For the first time in the magazine's history, O, The Oprah Magazine will not face its namesake on the cover. Instead, the 66-year-ol...
For the first time in the magazine's history, O, The Oprah Magazine will not face its namesake on the cover.
Instead, the 66-year-old mogul has stepped aside to give the spot to Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old woman who was killed by plainclothes police officers who stormed into her Louisville home in the middle of the night with a no-knock warrant on March 13.
In her editor's letter, Oprah said that she and her magazine staff gave Breonna the September cover in an effort to 'use whatever megaphone we have to cry for justice.'
Front and center: Breonna Taylor covers the September issue of O, The Oprah Magazine
Spotlight: In her editor's letter, Oprah said that she and her magazine staff gave Breonna the cover in an effort to 'use whatever megaphone we have to cry for justice'
Change: This marks the first time in the magazine's 20 years that Oprah hasn't posed for the cover
The new issue hits newsstands August 11 and features an image of Breonna created by 24-year-old digital artist Alexis Franklin.
'What I know for sure: We can’t be silent. We have to use whatever megaphone we have to cry for justice. And that is why Breonna Taylor is on the cover of O magazine,' Oprah wrote in her What I Know For Sure column.
She said that Breonna — who loved cars, chicken, hot sauce, and music, and who was saving to buy a house — was just like her.
'Breonna Taylor had plans. Breonna Taylor had dreams,' she wrote. 'They all died with her the night five bullets shattered her body and her future.
'I think about Breonna Taylor often. She was the same age as the two daughter-girls from my school in South Africa who’ve been quarantining with Stedman and me since March.
'In all their conversations I feel the promise of possibilities. Their whole lives shine with the light of hopefulness.
'That was taken away from Breonna in such a horrifying manner. Imagine if three unidentified men burst into your home while you were sleeping. And your partner fired a gun to protect you. And then mayhem.'
Oprah revealed that she'd spoken to Breonna's mother, Tamika Palmer, who was having 'a particularly bad day dealing with the loss and the grief of knowing that her daughter is gone forever.'
'Those of you who’ve lost loved ones know that the pain comes in waves and that any little thing can trigger it. A song. A scent. A word. A thought,' she wrote.
Tragedy: Breonna, 26, was killed by plainclothes police officers who stormed into her Louisville home in the middle of the night with a no-knock warrant on March 13
'Breonna Taylor had plans. Breonna Taylor had dreams,' Oprah wrote. 'They all died with her the night five bullets shattered her body and her future'
Controversy: The three officers involved (from left, Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detectives Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove) have not been charged in the shooting despite protests
'The day I called, Ms. Palmer was dealing with the emotion of it all. She told me, “I can’t stop seeing her face. Her smile. It’s what I miss most about her. I still can’t grasp the concept of her being gone. It feels so surreal. I’m still waiting for her to come through the door."'
Not only does O, The Oprah Magazine highlight the tragedy of Breonna's death, Oprah also stresses the fact that there has been no justice.
'As I write this, in early July, just one of the three officers involved has been dismissed from the police force,' she added, referring to Brett Hankison, who has not faced any charges. 'This officer blindly fired ten rounds from his gun, some of which went into the adjoining apartment.'
'The other two officers still have their jobs,' she added, referring to Jon Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove, who were only placed on administrative leave and have also not faced charges.
'What Ms. Palmer cannot understand is this: “The fact that no one has been charged. It was so reckless. They did all of this for nothing, and she lost her life.'
Oprah encourages readers to sign the Change.org and Color of Change petitions to demand justice from Kentucky officials; call Kentucky's attorney general, mayor, governor, and the public integrity unit of the Louisville Metro Police Department to demand the officers involved be fired and charged, and visit StandWithBre.com.
She also urges donations to the Louisville Community Bail Fund and the use of the #SayHerName hashtag on social media.
The former talk show host added that she feels a particular connection to other women spotlighted in the #SayHerName campaign, which raises awareness of the Black women, girls, and femmes who have died by police violence or while in custody.
'I have a collection of property ledgers from former plantations. Names, ages, and prices of people, listed along with cattle, shoes, wagons, and all other earthly possessions. The ledgers are framed in my library,' she explained.
Artist: The new issue hits newsstands August 11 and features an image of Breonna created by 24-year-old digital artist Alexis Franklin
'I am so happy to play a small part in this long-overdue, world-changing narrative on racial injustice and police brutality,' Alexis said
Call to action: Oprah encourages readers to sign the Change.org and Color of Change petitions to demand justice from Kentucky officials, among other acts
Poignant: Janelle Washington, a Black papercut artist, also created work for the issue: a silhouette of Breonna with 89 names highlighted by the #SayHerName campaign
'When in need of fortification in times of crisis or challenge, and sometimes just to remind myself where I’ve come from, I read them aloud. I feel a kinship.
'As a great-great-granddaughter of enslaved people, I know that in a different era my name would have been in someone’s ledger. Those ledgers come to mind when I see the names of Black women who were killed by police.
'Breonna Taylor and too many others like her. I see the names, I think of the ledgers, I feel the connection down the generations: the refusal to value Black women’s lives. And I feel a personal connection. Because I am these women. These women are me.
The issue also includes an interview with artist Alexis Franklin, who created the cover portrait.
'I am so happy to play a small part in this long-overdue, world-changing narrative on racial injustice and police brutality,' she said. 'The original photo is one Breonna took herself and has been featured in the news many times. Looking at it, I see an innocence, simple but powerful. It was critical for me to retain that.'
She said that 'so many things were going through my mind' while creating the cover.
'Every stroke was building a person: each eyelash, each wisp of hair, the shine on her lips, the highlight on her cheek.
'I had that season when I chose to shut down my feelings around the killing of unarmed Black people because I couldn’t take living day to day in such a state of awareness,' she went on.
'Now I was as up close and personal as I could ever get to this woman and, consequently, to this very real problem. I felt a new level of determination and pressure to get it right, but I tried not to let that affect me'
Chat: In the new issue, Oprah, pictured on the cover of the July/August 2020 edition of O, talks about speaking to Breonna's mother, Tamika Palmer
History: Winfrey's magazine, published by Hearst, in April celebrated its 20th birthday
Way back when: Oprah is seen on the cover of the September 2001 issue of O Magazine, which has been published since 2000 by Hearst Magazines
Janelle Washington, a Black papercut artist, also created work for the issue: a silhouette of Breonna with 89 names highlighted by the #SayHerName campaign.
The groundbreaking issue is being released amid reports that the monthly will cease printing after its December 2020 issue.
The staff of O: The Oprah Magazine, which was created by Winfrey and Hearst Communications, was informed of the decision on Friday, Business of Fashion reported.
The magazine has a paid print circulation of 2.2 million and an audience of 10 million, meaning that each copy of the magazine was read by around five people on average, Hearst claims.
While most magazines saw a decline in sales around 2009, O's circulation gained about five per cent, according to the Associated Press.
O also has a large black subscriber base compared to most publications. Black subscribers represent 35 per cent of O's readers.
The magazine is second only to Essence Magazine in terms of the diversity of its readership, beating BuzzFeed, Instyle, Refinry29, and sister publication Elle, according to the magazine's promotional material.
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