Meghan Markle has made history again after becoming the guest editor of British Vogue's September issue. In its 103 years in publication, the magazine has never had a guest editor until Meghan offered to do the job instead of just being part of the feature.
In her column on British Vogue, Meghan said that she worked for several months with actual editor Edward Enninful in coming up with the issue. The duchess was quite hands in choosing the personalities and the stories to be covered by the magazine. She also approved the photos and the art direction.
Meghan wanted this special issue to focus on influential women who have brought significant changes in the world. Among those featured were actresses Laverne Cox and Jameela Jamil, activist Greta Thunberg, author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, environmentalist Dr. Jane Goodall, and the former U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama.
"Through this lens I hope you'll feel the strength of the collective in the diverse selection of women chosen for the cover as well as the team of support I called upon within the issue to help bring this to light," Meghan wrote in the editor's column. "I hope readers feel as inspired as I do, by the 'Forces for Change' they'll find within these pages," she added.
However, as much as the British Vogue issue was inspiring, Meghan's ideas were also criticized for the lack of British women in the feature, per Newsweek. Some also questioned why Meghan didn't include Queen Elizabeth, who should be the perfect role model for all generations of women.
The British Vogue cover with the 15 images of these women had one empty box. The duchess explained that this was left without a photo on purpose because it's supposed to be a mirror to encourage the readers to look into themselves and create their platforms for change, according to Enninful.
Meghan would have taken the 16th spot of the cover photo, but she told Enninful that it would seem "boastful" to include her image while she's also the editor. Critics weren't happy with this decision as well and cited that her guest editor stint was a display of narcissism.
But fans of the royal came to her defense and congratulated her for the hard work she poured in this September issue. Some said that the criticisms are not warranted and the real reason for these attacks is not just because she's a royal who has guest-edited a prestigious magazine. The source of the negativity runs deep for some critics.
Jamil, who is featured in the issue, also came to the defense of the duchess and engaged Piers Morgan, one of Meghan's most opinionated critics, in a Twitter war, per USA Today.
