Breonna Taylor Will Be First Non-Oprah Cover Star of "O"

For 20 years, Oprah Winfrey has graced the cover of her O magazine every month, but this year she’s stepping aside for an important reason: to pay tribute to Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman who was killed by police in the middle of the night in her Louisville home back in March.

“Her life matters,” the September issue cover reads. “Breonna Taylor, Born June 5 1993, Killed By Police, March 13 2020.”

“Breonna Taylor. She was just like you,” Winfrey said in an announcement of the cover on Thursday. “And like everyone who dies unexpectedly, she had plans. Plans for a future filled with responsibility and work and friends and laughter.”

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For the first time in 20 years, @oprah has given up her O Magazine cover to honor Breonna Taylor. She says, “Breonna Taylor. She was just like you. And like everyone who dies unexpectedly, she had plans. Plans for a future filled with responsibility and work and friends and laughter. 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. 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. I cry for justice in her name.” Tap the link in our bio to read more about Oprah’s tribute to Breonna—and her recent conversation with her mother, Tamika Palmer. Breonna: This one’s for you 🙏🏽 The September issue will be available wherever you buy or download your magazines on 8/11. (🎨: @alexis_art)

A post shared by O, The Oprah Magazine (@oprahmagazine) on Jul 30, 2020 at 5:30am PDT

“Breonna Taylor loved cars and treated her 2019 Dodge Charger like a trusted friend,” Winfrey wrote. “Breonna Taylor loved chicken any way you could cook it. Breonna Taylor put hot sauce on everything, especially eggs. Breonna Taylor appreciated every kind of music and the dances that went along. Breonna Taylor treated all her friends like besties. Breonna Taylor was a force in the life of her 20-year-old sister.”

“Breonna Taylor had dreams,” she continued. “They all died with her the night five bullets shattered her body and her future.”

The September issue of O magazine is slated to hit newsstands on Aug. 11.

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