Meghan Markle addresses Time's Up and #MeToo campaigns during royal charity event with Prince Harry
"There’s no better time to continue to shine a light on women feeling empowered and people supporting them," the former actor said
Prince Harry's fiancé Meghan Markle addressed the Time’s Up movement during the first ever Royal Foundation Forum.
Markle appeared with Prince Harry, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge to set out plans for the royal charities, which, as Harry put it, aims to effect “societal change for the better”.
As part of this ethos, Markle specifically highlighted current gender equality controversies and the #MeToo and Time’s Up campaigns highlighting sexual harassment.
- Jennifer Lawrence set to produce ‘Time’s Up’ and #MeToo campaign documentary series
- Jodie Whittaker on equal pay for a female Doctor Who: it’s “a shock” that it’s even an issue
- Jodie Whittaker, Emma Watson and UK actors pen powerful open letter in support of Time’s Up movement against harassment and inequality
“I hear a lot of people speaking about girls’ empowerment and women’s empowerment; you will hear people saying they are helping women find their voices. I fundamentally disagree with that because women don’t need to find their voices; they need to be empowered to use it and people need to be urged to listen,” the former actor said.
“Right now, with so many campaigns like #MeToo and Time’s Up, there’s no better time to continue to shine a light on women feeling empowered and people supporting them.”
Markle didn’t specify which projects she is planning to support, but she did however say that she is “meeting with the right people and the right organisations”.
She also suggested she would have to wait until after her wedding on 19th May before committing to the upcoming projects: “I guess we wait a couple of months and then we can hit the ground running,” she laughed. “We can hold tight until that’s done.”
Harry agreed: “We’re pretty tied up with planning a wedding at the moment but we’re hoping to make as much of a difference as we can.”
During her speech at the forum, the Duchess of Cambridge also asserted the Foundation’s commitment to social change. “The work we do can, and should, have a long-lasting resonance. For this reason, we are able to support causes which we're passionate about for decades into the future. Rather than just for a few months or years.”
The Prince of Wales echoed this message: "When we work together, we are greater than the sum of our parts. When we work together, we bring unlimited creativity, passion, and expertise to the table. When we work together, we can achieve incredible things.”
