Fairfax City Woman Pursues Dream Of Being Crowned Miss Africa USA

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — On Saturday, Fairfax City resident Amini Bonane will be pursuing her quest to become the first Congolese woman to be crowned Miss Africa USA.

Born in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bonane and her family abruptly emigrated to the U.S. to escape the ongoing war in Eastern Congo, which has claimed more than 4 million lives since 1998.

Bonane and her family eventually settled in Fairfax City, where she attended local schools before graduating from George Mason University.

The Miss Africa USA Pageant was launched in 2005 to groom a generation of African women leaders, according to the pageant's website.

The 2023 Grand Finals and Coronation Ceremony will take place Saturday, from 5-11 p.m., at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Greenbelt, Maryland. Tickets are available online.

Patch recently interviewed Bonane to find out about her experience growing up in Fairfax City and what led up to her becoming a Miss Africa USA contestant.

PATCH: How did you end up in Fairfax City?

AMINI BONANE: Fairfax City became a safe haven during the process of going from political asylee to citizen. I went to Main Street Child Development Center as a toddler, Paul VI on Fairfax Boulevard as a teen, and George Mason University as a young adult. I moved back to the city after college, to honor the legacy of a close friend of mine from Fairfax Highs School named Faisal Mouloua, who passed unexpectedly in 2016. Giving back to the city that saved my life is my way of honoring him.

How did you find out about the Miss Africa USA pageant?

I’ve been a fan of the Miss Africa USA pageant since it’s inception. My Nigerian-American best friend from PVI Cassandra Nanji and I would jokingly wonder what it would be like having the honor of representing our respective countries. I became involved with the pageant as a visiting queen, during the 2018 pageant season, when I won my first title as Miss RD Congo VA, then eventually Miss RD Congo USA.

The Miss Africa USA pageant is ever evolving, thanks to its glorious founder Lady Kate Ndi, which is why it’s been going strong since 2005. They changed the rules in 2019, to allow women from all across the African diaspora to be eligible, welcoming Black American and Carribean women into our sisterhood with open arms.

In 2019, I was first runner up for Miss Northern VA in the Miss America System, with encouragement from a dear friend named Caroline Weinroth, who held the title in 2018. 2020 was a major year in human history, and I’m extremely proud of the social Justice work I accomplished, as Miss Black DC USA.

In 2021, I was proudly given the title of Miss Fairfax City USA, in the Miss USA system, and got to participate in the city’s annual 4th of July parade, after attending almost every year with Faisal until his untimely at the age of 21. In 2022, I accepted a position as state director for Miss Black DC USA. Now in 2023, I am retiring from pageantry, as a finalist for with the one that started it all.

Why did you want to participate in the pageant?

I summarized where I’m finding the courage to compete with confidence, despite not being the age, size, or having the socioeconomic status of a typical pageant girl, in my platform video.

How have you prepared for the pageant?

To be completely candid, this is my first time competing to actually win the big crown. This competition is a culmination of my immigrant story thus far. I’m going to leverage the power of the Miss Africa USA crown to make a global difference; and I’m not waiting until the finale night to start.

As a delegate, I started the work by creating a petition to World Bank to restore funding to areas desperately in need of care. Forbes Africa invited me to attend the 2023 Leading Women Summit in South Africa. I was also approved by the UN Secretariat, to represent my platform at the international United Nations RP23 Conference.

If selected for the honor, I will continue to harness the power of the 15th Miss Africa USA crown, by partnering with my extensive network to start a disaster prevention fund of $100,000; that will provide direct relief for the victims of the Mount Nyiragongo eruption. I visited my ancestral home in Eastern Congo in 2015, and witnessed first-hand the destruction from lack of funding, transparency, and awareness. I promised the locals that one day I would return to help them, and with the support of the Miss Africa USA Organization, making history as the first ever queen from DRC, I will keep that promise.

To win a pageant, from a local to an international stage, you have to be able to talk the talk and walk the walk; so I also hired the best pageant coach in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, former Miss D.C. USA Ciera Nicole, to help me learn how to walk. I thought I learned how to walk as a baby, but I’m learning all over again as an adult.

Why do you think you should be Miss Africa USA?

I’m going to follow in the footsteps of the longest reigning Queen Sherylene Grice, and the impactful queens that came before her like Nyasha Zimucha and Nereida Lobo.

As Miss Africa USA, I will take the lead, by building on my life experience from refugee to community organizer, cultural bridge builder, and champion for women and girls, to change the global image of Africa: from a false narrative of permanent poverty to a new woman led era of peace and prosperity.

My platform, called “From Reactive To Proactive” is a call to action. As the 2023 Queen, I will continue leveraging the power of the crown, to speak up for those who have even silenced, because there’s no such thing as the voiceless.

To quote my hero Michelle Obama, “No country can ever truly flourish, if it stifles the potential of its women, and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens.”

I agree with former First Lady Michelle Obama in principle and in action so much so, that my tireless work as a previous pageant titleholder was officially recognized via proclamation, by the three-term current Mayor (a future governor) of Washington, D.C., the Honorable Muriel Bowser. My previous experience also landed me on the Leadership Center for Excellence 40 Under 40 List, enabled me to become a two-time TedX speaker, and led my story of perseverance to be featured many times on TV networks such as ABC, CBS, FoxSoul, radio programs such as The Steve Harvey Morning Show, and numerous print publications including Leading Ladies Africa.

So if entrusted with the prestigious title of Miss Africa USA 2023, I will use my award-winning expertise in advocacy to: meet with elected officials, amplify the voices of grassroots organizers, and empower disenfranchised people across the diaspora.

Lastly I’d like to share, that wether or not I get the giant tiara on Saturday, March 18, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, I will continue to support the mission of this organization and uplift my sister queens until the end of time.