Detroit -- Say what you will about beauty contests, it takes a whole lot of confidence and poise to walk down one of those runways and to impress the judges with one's thinking and talent.

But few young Chaldean women feel comfortable participating in that American cultural phenomenon. Montaha Polis wants to help change that.

Polis, 26, of Warren is one of 13 contestants in the first Miss Chaldean Beauty Pageant at the Royal Oak Theater tonight. And she says that participating is not much about her at all.

"I've always wanted to be involved in my community and to reach out to young females out there who don't have the opportunity -- to be a mentor," said the Wayne State University graduate who works for Merck, the pharmaceutical company. "This is a different culture from what our older generation grew up in, in Iraq.

"Life is not only focused on growing up and getting married and having a family, here," Polis said. "There is more out there than that."

Chaldeans, a Catholic Semitic people, compose the largest portion of Metro Detroit residents of Iraqi descent. Community leaders say there are 90,000 to 120,000 Chaldeans here, compared to about 15,000 Iraqi Muslims.

Many local Chaldeans say their expectations of how women live are often socially conservative. And some local Chaldeans have long considered having a beauty pageant as a way of expanding their culture

"This is really more about our community assimilating," said Martin Manna, executive director of the Chaldean-American Chamber of Commerce. "This is not something our community would even have considered doing 10 or 15 years ago. The culture we were a part of would not let women be exposed, in some ways."

But some young women began entering beauty contests on their own -- with concern from some corners of the community. They did well, making the finals of the Miss Michigan contest and winning Miss Teen Michigan.

"The Chaldean community is very, very strict on women -- very traditional," said Jason Kado, of Jado Productions, which is producing the event.

"Back home, we are Catholics in Iraq and mostly influenced by the Muslim upbringing around us, where ladies have to keep their skirts to their ankles. Coming to the United States, of course, we are more expressive, more relaxed and understanding of our freedom."

The contest includes a talent show, choreographed dances, a question-and-answer session with judges and an evening gown contest.

That's right. No swimsuits.

"As far as the swimsuit contest," Kado said, "we thought we'd wait a little bit, on that -- one step at a time."

Kado eventually hopes to have a swimsuit contest in the annual event -- and to make the winner a qualifier for the Miss Michigan pageant.

"A little bit of waiting on the swimsuits is how the community would react to it, for sure," Kado said. "But, also, the contestants. The first question they all said was: 'Please tell me there isn't a swimsuit portion!'

"If we had it, most of the girls would not have come out at all."

By Gregg Krupa
The Detroit News