In addition to the beautiful portraits of 15 women on the cover of British Vogue's upcoming September issue [1], you'll notice a blank spot. That wasn't a mistake, but rather a deliberate decision made by Meghan Markle [2], who guest edited the issue [3] with Editor in Chief Edward Enninful. "The 16th slot will appear as a mirror on the printed cover, and was included at the special request of the duchess to show that you — that all of us, in fact — are part of this moment too," Edward said on Instagram [4] when he revealed the cover.
That's a powerful statement considering the magazine cover features "15 world-leading women who are reshaping public life for global good." Meghan is the first-ever guest editor of the publication's September issue, and it was not a project she took lightly. "It's been a real labor of love and I feel very humbled today to be able to finally unveil it to the world," Edward said of their collaboration.
The choice to leave a slot for the reader to see herself or himself speaks to what the issue is really about, which, in Meghan's own words [6], is "the power of the collective" and "the knowledge that we are even stronger together." British Vogue's September issue is available on newsstands and digital download on Friday, Aug. 2.