South Africa was represented by Margaret Gardiner when it captured the Miss Universe title in 1978, winning the African continent its first such award. At that time, the apartheid system still divided South Africa between its white minority – of which Ms. Gardiner was a part – and its black majority.
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Miss Universe 2011: Angola's Leila Lopes becomes fourth African winner
Miss Universe 2011 Leila Lopes hails from the southern African nation of Angola. She's only the fourth African to win the title since the beginning of the worldwide pageant. She’s only the second African of African descent to win.
Andre Penner/AP
South Africa, 1978
