Post backlash: 'Vogue' to publish new Kamala Harris cover

After immense backlash, Vogue has promised to bounce back with a limited edition of its February issue, featuring Kamala Harris with a new photo. The original cover image was received by many as a sign of the lack respect for the vice-president-elect, reported The Guardian.

The upcoming limited edition, with a cover image previously used online, is slated to release after inauguration ceremonies on Wednesday, when Harris will become the first person of Black and south Asian descent sworn in as vice-president.

The original cover image showing Harris wearing Converse sneakers and casual clothes, sparked ire on social media, with users questioning why Vogue would choose the image over the more formal online cover featuring Harris in a powder blue Michael Kors suit in front of a gold background.

Even Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan wrote, “Vogue robbed Harris of her roses. A bit of awe would have served the magazine well in its cover decisions. Nothing about the cover said, ‘Wow.’ And sometimes, that’s all Black women want, an admiring and celebratory ‘wow’ over what they have accomplished.”

A Vogue spokesperson said, “In recognition of the enormous interest in the digital cover and in celebration of this historic moment, we will be publishing a limited number of special edition inauguration issues.” The news was also shared on Instagram.

Last week, the editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, explained that the original photo – by Tyler Mitchell, in 2018 the first African American photographer to shoot a US Vogue cover – was chosen for its accessibility and approachability. Wintour also discussed negative reaction to the photo.

“Obviously we have heard and understood the reaction to the print cover,” Wintour told the New York Times, “and I just want to reiterate that it was absolutely not our intention to, in any way, diminish the importance of the vice-president-elect’s incredible victory.”

Many had also questioned the lighting of the photo – provided Harris’s skin tone – since Vogue was previously been criticised for its lighting of the gymnast Simone Biles in its August cover star.

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