The fact that an African-American is making waves in a Minnesota beauty contest is something to be interested in, but the fact that she is doing so wearing a Hijab is definitely something special.

19-year-old Halima Aden, from St. Cloud, Minnesota, is making history as she advanced to the semi-finals of this weekend’s Miss Minnesota USA pageant. She is the first ever competitor to compete in a Hijab.

She even joined the swimsuit section wearing a controversial Burkini.

Before the contest she had spoken with the Huffington Post saying:

“Not seeing women that look like you in media in general and especially in beauty competitions sends the message that you’re not beautiful or you have to change the way you look to be considered beautiful,”

Well, she showed that this is not the case, although she did not win, she came in the top 15 of 45 contestants. Sadly she didn’t advance to the final 5 finals.

Meredith Gould of Minneapolis was crowned 2017’s Miss Minnesota USA and will advance to the national competition.

See Halima in the report below: