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2023 Miss Teen USA Uma Sofia Srivastava resigns a few days after losing the title of Miss USA Mothers of past Miss USA and Miss Teen USA contestants are advocating for their daughters. Their mothers, Jackeline Voigt and Barbara Srivastava, provided additional details on their daughters' interactions with the pageant organization a week after Noelia Voigt and UmaSofia Srivastava stunned the pageant world by announcing their choices to resign from their respective roles.
In a joint interview with Jackeline on May 14, Barbara stated, "I want to make it clear; it's not about what they can get, the prizes." "It's about how they were ill-treated, abused, bullied, and cornered." She went on, "The job of their dreams turned out to be a nightmare." "We could not continue this charade."
The pair said that Noelia—who cited mental health for her decision—and UmaSofia, who expressed that her personal values were no longer aligned with the organization, were bound by confidentiality clauses that prevented them from speaking out.
Jackeline, the mother of former Miss USA and Miss Teen USA, shared a story of her daughter Noelia being approached by a man at a Christmas parade in Florida. Jackeline reported the incident to the Miss USA organization, which was later revealed to be a nightmare.
The man made Noelia uncomfortable and asked if she was into old men with money. Jackeline claimed that Miss USA CEO and President Laylah Rose responded to her by noting that the organization could not prevent people from saying things to her during public appearances. The situation has left the pageant world shocked by the sudden resignations of these two former pageants.
Noelia, the former Miss USA titleholder, resigned due to mental health issues, prompting UmaSofia to follow suit. Jackline and Barbara are calling for Laylah to step down from her role and urging participants to reconsider their participation. They want to avoid the same situation for future Miss Universe Organization titleholders.
The Miss USA Organization stated that they are committed to fostering a healthy, supportive environment for all contestants, state titleholders, national titleholders, and staff.
Noelia's resignation from the organization, obtained by NBC News, described a toxic work environment, describing poor management and bullying and harassment. She accused Laylah of speaking negatively of her to others within the organization and felt it was unsafe for future Miss Universe Organization title holders. Noelia expressed gratitude for her time as Miss USA and her resignation from the organization, which was obtained by NBC News on May 9.
