Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava Relinquishes Crown Citing Incompatible Values of the Organization

UmaSofia Srivastava, Miss Teen USA 2023, is relinquishing her crown, less than eight months after winning the title. Announcing her decision today (March 8) on Instagram, the 17-year-old high school junior of Indian and Mexican heritage, said her “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.”

Last October, the Parsippany native was declared the winner of the Miss Teen USA pageant, from a pool of 51 accomplished young women representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Earlier in March 2023, she won the Miss New Jersey Teen USA in March and was a runner-up in the pageant when she was only 14. 

Srivastava’s decision comes just two days after Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voigt announced her own resignation, citing mental health, People magazine reported. 

“After months of grappling with this decision, I have made the choice to resign from the title of Miss Teen USA 2023,” she wrote on her Instagram. “I am grateful for all the support from my family, my state directors, my sister queens, and the fans who have cheered me on since I won my state title. I will always look back on my time as Miss NJ Teen USA fondly, and the experience of representing my state as a first generation, Mexican-Indian American at the national level was fulfilling in itself.”

Shortly after her Instagram post, the Miss Teen USA organization took to Instagram. “We respect and support UmaSofia’s decision to step down from her duties,” the post read. “The well-being of our titleholders is a top priority. We are currently reviewing plans for the transition of responsibilities to a successor, and we will soon announce the crowning of the new Miss Teen USA.”

Srivastava, who hopes to become a UN ambassador, runs her own blog — That’s Fan Behavior — covering everything from feminism, her experience as a woman of color, interviews with changemakers and the many other things she’s passionate about. She works with the Lotus Petal Foundation to help underprivileged children in India receive a well-rounded education, proper nutrition, and healthcare. “The White Jaguar,” a book she wrote and illustrated, inspires people of all ages to embrace what makes them unique. She is also the co-founder of the Diversity & Inclusion campaign at her school, a Kind Campaign leader, and also participates in Mock Trial and Model UN.

Last October, she told KCRA that the name for her book “The White Jaguar,” comes from her dad’s nickname for her — “Little Jaguar.” Recalling how she “sometimes felt she didn’t fit in” because of her background, she told the news channel that her book follows a little white jaguar who’s of a different color from all other jaguars. “She goes on a journey where she meets other animals that help her embrace their differences.” She added “a little bit of Hindi, Spanish, French, and English throughout the book” because she wanted “to spread the message of letting people embrace their differences, what makes them unique.”

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The New York Post reported that Srivastava quit after being “bullied” by organization’s CEO. Sources told the publication that both Srivastava and Voigt “have been wearing thorny crowns for months — forced by iron-clad contracts to silently smile despite harmful workplace conditions.” The “toxic atmosphere” at the organization is “a serious concern,” a source close to the situation told the Post. “There is an urgent need for intervention at the leadership level.” 

In the Instagram post, Srivastava vowed to continue her work as an advocate for “education and acceptance” with the Lotus Petal Foundation. “This work has always been my TRUE purpose, and I look forward to the rest of the year as I finish 11th grade as part of the National Honor Society and start the college application process, knowing that my academic career has been defined by my hard work, and my hard work alone. I’m also looking forward to pursuing a new writing project that will become available to subscribers of That’s Fan Behavior. Most importantly, thank you to those who support me for who I am and have always been, not for who I’ve momentarily become.

(Top photo, UmaSofia Srivastava/Facebook)