Beverly Ann Johnson is an American model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. Johnson rose to fame when she became the first black model to appear on the cover of American Vogue in August 1974, after Donyale Luna was the first black model to appear on the cover of British Vogue in 1966.
Who was the first black person on the cover of Vogue? Meet Beverly Johnson
Beverly Johnson made fashion history when she became the first Black model to appear on the American cover of Vogue magazine. When her first managers told her that major magazine covers weren’t going to happen due to her race, she got new managers.
On June 16th, 2020 in the midst of the Black Lives Matter movement, Johnson published an op-ed to the Washington Post titled, “I was the first black model on the cover of Vogue. The fashion industry still isn’t fixing its racism,” in which she speaks of her experience and the flaws she has observed from her time in the industry.