception

Days after the inaugural event in 1993, a transphobic educational official suggested that schools had a role in the increasingly visible number of leitis in Tonga. In 2018 pageant contestants were featured in the documentary ''

Leitis in Waiting ''Leitis In Waiting'' is a 2018 feature-length documentary about transgender rights in Tonga. It was produced and directed by Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson and Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu. The filmmakers previously explored trans rights in the Pacific in th ...

'' which portrayed the difficulties faced by the leitis community in Tonga. The same year, the pageant celebrated its silver jubilee, celebrating twenty-five years of success.

Pageant winners

* 1993:

Vivian Charlie Vivian may refer to: *Vivian (name), a given name and also a surname Toponyms * Vivian, Louisiana, U.S. * Vivian, South Dakota, U.S. * Vivian, West Virginia, U.S. * Vivian Island, Nunavut, Canada * Ballantrae, Ontario, a hamlet in Stouffville, ...

. * 1994: Fiona Gibson. * 1995: London Koloamatangi. * 1996: Lee Mubai Yang. * 1997: Shima Langi. * 1998: Kumu Hina. * 1999: Janice Fruean-Zimmerman Baice. * 2000: Ireen Shauna. * 2001: Lee Mubai Yang (Feliuaki Taulanga). * 2002: Pauline Edward Taufa. * 2003: Sonia Honey. * 2004:

Phylesha Brown-Acton Phylesha Brown-Acton (born February 1976) is a Niuean fakafifine LGBTQ+ rights activist. In 2019 she was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in recognition of her work with LGBTQ+ communities from Pacific countries. Biograph ...

. * 2005: Sabrina Latu. * 2006:

Coco Chandelier Coco commonly refers to: * Coco (folklore), a mythical bogeyman in many Hispano- and Lusophone nations Coco may also refer to: People * Coco (given name), a first name, its shorthand, or unrelated nickname * Coco (surname), a list of people wit ...

. * 2007:

Maya Douglas Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popula ...

. * 2008: Selena D'Angelo. * 2009:

Fatima Gyllenhaal Halafihi Fāṭima bint Muḥammad ( ar, فَاطِمَة ٱبْنَت مُحَمَّد}, 605/15–632 CE), commonly known as Fāṭima al-Zahrāʾ (), was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadija. Fatima's husband was Ali, t ...

. * 2010: Tararina Brown. * 2011:

Venus Brown Venus Brown (real name Darren Floyd, born in San Diego, California) is the executive producer, owner and CEO of Buddah Brown Entertainment, an artist management music label.The Source Magazine. The Long Haul by Robert Smith III, Page 30. October 20 ...

. * 2012-2013: Jayleen Veer Kaho * 2014: Leila Heihei. * 2015-2016:

Diamond Vea Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, bu ...

. * 2017:

Natasha Finau Natasha (russian: Наташа) is a name of Slavic origin. The Slavic name is the diminutive form of Natalia. Notable people * Natasha, the subject of ''Natasha's Story'', a 1994 nonfiction book * Natasha Aguilar (1970–2016), Costa Rican sw ...

. * 2018:

Kaina Handerson Tauvaka Kaina can mean: * Kaina (Manipur) Kaina is a small hillock located in the Indian state Manipur, that is sacred to Hindus. It lies on the Imphal - Yariripok road, about from the state capital, Imphal. It is said to be the place where King Bhag ...

. * 2019-2020:

Marina Cocobutter A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

. * 2021: Lavenda Mosay

References

{{reflist, 2

External resources

Photos from the 2004 Competition

More Photos from 2004

More Photos from 2004

Miss Galaxy Queen 07-08, Coco Chandelier - Knock on Wood
Gender in Oceania Events in Tonga Transgender beauty pageants Transgender in Oceania