Meghan Markle addresses Black Lives Matter movement in new video: “The only wrong thing to say is to say nothing”
Meghan Markle has delivered a moving speech on racism in light of the Black Lives Matter movement recently re-lit by George Floyd’s death in police custody.
In a powerful video message to the graduating class of the Los Angeles high school she attended, the royal member called the events of the past week “absolutely devastating”, admitting she “wasn’t sure what to say” at first.
“I wasn't sure what I could say to you. I wanted to say the right thing and I was really nervous that it would get picked apart,” she said.
“I realised the only wrong thing to say is to say nothing,” she told the Immaculate Heart High School students.
“Because George Floyd's life mattered and Breonna Taylor's life mattered and Philando Castile's life mattered and Tamir Rice's life mattered … and so did so many other people whose names we know and whose names we do not know.”
The Duchess of Sussex was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she now resides with her husband Prince Harry and their son Archie.
In the new video shared to social media, the royal recounted her memories of the riots that occurred in the city in 1992, which she described as similarly triggered by “a senseless act of racism”.
“I remember seeing men in the back of a van just holding guns and rifles. I remember pulling up the house and seeing the tree, that had always been there, completely charred,” she said.
“Those memories don't go away, and I can't imagine that at 17 or 18 years old, which is how old you are now, that you would have to have a different version of that same type of experience. That's something you should have an understanding of as a history lesson, not as your reality.”
She went on to apologise that the world isn’t “in a place where you deserve it to be”.
“I am so sorry that you have to grow up in a world where this is still present,” she said.
The former Suits actress finished off her powerful five-minute speech by urging students of her former highschool take action and be leaders in inspiring change as they forge a path outside high school.
“We are going to rebuild and rebuild and rebuild until it is rebuilt. Because when the foundation is broken, so are we,” she said to the students.
“You are going to lead with love, you are going to lead with compassion, you are going to use your voice in a stronger way than you've ever been able to, because most of you are 18, or you're going to turn 18, and you're going to vote.
“I know you know that black lives matter, so I am already excited for what you are going to do in the world. You are equipped, you are ready, we need you and you are prepared.”
Both Meghan and Harry have maintained a low profile during the Black Lives Matter protests, having stayed offline during Black Out Tuesday this week on their Sussex Royal Instagram page.
The Queen's Commonwealth Trust, which is overseen by the Queen, Harry and Meghan, this week shared on Instagram and Twitter a Martin Luther King Jr quote, saying “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”