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It’s about time!!! Vanessa Williams has lived with the embarrassment and moved on after having been forced to resign her title as Miss America. Well after more than 32 years she has returned to the Miss America arena to perform and judge the pageant. EarHustle411 doesn’t believe it should have taken 32 years to move on from this incident, however better late than never. Vanessa Williams after resigning her position as Miss America moved on with her life and became a very popular and successful singer and actress. She has lived her life in a dignified manner, so she has always been Miss America to us.

Welcome Back Vanessa!!!

Read more as reported by Washington Post:

Three decades after Vanessa Williams was forced to resign as Miss America when nude photos of her were published in a magazine without her consent, Vanessa Williams returned to the competition as a judge on Sunday night. But before she sat down to judge the pageant, she appeared on stage and received a very public, personal apology from the organization’s chief executive.

“I have been a close friend of this beautiful and talented lady for 32 years. You have lived your life in grace and dignity, and never was it more evident than during the events of 1984 when you resigned,” Sam Haskell said. “Though none of us currently in the organization were involved in, on behalf of today’s organization, I want to apologize to you and to your mother, Miss Helen Williams. I want to apologize for anything that was said or done that made you feel any less than the Miss America you are, and the Miss America you always will be.”

The audience gave a standing ovation and screamed and cheered as the cameras focused on Williams’s mother, who appeared to be on the verge of tears. Williams’s return had been a big story all week, so it was no surprise when after the contestants were announced, she opened the show by performing her hit “Oh How the Years Go By.” As she sang, archival photos appeared on huge screens behind her — including, strangely, a 1984 Los Angeles Times headline about her giving up her crown, and a People magazine cover that quoted Williams as saying, “I’ve Hit Rock Bottom.”

After the scandal, Williams went on to become a successful singer and actress. She has starred in two shows on ABC (“Ugly Betty” and “Desperate Housewives”), which airs the pageant. As she stood with Haskell, tears in her eyes, Williams was gracious.

“Thank you so much, Sam, so unexpected but so beautiful. I did the best that I could as Miss America in 1983 to ’84,” she said. “On behalf of my family, my mother in particular; [publicist] Brian Edwards, who orchestrated this entire thing to bring me back; and your leadership, your integrity and you bringing this pageant back to what it ought to be. I love you. I love the girls. And I’m so honored to be back.”

Source: Washington Post