By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE family of Cameronique Evans, former Miss Teen Universe Bahamas 2024, has criticised the organisers of The Bahamas International Pageants Organisation for allegedly subjecting the teen to a traumatic experience and is calling for a public boycott of the organisation.

Their comments to this newspaper came after Ms Evans was stripped of her title for an alleged breach of contract related to unprofessional behaviour and conduct.

Ms Evans denied the allegations, insisting that the pageant organisers had acted unprofessionally and breached their contract.

The dispute sparked widespread commentary on social media, with some posting screenshots of conversations held between the two parties.

The 18-year-old, a university student, claimed she was ignored by her directors while in South Africa for a beauty pageant.

She said she felt mentally and physically unprepared for the trip due to a lack of information and resources provided by the organisers.

She said she did not expect to feel “alone” and distanced from both her family and directors for most of the trip, believing she would be under the care of both the international pageant officials and her own directors.

“It was a mentally heartbreaking time for me,” she said. “Most days I cried.”

In a statement released yesterday, the pageant organisation disputed claims of a lack of involvement, saying Tia Thompson, the pageant director, checked in with Ms Evans daily and provided whatever items she needed.

The organisation also noted that the international pageant rules prohibit national directors from interacting with their contestants once they arrive a week in advance.

They also claimed that Ms Evans ignored their instructions on what to wear.

“The subordination was insurmountable,” the organisation added. “What’s interesting is that Ms Evans was not even present to the courtesy call with her country’s High Commission during the stopover in London enrolee to South Africa.”

Ms Evans said she was unaware of the courtesy call and felt “blinded” by many of the actions of the pageant’s directors.

She described an instance when Ms Thompson allegedly handed her a letter after she was unsuccessful in making the top 20, informing her she would be relieved of her duties effective immediately.

The teen described the ordeal as humiliating, noting that other contestants were present and had to console her.

“It’s a time and place for everything,” she said. “I had no privacy, and the girls had to comfort me, because it was, it was humiliating.”

After being informed of their decision, she said: “They dropped me hot faster than a Hot Pocket.”

She recalled nearly missing her flight from South Africa and having to rely on the help of others, including the mother of another contestant.

“My family was at the other end because they went back up separately the next day. My family was at the other end trying to hold, literally hold the flight.”

“My family was literally fighting for pleading on my behalf.”

Ms Evans said when she finally made it on to the flight, her pageant directors did not acknowledge her.

“Even afterwards, when we landed in the UK, they were behind me on the lines,” she said. “They saw me on the line. They did not even look at me. They did not acknowledge me.”

Her pregnant mother, Maurissa Telus, told The Tribune yesterday that she now has to seek counselling for her daughter because of the traumatic experience.

She added that she also had to be hospitalised over the incident.

“I feel it’s poor and distasteful, and I feel the ministry should get involved with that, and my daughter is having issues where she feels that people are looking at her and pointing fingers and they’re saying bad stuff,” she said while calling for the pageant to be banned.

Meanwhile, the pageant acknowledged that terminations are difficult to accept but urged Ms Evans to focus on moving forward rather than justifying her actions or fabricating false scenarios.

“While we could have terminated Ms Evans a long time before her international competition as we held three meetings to discuss her attitude, we refrained because of the investment that her family made to join her in South Africa,” the organisation said.