1990 Ad

Ebony, Dec, 1989 by Lynn Norment

HERE SHE IS! MISS AMERICA Black, Beautiful, Brainy and Born-Again

AT first glance, Debbye Turner appears to the stereotypical beauty queen. She is pretty, has a great figure and possesses natural charm, poise and grace.

However, on closer inspection, she appears to be antithesis of the type of young woman who would enter pageant after pageant in search of that coveted rhinestone tiara. She is a born-again Christian whose Bible is her constant companion. She is only a few months away from earning a doctor of veterinary medicine degree. And with sass, humor and wit, she can articulate her views on almost any topic thrown at her.

All these qualities helped this personable 24-year-old Jonesboro, Ark., native win the crown sought by some 80,000 females across the country.

When Turner was Crowned Miss America 1990 before 50 million TV viewers, it was the realization of an eight-year dream, the result of diligence, talent and faith. She had participated in a dozen pageants since age 16, all the time with an eye on scholarship money to finance her education. In addition to the $44,000 scholarship she wins as Miss America, she also gets a white 1990 Corvette and stands to make from $150,000 to $200,000 with personal appearances.

This 5'7-1/2", 118-pound fitness buff who won the swimsuit competition and wowed the judges with her masterful performance of "Flight Of The Bumblebee" on the marimba is only the second Black woman to win the nation's premier beauty pageant. In 1983, Vanessa Williams was the first Black crowned Miss America, but she relinquished the crown when controversy erupted over the publication of nude photographs of her in Penthouse magazine. Her successor was another Black woman, Suzette Charles. In the most recent pageant, two other Black women also competed: Lynette Boggs, Miss Oregon, and Donya Rose, Miss District of Columbia.

As Miss America, turner will give countless interviews, sign thousands of autographs and make hundreds of appearances at shopping malls, conventions and trade shows, many of which were arranged long before she was crowned. During the first few days of her reign, she met President Bush, the Soviet ambassador and Miss U.S.S.R. But she seemed most excited about meeting Lionel Hampton, her "original inspiration" to study the xylophone and the marimba, and spending 30 minutes with Bill Cosby in the entertainer's dressing room. There she sampled an elaborate salmon mousse and nibbled on greens, red beans and rice and fried chicken from his soul-food buffet. But she says she was too excited to really enjoy her favorite foods.

She also was delighted to meet the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who, along with Cosby, gave ther "fatherly" advice. "They told me to be wise in the decisions I make, and to be prudent in the people whom i trust," she says.

Turner adds that she realizes that it will indeed be an extraordinary year, one in which many people will try to woo her to their cause. "But I have two big safeguards," she says with confidence. "I know where I cam from and I know where my source of strength and where my family and friends really are, and that's basically the type of life I want to go back to. So I don't think I'll have a problem being tempted with a lot of flattery and contracts. I'm not interested in going into show business or broadcasting."

What she is interested in doing is motivating youth to pursue excellence, and that is the agenda she has chosen. It is the first time in the pageant's history that the crown officially inlcudes a forum for Miss America to speak publicly on an issue of her choice.

"I am firmly determined to leave this year with having given more than I received," she says. "This is a wonderful opportunity, but I don't want to just make a bunch of money and say that I'm a former Miss America."

Her message to students at Evanston Township High School outside Chicago is typical of what she tells young people across the country. "I told them that you don't have to be limited by the color of your skin or the amont of money your parents have," she says. "We weren't rich, but I found ways to do what I wanted to do. The important thing is to get a good, strong education and make good grades. Whatever your goal, don't give up. Force yourself to get better with every try, and you can achieve it."

Turner, like more seasoned motivation lecturers, speaks from personal experience. Her mother, Gussie Turner, an Arkansas State University counselor and an evangelist, made clothes for her and her sister, Suzette, and otherwise cut corners to stretch the family's tight budget. But Mrs. Turner never skimped when it came to educating and encouraging her daughters to pursue their goals.

While their father, Frederick Turner, a retired Army lieutenant colonel in Austin, Texas, also encouraged his daughters to excel, he tried to dissuade Debbye from continuing her pursuit of the Miss America crown. But she could not be swayed, and the proud father, now a job counselor, was delighted to witness his daughter's dream come true.