How Miss Universe became a symbol of defiance

When Sheynnis Palacios was voted Miss Universe last month it came as a bolt of good news in Nicaragua. Joyous crowds took to the streets of Managua for the first time since mass protests in 2018 that were put down with lethal force.

- Thomas Graham

The Nicaraguan regime, paranoid about any hint of dissidence, initially congratulated Palacios but has since cracked down on celebrations – not least because Palacios herself took part in the 2018 demonstrations, and opponents of the regime have taken her up as a symbol of hope and defiance.

Palacios, 23, became the first Miss Universe from Central America at this year’s competition, held in El Salvador on 18 November.

“It came as a surprise, and triggered spontaneous expressions of delight,” said Elvira Cuadra, a Nicaraguan sociologist who lives in exile in Costa Rica.

Palacios comes from a low-income family who sold fried dough balls known as buñuelos to put her through university. And she took part in the 2018 protests, which sought to topple President Daniel Ortega, a 78-year-old former revolutionary hero who helped end the four-decade Somoza dictatorship but has since turned Nicaragua into an authoritarian state. The protests lasted three months before being crushed, with more than 320 killed.