The 19th/Youtube
Meghan Markle has revealed she was devastated to return to America in the wake of George Floyds killing, but said the protests that followed and the subsequent social and cultural reckoning have inspired her.
Prince Harry Was Incandescent With Rage at the Racism Meghan Markle Faced
Meghan, speaking to Emily Ramshaw, co-founder and CEO of The 19th*as part of the sites The 19th* Represents 2020 Virtual Summitsaid it was just devastating, so sad, to see where the country was in that moment. In the peaceful protests and seeing how people owned their part in discriminating against othersspecifically Black peopleMeghans feeling shifted from sadness to a feeling of absolute inspiration, because I can see the tide is turning.
From my standpoint, its not new to see this undercurrent of racism and certainly unconscious bias, Meghan said.
Signaling she was relieved of being free to speak her mind now no longer a senior royal, Meghan said she was looking forward to using her voice in a way that I havent been able to of late. So, yeah, its good to be home.
Meghan was cast as interviewer in the exchange, congratulating Ramshaw in setting up the non-profit woman-focused politics and culture site. Then Ramshaw asked Meghan why she thought a woman-focused news organization was needed.
Meghans answer began by noting how a man had originated the word suffragette, originally intended as belittlingand what this symbolized in terms of the ability of influence, which when coming from a patriarchal lensshapes everything we see.
Meghan did not speak about the various legal cases she and Prince Harry have launched against the mediaand neither was she asked about them. Nor was she asked about the couples meetings with senior figures in the digital world over their demand to de-fund hate platforms.
Invoking her own standpoint and personal experience, Meghan said: The headline is the clickbait alone. It makes an imprint. That is part of how we start to view the world, how we interact with other people. I think theres so much toxicity out there. Harry and she talk about it often, she said, this economy for attention. That is what is monetizable right now when youre looking at the digital space and media. If youre just trying to grab someones attention and keep it, youre going for something salacious versus something truthful.
Instead, Meghan said she wanted journalists to tell the truth in reportingthrough a compassionate and empathetic lens. This would help bind people as a community, she claimed.
Meghan went on to talk about the importance of women exercising their right to vote, and to be really aware of not taking it for granted. My husband has not been able to vote. (The Royal Family can vote in British elections, but have long chosen not to, according to their stance of political neutrality.)
The right to vote is not a privilege; it is a right in and of itself, Meghan said. Womens voices, she said, are needed now more than ever, and the best way to exercise that is through voting.
Meghan concluded: From my standpoint, its not new to see this undercurrent of racism and certainly unconscious bias, but I think to see the changes that are being made right now is reallyits something I look forward to being a part of. And being part of using my voice in a way that I havent been able to of late. So, yeah, its good to be home.
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Meghan Markle: ‘There’s So Much Toxicity Out There’
