Alexis Smith, a 25-year-old from Butler County, was crowned Miss Kansas on June 8, triumphing over 25 other contestants. However, it wasn’t just her victory that caught the public’s attention.
During the interview portion of the pageant, Smith shared a powerful message on social media, declaring her mission as Miss Kansas: to “eliminate unhealthy and abusive relationships.”
In a shocking revelation, she stated, “Some of you out in this audience saw me very emotional because my abuser is here today.”
Despite this, she firmly asserted, “But that’s not going to stop me from being on this Miss Kansas stage and representing as the next Miss Kansas. I and my community deserve healthy relationships. We deserve a domestic [violence]-free life.”
Smith shared a clip of her poignant remarks on Instagram and Facebook, tying them to her platform, “Respect Reclaimed.”
In her post, she described how her journey took an unexpected turn when someone she had been healing from attempted to disrupt her peace. Rather than retreating into silence, Smith chose to embody her vision for a better world, reclaiming her power not just for herself but for her dreams and everyone watching and listening.
On July 16, a video of Smith’s on-stage declaration was shared on her official X account, quickly going viral with over 67,000 views. Now, as a cardiothoracic ICU nurse, Smith is opening up more about her past.
She revealed to KSN that every woman in her family has been impacted by domestic violence. Smith’s own experience began at age 14 with an abusive relationship that lasted until around 2018 or 2019.
Emphasizing the significance of the Miss Kansas Organization in her life, she explained,
“I took advantage of the Miss Kansas Organization, which truly focuses on empowering women. And me, being a woman who needed that empowerment all my life, being a bystander to domestic violence, a victim, a survivor, and now an advocate as well as a young woman who is educationally driven, I have the opportunity not only to share my story on such a large scale but also go back to school.”
Smith has not publicly named the individual she referred to as her abuser, choosing instead to focus on her advocacy and healing journey.
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