Vogue UK editor-in-chief Edward Enninful shares his thoughts about the 9 trailblazing models who cover the May 2017 issue. Whether you like it or not, Enninful hopes that the cover shot by long-time collaborator Craig McDean "defines everything we stand for as a magazine in 2018".

It's diverse in all ways: "race, size, socio-economic background, religion, sexuality". That's the statement with this cover. You can call it fashion light, a bland sandwich, or a 2018 vision of Mao's army -- one not looking at all like Olivier Rousteing's Balmain army.

For an American, the timing is interesting because it comes against the backdrop of Florida's Parkland school shooting and last weekend's 'March for Our Lives' in DC and across America. The students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida have a lot on their minds and it's not fashion's current "it" bag.

The soul and spirit expressed by the Parkland students has something in common with two of Enninful's new cover girls: Halima Aden and Adut Akech, born in the same refugee camp in Kenya. Enninful writes that they are now standing at the top of their profession, an assertion that is rushing things a bit. Still, let that sink in. Two of these global beauties were born in the same refugee camp. The Parkland students -- who just six weeks ago were diving under their desks as a former student decimated the ground beneath their feet with an automatic assault rifle -- can relate to the reality of Halima and Adut. Not word for word. They have not laid their heads down to sleep in a refugee camp. But their world views encompasses peers who have.

Edward Enninful is asking us to view his British Vogue cover through this lens, adding Radhika Nair, Yoon Young Bae, Faretta, Fran Summers, Vittoria Ceretti, Paloma Elsesser and Selena Forrest to his May 2018 cover.

About his style palette, Enninful writes: "I just wanted them to feel empowered, so chose a careful palette of khakis, blacks and creams so they’d feel ready for anything. Strong, powerful and poised for exciting futures. Three cheers for that."

These girls make Enninful feel that anything is possible. Funny, that's how the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School made me feel last weekend when I cried and cried and cried, watching them with joy and sorrow simultaneously.

As Donald Trump and America's right wing battle against social justice and diversity, can our left-wing flank strike back? Through this lens, how does fashion matter? Enninful is probing the same question. Enuf said. ~ Anne