Harry Styles has made history this week as the first solo man on the cover of Vogue.

On top of marking this moment in history for Vogue, Styles also stepped out of the box and wore
a custom Gucci gown in his December cover shoot.

Styles, who has worn dresses and other eccentric outfits in the past, expressed his love for
fashion and breaking its binaries in his interview with the magazine.

“I’ll put on something that feels really flamboyant, and I don’t feel crazy wearing it. I think if you
get something that you feel amazing in, it’s like a superhero outfit. Clothes are there to have fun
with and experiment with and play with,” Styles said in Vogue.

The magazine has an average of 11.1 million monthly readers for its U.S. print version, and
reaches 13 million more unique users on its website. Hundreds of Styles’ fans purchased
subscriptions when they found out he was going to be on the cover.

Despite immediate positive reactions from his fanbase, Styles has been faced with criticism for
wearing a dress on the cover of the magazine.

“In the west, the steady feminization of our men at the same time that Marxism is being taught
to our children is not a coincidence. It is an outright attack. Bring back manly men,” said
conservative author Candance Owens in a tweet.

Many conservatives agreed with Owens. They were met with thousands of responses from fans
of the singer, defending Styles’ right to wear what he wanted.

However, it was not just conservatives that found this cover to be unfavorable. Many found it
frustrating and disheartening that a cisgender white man was the first solo-man cover of the
magazine in its 128-year history.

“I would love to see him use the leverage that he got from Vogue to also uplift some other
creators as well, and other artists and people who have been sort of doing this gender
non-conforming thing for a while,” said Swetha Ramesh, a middle school teacher in North
Carolina, in an interview.

A viral Instagram post was made by gender non-conforming writer and performance artist ALOK
about the cover, which discussed how it wouldn’t be possible without trans femmes of color.

“We can both acknowledge this unprecedented moment while also remembering that it could
only happen because of the resistance of trans femmes of color,” ALOK wrote. “I want a world
where everyone - regardless of their gender - can wear whatever they want. He is excercising
that and giving permission for other people to do the same and that makes me so happy!!”
Ramesh shared this post about Styles from ALOK on Instagram in order to educate their
followers.

Ramesh also noted how covers like this can change the way that younger people and artists
express themselves in the world.

“I think that, especially for people who have looked up to Harry Styles for a long time, I really
hope that it will just be kind of a push for a lot of different people to question what they know
about gender expression, especially what they know about, you know, masculinity and
femininity, and what we're taught,” Ramesh said.