“…I don’t want to ignore my Blackness. I just want to get to the point where my racial identity is simply a part of what makes me unique…” — KERRY WASHINGTON

Does it get any more fabulous than ESSENCE’s November cover girl Kerry Washington? The uber-talented, intelligent and beautiful actress graces the cover of ESSENCE’s special “Race in America”-themed issue and talks to the magazine about her two upcoming movies (“Night Catches Us” and “For Colored Girls”), race, her activist work — and what it means to be Kerry Washington in Hollywood.

The goal of this month’s issue is to create a national dialogue on race that will inform, inspire and empower African-American women. See the rest of the November issue for more on ESSENCE’s special report on race in America.