Nashauna Drummond, Acting Lifestyle Coordinator

Miss Jamaica World 2006, Sara Lawrence on coronation night. - Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer

Before there was Sara Lawrence (Miss Jamaica 2006) and Alisha Julie-Ann Morgan (Miss Jamaica Festival Queen 2007), there were Marlene Murray and Mitzie Constantine.

The competition began in 1962, as the Miss Jamaica Beauty contest. However, the need for greater emphasis on cultural awareness prompted a shift in focus by 1975. Though physical appearance was important, the emphasis was on the contestants being culturally aware, keen on current affairs, involved in their communities and talented.

Cultural ambassador

The National Festival Queen is to act as a cultural ambassador for Jamaica locally and internationally, and to contribute to nation building, during and after her reign. To celebrate our independence, Flair caught up with some of the women who have participated in a competition that pays homage to Jamaica as a nation, one that celebrates what it really means to be Jamaican.