Sarah Dzafce, who was just crowned Miss Finland in September this year, quickly sparked a public outcry after a photo deemed racially discriminatory leaked on the social platform Jodel. The pageant organizer held a press conference on the 11th and announced the revocation of her Miss Finland title.
According to reports from Yle (Finnish Broadcasting Company), in the photo, Dzafce pulled her eyes into a slanted shape with her fingers, and below the photo was the Finnish text “kiinalaisenkaa syömäs”, which can be roughly translated as “I’m eating Chinese food”. This act was widely interpreted as mocking Asian communities.
After the incident came to light, Dzafce initially argued that she had been rubbing her temples and stretching her eyes due to a “severe headache” at the time and had no intention of offending anyone. However, the Miss Finland Organization, which hosts the annual pageant, issued a statement on the 10th stating that it would never tolerate any form of racial discrimination or discriminatory behavior, and officially announced the revocation of her title the following day.
It was relayed that in its statement, the Miss Finland Organization said: “We sincerely apologize for the harm caused by these incidents, especially to the Asian community, but also to all those affected. Racism in any form is unacceptable.”
With Dzafce’s title revoked, the first runner-up Tara Lehtonen will take over as the new Miss Finland. The Miss Finland Organization emphasized: “This decision is not a judgment on an individual’s worth, but about responsibility. When a person holds a representative role at the national and international levels, their actions are inseparable from their responsibilities.”
According to information, Dzafce was born in Oulu, Finland, with a Kosovan father and a Finnish mother. As reported by Iltalehti (Evening News), she stated at the press conference on the 11th: “I sincerely apologize to everyone who felt offended and hurt by my behavior on social media.”
