Brianna Stone

A University of Texas-Austin student is dealing with a lot of backlash and Twitter trolls after being crowned as the 2017 Miss Black University of Texas at an annual pageant.

Why? Because some think she isn't "black enough."

The pageant, in its 35th year, was hosted by the Iota Delta chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, took place Sunday on the UT campus. For nearly five hours, the eight contestants danced, sang, acted, shared personal experiences, pitched their platforms, answered questions and gracefully walked across the stage in heels and gowns.

Rachael Malonson, a biracial UT journalism senior, was crowned the winner.

But several people on social media expressed disappointment in the fraternity for selecting a winner who they say does not represent the black community because she does not look black. Some Twitter trolls even outright asked what her race was and questioned her blackness, even after being told she was biracial.

A few theorized that her light skin helped her win.

Malonson actually anticipated skeptical responses to her participation. "I wasn't sure if I would even place in the pageant because I wasn't sure they would think I was 'black enough'," she told USA TODAY College. She decided to enter anyway. "I chose to do the pageant to gain a deeper inner confidence before I graduate, while breaking stereotypes that black people or mixed-race people have to look a certain way," she said.

After the fraternity posted photos of the pageant to Twitter, Malonson said, random people began to flood in with comments about her not being black enough -- or not even being black at all.

"At first, it really caught me off guard because I didn't think it would be that big of a deal," she said. "Then I realized I could use this as an opportunity and platform to break down the stereotypes that black people have to look a certain way to be accepted."

Through all of the backlash, fraternity members, pageant members and other UT students have been defending Malonson.

"I'm so humbled by all of the support I've received from the black community at UT," Malonson said. "Their opinion matters to me most because they are the ones who truly know me and know that I am a black woman who works to support the black community."

Brianna Stone is a USA TODAY College digital producer and a student at the University of Texas-Austin.

This story originally appeared on the USA TODAY College blog, a news source produced for college students by student journalists. The blog closed in September of 2017.