She dared to challenge an unjust system

Book by Catherine Grace Pope, EdD

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

May 20, 2025 (San Diego) -- Catherine Pope, a San Diego resident, has written a debut book about her struggle to gain social justice. Pope, as a poor 19-year-old black college student, set her sights on the Miss America Crown.

She began by winning the 1969 Miss Omaha beauty pageant, where she was promised a four-year college scholarship. Though she won talent contests, in 1970, Pope did not receive any recognition, let alone receive the Miss Nebraska award. A photo in her book of pageant contestants shows a line of blondes with bouffant hairdos, where Pope and another dark-haired white lady who sit in the foreground, stand out as the most beautiful.