by POPSUGAR Sex & Culture 7

"When the magazine came out I had no idea at all that I was the first black woman to be on the cover of Vogue. I was just overjoyed to be on the cover because that's what you strive for as a model. That's when you know you have arrived."

— Beverly Johnson, on becoming the first black woman to be on the cover of Vogue in August 1974. She was only 21 when photographer Francesco Scavullo took the photo for the famed cover, but she quickly understood the significance of being first when she saw how discriminatory the fashion industry was — and still can be although it's clearly come a long way.