Oprah Winfrey explains why Breonna Taylor is on the cover of O magazine

Oprah Winfrey wrote a powerful column calling for justice for Breonna Taylor and honoring her memory in the September edition of Oh, Oprah magazine, which features Taylor on the cover.

On Thursday, O published Winfrey’s essay explaining the decision not to feature Winfrey on the cover of her magazine for the first time in 20 years. The moving piece also quotes Taylor’s mother Tamika Palmer as she continues to investigate consequences for the police involved in her daughter’s shooting.

“I often think of Breonna Taylor,” wrote Winfrey. “She was the same age as the two girls from my school in South Africa who were quarantine with Stedman and me since March. In all of their conversations, I feel the promise of possibilities.

“Their entire life shines with the light of hope. It was taken away from Breonna in such a horrible way.

Winfrey is one of the many entertainment luminaries – including Beyoncé, Solange, Gabrielle Union, Lena Waithe, Kerry Washington and many more – who used their elevated platforms to call for action after Taylor was shot. in his apartment by officers using a “no-knock” search warrant.

No-coup warrants have since been banned in Taylor’s hometown of Louisville, Ky., But the officers involved in his shooting – Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove – have not been arrested.

“The fact that no one has been charged. It was so reckless, ”Palmer is quoted in O.“ They did it all for nothing, and she lost her life.

Winfrey’s column also noted that only one of the three cops, Hankison, was fired from the police force following Taylor’s murder.

“Breonna Taylor was 26 years old. Breonna Taylor loved cars and treated her 2019 Dodge Charger like a trusted friend. Breonna Taylor loved chicken in every way she could. Breonna Taylor put hot sauce on everything, especially the eggs, ”Winfrey wrote. “Breonna Taylor enjoyed all types of music and the dances that accompanied them. Breonna Taylor treated all of her friends like besties.

“Breonna Taylor was a force in the life of her 20 year old sister. Breonna Taylor saw meaning and purpose in her work as an emergency room technician. Breonna Taylor was saving to buy a house. Breonna Taylor had plans. Breonna Taylor had dreams. They all died with her the night five bullets shattered her body and her future.

In addition to Winfrey’s remarks, the September issue of O includes a profile by self-taught digital artist Alexis Franklin, 24, who redesigned Taylor’s “simple but powerful” selfie photo for the publication’s historic cover to “play a small part in this long-world-changing tale on racial injustice and police brutality.

“What I know for sure: we can’t stay silent,” Winfrey continued in her essay. “We must use any megaphone we must cry out for justice. And that’s why Breonna Taylor is on the cover of O magazine. I demand justice on her behalf.

Founded in April 2000, O magazine announced earlier this week that it would drop its print edition and go all-digital after December.