Ariana Miyamoto
Born (1994-05-12) 12 May 1994
Nagasaki, Japan
Height5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1]
Beauty pageant titleholder
TitleMiss Universe Japan 2015
Hair colorBlack
Eye colorBrown
Major
competition(s)		Miss Universe Japan 2015
(Winner)
Miss Universe 2015
(Top 10)

Ariana Mamiko Miyamoto (宮本・エリアナ・磨美子, Miyamoto Eriana Mamiko, born 12 May 1994) is a Japanese model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2015. She represented Japan at the Miss Universe 2015 pageant and placed in the top 10. She was the first hāfu or multiracial woman to be Miss Japan.[2][3]

Early life

Miyamoto was born to a Japanese mother and African American father, Bryant Stanfield, who was stationed at the United States Navy facility in Sasebo.[4] Miyamoto's parents divorced when she was one year old.[5] She attended elementary school in Japan and, at age 13, immigrated to the United States to live with her father in Jacksonville, Arkansas, where she attended Jacksonville High School for two years. Upon return to her native Japan, she did not immediately complete high school, but worked odd jobs, including as a bartender.[6][7][8][9]

In 2015, Miyamoto won the title of Miss Nagasaki and represented her prefecture at the Miss Universe Japan contest.[10][11]

Discrimination

Miyamoto recalled, "Whenever the teacher told us to hold hands, other children thought my black skin would rub off on them, so they said, 'Don't touch me'".[10] Some of her classmates in Sasebo, Nagasaki would say things like, "Don't swim in the same pool 'cause your skin will rub off on me."[12] Miyamoto was shunned due to her skin color and wavy hair while she grew up in Japan.[13] Parents and classmates used the term kurombo (a racist expression) to refer to her.[13] She also recalls people throwing garbage at her in school.[14] One of Miyamoto's friends, a fellow hāfu, committed suicide after sharing his experiences of social exclusion with her.[15]

After her victory, she encountered some people disapproving of her win, mostly in the form of online social media. This was attributed to ethnicity, as she is not fully Japanese ethnically, and her physical appearance. Some said she looked like too "foreign" (gaijin), and another felt she had "too much black blood [in her] to be Japanese."[14] She is the first hāfu (mixed) woman to be Miss Japan.[2][3][14] Following her win, Miyamoto had to explain to the Japanese media that she was a Japanese citizen, born and raised in the country.[14]

Career

Miss Universe Japan 2015

On 12 March 2015, Miyamoto was crowned as Miss Universe Japan 2015 (Miss Japan 2015) at Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo in Bunkyō-ku, while Miss Oita and Miss Chiba were runner - ups. As Miss Japan 2015, she represented Japan at Miss Universe 2015 and made it to Top 10.[16][17][18][14]

Miss Universe 2015

As Miss Japan 2015, Miyamoto competed at the Miss Universe 2015 pageant where she made it to the Top 10.[19][20][21] Before Miyamoto's placement, Japan placed in the top 15 last in 2008 with Hiroko Mima.[22]

Personal life

On December 1, 2017, Miyamoto married her husband, who is from Hong Kong, and later announced her first pregnancy.[21] On December 26, 2020, she posted a video on YouTube indicating she was nine months pregnant with her second child.[23] On April 29, 2021, she posted an update on the birth of her second child on YouTube, saying she had given birth to a son.[24]

In August 2017, Miyamoto was appointed the honorary ambassador of tourism for the city of Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture, her hometown, and the city that hosts the US Naval base her father was stationed in.[25][26]

References

  1. ↑ "Miss Universe 2015: Ariana Miyamoto". Miss Universe. IMG Universe. Archived from the original on 24 December 2017.
  2. 1 2 "The First Multiracial Miss Universe Japan Has Been Crowned". NBC News. 17 March 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  3. 1 2 Lies, Elaine; Ito, Shiori (2 April 2015). "Multiracial Miss Japan hopes to change homeland's thinking on identity". Reuters. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  4. ↑ Spitzer, Kirk (30 May 2015). "Beauty queen fights racial bias in Japan". USA Today. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  5. ↑ Wofford, Taylor (6 June 2015). "A Half-Black Japanese Beauty Queen Is Raising Eyebrows—But Will She Change Minds?". Newsweek. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  6. ↑ Holley, Peter (20 March 2015). "Why some critics think Japan's Miss Universe contestant isn't Japanese enough". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 March 2015. Miyamoto, who grew up in Japan but moved to the United States for high school, has cited Mariah Carey as a major inspiration because of the singer's multiracial background...
  7. ↑ Akcasu, Audrey (15 March 2015). "Half-Japanese beauty chosen to represent Japan at Miss Universe 2015". RocketNews24. Retrieved 24 March 2015. After junior high graduation in Sasebo, she spent her high school years studying in the US. Upon returning to Japan as a young adult she set her sights on becoming a model.
  8. ↑ Fackler, Martin (29 May 2015). "Biracial Beauty Queen Challenges Japan's Self-Image". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 May 2015. She said everything changed at age 13 when she decided to reach out to her father, who invited her to his home in Jacksonville, Ark.
  9. ↑ Brantley, Max (14 April 2015). "Former Arkansas student's racial heritage stirs controversy as Miss Japan Universe". Arkansas Times. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Ariana Miyamoto, first biracial Miss Japan, brings light to racial issues in her country". CBS News. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  11. ↑ Takanashi, Kosuke (8 May 2015). "Multiracial Miss Universe Japan Symbolizes The Country's Transformation". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  12. ↑ Nagata, Masatoshi (6 August 2015). "Not Japanese Enough? Miss Universe Japan looks to fight prejudice » Nichi Bei". Nichi Bei. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  13. 1 2 Wesby, Maya (19 August 2015). "Japan's Problem With Race". Newsweek. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Choon, Chang May (27 March 2015). "First biracial Miss Universe Japan slammed for not being 'Japanese enough'". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  15. ↑ Wingfield-Hayes, Rupert (4 June 2015). "The beauty contest winner making Japan look at itself". BBC News. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  16. ↑ McNeil, Baye (18 March 2015). "From a minstrel no-show to a black beauty queen, in a week". The Japan Times. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  17. ↑ Olya, Gabrielle (23 March 2015). "Miss Universe Japan Ariana Miyamoto Criticized for Not Being Japanese Enough". People Magazine. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  18. ↑ Vulpo, Mike (23 March 2015). "Miss Universe Japan Facing Backlash at Home From Those Who Object to Biracial Beauty Queen Taking the Crown: Get the Details". E! Online. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  19. ↑ Kartikawati, Eny (21 December 2015). "3 Wakil Asia di 10 Besar Miss Universe 2015, Indonesia Tak Masuk". Wolipop via detik.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  20. ↑ Alviar, Vaughn (21 January 2017). "Bashing Miss Universe". Philippine Daily Inquirer Lifestyle. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  21. 1 2 "宮本エリアナ、香港出身の一般男性と結婚「ＭｉｓｓからＭｒｓ．に」". Sankei News West (in Japanese). 28 December 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  22. ↑ "Latinas crowd Miss Universe '08 top 10". ABS-CBN News. 14 July 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  23. ↑ Miyamoto, Ariana (26 December 2020). "[9month pregnant] 第二子妊娠中!! 体調の変化や体重などについて🤰🏽|". Ariana Miyamoto via YouTube. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  24. ↑ Miyamoto, Ariana (29 April 2021). "可愛い赤ちゃんを無事出産しました♡ | My baby was born". Ariana Miyamoto via YouTube. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  25. ↑ "観光名誉大使：宮本エリアナさん「佐世保の魅力をＰＲ」". The Mainichi Shimbun (in Japanese). 15 August 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  26. ↑ Holley, Peter (13 May 2015). "Japan's half-black Miss Universe says discrimination gives her 'extra motivation'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
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