Miss America 2022 Emma Broyles.Photo: John Angelillo/UPI/Shutterstock
Emma Broyles is ready to make an impact asMiss America2022.
Broyles, whowon the national competition on Thursday night, tells PEOPLE she feels “absolutely incredible” knowing that she is the first Miss Alaska to claim the Miss America crown — and also what is believed to be the first Korean-American winner.
“Being the first Korean Miss America, that we know of, is really cool because I think about when I was younger and I was growing up and not really seeing Korean women who looked like me in popular media,” says Broyles, 20. “I remember I was ashamed of my heritage and I was avoiding embracing it at all costs.”
“Now that I’m older, I’ve really been able to embrace my ethnicity and embrace my background, embrace the journey that my grandparents made 50 or so years ago,” she continues. “And I think that having a woman who’s kind of an underdog — being only 20 from Alaska and being half-Korean — is representative of all that Miss America stands for.”
Broyleswowed the panel of judges throughout the competitionon Thursday, especially during the challenge portion, in which the Top 3 finalists were asked what they would do in a real-life situation.
Emma Broyles winning the Miss America 2022 crown.John Angelillo/UPI/Shutterstock
“I know in my heart that as a woman, I am never going to let somebody treat me like that because women should never be treated like objects,” Broyles responded. “Women can be angry. We cannot be content with things that are happening.”
Broyles also opened up about her mental health during the competition and revealed that she had struggled with ADHD and dermatillomania, which is a form of OCD, for years.
“I am real. I have flaws… and because of that, I am a better person,” Broyles told the audience, perUSA Today. “During COVID, it was an incredibly difficult time for me, being isolated in my college dorm for so long. It was that point when I hit rock bottom when I realized I can be so much more than that.”
Speaking to PEOPLE about winning the crown after sharing that vulnerable part of her life, Broyles said she hoped it would give hope to others going through similar struggles.
“One of the most important things for me is coming into everything that I do with a sense of vulnerability and transparency,” she says. “I think that people tend to put Miss America on this pedestal and say, ‘Wow… she’s living this fabulous, glamorous life.'”
“They don’t realize we deal with very, very real struggles,” she continues. “And I strive to be an inspiration for anyone out there who maybe struggled with the same things I am or who is going through a tough time.”
In addition to struggling mentally, Broyles says knows what it’s like to overcome self-doubt, having been a full-time student at ASU this past semester, taking 21 credits and working two jobs while simultaneously holding her Miss Alaska title.
“When I first was crowned Miss Alaska, I had a lot of doubt because I thought that I was going to have to drop out of school for the year or transfer to the University of Alaska,” she explains. “I remember thinking, ‘Should I give up my title? I don’t know if I can be a good Miss Alaska while living in Arizona during the school year.’ It was a difficult time for me.”
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“I took three of my finals on the day I left for Miss America,” she adds. “But I think it goes to show that the women in this program are hardworking… it was difficult but I made it through and ultimately, now I’m Miss America and things worked out in the end.”
As she looks ahead, Broyles intends on taking a year off of school to focus on her Miss America duties before finishing college and heading to medical school for dermatology.
“I really want to get out there and show people who Miss America is and what Miss America does,” she says. “And hopefully, one day, I’ll change people’s lives in the way my dermatologist changed mine.”
But first, Broyles says, “I think the best way to celebrate [my win] is to kick back, relax and enjoy my Christmas. Then I can get jumpstarted on the journey of being Miss America 2022.”
source: people.com
