Child beauty pageants are a billion-dollar industry in the U.S. While some critics see the pageants as an exploitation of innocents, others—particularly pageant parents—view the competitions as a way for a young talent to enter the entertainment industry.

A U.S. Navy F18 fighter jet takes off from aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson during a FONOPS (Freedom of Navigation Operation Patrol) in South China Sea, March 3, 2017. The U.S. military took journalists Friday to the carrier on routine patrol off the disputed South China Sea, sending a signal to China and American allies of its resolve to ensure freedom of navigation and overflight in one of the world's security hotspots. (Photo by Erik De Castro/Reuters)

Runner English Gardner poses for a portrait at the U.S. Olympic Committee Media Summit in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California March 8, 2016. “My musical inspiration when I'm training is usually a lot of upbeat music”, said Gardner. (Photo by Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

A military band prepares to play the national anthems before Cuban President Raul Castro welcomes U.S. President Barack Obama at the Palacio de la Revolucion in Havana March 21, 2016. Barack Obama on Sunday became the first US president in 88 years to visit Cuba, touching down in Havana for a landmark trip aimed at ending decades of Cold War animosity. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

J.S. Burgers Cafe chef Yasuhito Fukui prepares Mr. and Mrs. Burger featuring the U.S. presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump at the hamburger joint in Tokyo, Japan October 7, 2016. (Photo by Megumi Lim/Reuters)

Santa Jerry Julian of Colorado Springs, Colorado hides in the grass following a ride on the Polar Express during a field trip from the Charles W. Howard Santa Claus School in Midland, Michigan, U.S. October 28, 2016. (Photo by Christinne Muschi/Reuters)

Men fix a pinata representing U.S. President-elect Donald Trump as a devil outside a house before it is set on fire at the traditional Burning of the Devil festival, ahead of Christmas in Guatemala City, Guatemala, December 7, 2016. (Photo by Luis Echeverria/Reuters)

Participants dance and climb on an art installation as approximately 70,000 people from all over the world gather for the 30th annual Burning Man arts and music festival in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, U.S. August 31, 2016. (Photo by Jim Urquhart/Reuters)