*An African American Miss USA was crowned on Sunday for the second consecutive year, but not without some controversy.
Kara McCullough, 25, from the District of Columbia, won the title during the live competition in Las Vegas, besting first runner-up Miss New Jersey, Chhavi Verg, and second runner-up Miss Minnesota, Meridith Gould.
The nuclear scientist employed at the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission gave D.C. back-to-back victories in the competition, after Deshauna Barber took home the crown last year.
But McCullough set off Twitter during the questions portion of the competition, when she was asked if affordable healthcare is a right or a privilege.
“I definitely want to say it’s a privilege,” she said. McCullough went on to explain that health care should only go to those with jobs, and one of the country’s goals should be to create more jobs so more people have healthcare.
Watch below:
While conservatives applauded her response on Twitter, many expressed frustration:
#MissUSA Miss DC just lost me with that answer….Affordable healthcare is a privilege? Girl bye. pic.twitter.com/Q5mU7PIlx1
— Kat ?❤ (@dazella_may) May 15, 2017
DC just lost my vote. Healthcare shouldn’t be a privilege for only people with jobs.#MissUSA pic.twitter.com/QMlAR24EiC
— mollie (@mollie64438390) May 15, 2017
Miss DC was my fav but… not after that answer. Everyone has a right to healthcare. #MissUSA pic.twitter.com/lM9V90B4Lh
— Charlsley✿ (@CharlsleyCarey) May 15, 2017
McCullough also riled women’s rights activists with her answer on feminism, saying she’d prefer to use her made-up term “equalism” instead.
Asked, “What do you consider feminism to be and do you consider yourself a feminist?” McCullough answered:
So as a woman scientist in the government, I’d like to transpose the word feminism to equalism. I don’t really want to consider myself, I try not to consider myself, like, this diehard, ‘I don’t really care about men.’ But one thing I’m going to say is, though, women we are just as equal as men when it comes to opportunity in the workplace. And I say firsthand I have witnessed the impact that women have in leadership in the medical scientists as well as just in the office environment. So as Miss USA I would hope to promote that type of leadership responsibility globally to so many women worldwide.
Watch below:
What’s wrong with being a feminist Miss DC USA!?!? Who says feminists hate men? Gurl!!! #MissUSA pic.twitter.com/jr5Hc5p2DN
— Makho Ndlovu (@makhondlovu) May 15, 2017
Twitter expressed disappointment with this answer as well:
…so DC has no idea what feminism means. #MissUSA
— rap god baechu (@sciattas) May 15, 2017
It’s incredibly sad that in 2017, a woman is striving to occupy a position of influence w/ no understanding of what feminism is. #MissUSA
— courtney (@seecourttweet) May 15, 2017
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