Meghan Markle is continuing her commitment to inspire and support young women. The Duchess of Sussex was a keynote speaker at the Girl Up Leadership Summit. The virtual event also saw speeches from Michelle Obama and Priyanka Chopra.
Meghan looked to be getting back to her California girl roots. Her long, straight hair looked glorious. She wore her usual natural makeup, but there was something extra-sparkly about Meghan. You can tell that this is the kind of work that really invigorates her. It is perhaps what played into her and Harry's decision to sign with the same speaking agency as the Obamas.
During the speech, Meghan emphasized how important and powerful the voices of young women are. She called on them to understand their value and utilize their abilities to enact change. Meghan also celebrated how so many of the young women watching had already embarked on that life-changing journey to a better tomorrow.
Meghan Markle delivered a wonderful speech celebrating the power of young women. Meghan was a keynote speaker at the Girl Up Leadership Summit. The virtual event also featured talks from Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Priyanka Chopra.
Girl Up is a UN Foundation initiative. The organization has leadership development programs that have impacted 65,000 girls through 3,500 clubs in nearly 120 countries and all 50 US states. The goal is to inspire "a generation of girls to be a force for gender equality and social change."
Meghan looked radiant in her appearance from her and Harry's California home. Her hair looked long and sleek in a simple, straight style. Meghan looked genuinely happy to be talking to these young girls, full of potential to change the world.
She began her speech by recognizing that many of these young women had already begun doing important work. She shared with them a message that she had previously shared with her high school alma mater. She urged them to see the current moment as "the beginning of a journey where they can now harness their work, their values, and skills — all the skills they've learned — to rebuild the world around them."
"Now, many of you have already spent years embodying — and yes, even enacting — the change you'd like to see in the world," she said.
"Yet the opportunity that lies ahead for you is the same one that those graduates and millions of young women around the world have as well."
"I want to share something with you. It's that those in the halls and corridors and places of power — from lawmakers to world leaders to executives — all of those people, they depend on you more than you will ever depend on them. And here's the thing: They know this," she told the young women.
"They know that all of you, at a younger age than any modern comparison, are setting the tone for an equitable humanity. Not figuratively, literally. This is a humanity that desperately needs you. To push it, to push us, forcefully in a more inclusive, more just, and more empathetic direction. And to not only frame the debate, but be in charge of the debate — on racial justice, gender, climate change, mental health and well-being, on civic engagement, on public service, on so much more. That's the work you're already out there doing."
Meghan took the time to appreciate the work that members of Girl Up have done in this extraordinarily singular moment in our country's history.
"Girl Up members are organizing Black Lives Matter protests around the world, you are creating films to encourage your peers to become activist leaders, you are reforming the criminal justice system, you are telling your school boards we need more mental health resources for all ages, you are leading coalitions to end gun violence," she praised.
"You are standing up and demanding to be heard, yes, but you're also demanding to own the conversation."
Meghan returned to her point about the lawmakers and the power they know their young, female constituents wield.
"Now many of them, better or worse, they don't listen until they have to because the status quo is easy to excuse and it's hard to break. But it will pull tightest right before snapping."
Meghan went on to describe how many women throughout history have had their opinions silenced or ignored. She noted that it always happens when women are challenging institutions:
"So if that's the case, I say to you, keep challenging, keep pushing, make them a little uncomfortable. Because it's only in that discomfort that we actually create the conditions to reimagine our standards, our policies, and our leadership; to move towards real representation and meaningful influence over the structures of decision-making and power."
Meghan acknowledged that while some people feel differently, this moment is about making a better future for everyone.
"Because of that, that path to get there will take all of us: it will take girls and women, it will take men and boys, it will take those that are black and those that are white collectively tackling the inequities and structural problems that we know exist," she said.
"I believe we are on the precipice of transformation. We can accelerate the pace of change, and you know what? We don't have to be satisfied with the current speed of progress."
"What's more, I think it's important to acknowledge the paradox of how this progress is both aided and impaired by our digital space," she noted.
"Your generation is often referred to as the digital natives, and you understand that our online world has the power to affirm and support as much as it does to harm. But we are not meant to be breaking each other down; we are meant to be building each other up.
"So use your voice both on- and offline to do just that — build each other up, support each other. There will always be negative voices and sometimes those voices can appear to be outsized, and sometimes they can appear to be painfully loud. You can and will use your own voices to drown out the noise. Because that's what it is — just noise. But your voices are those of truth. And hope. And your voices can and should be much louder."
Meghan celebrated how much progress has been made by brilliant young women around the world. She acknowledged some of the incredible women serving as the inspiration we all so deeply need right now:
"We can take inspiration from women like Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who brought New Zealand together to swiftly and boldly tackle COVID-19, or Maya Moore, the WNBA star who has sat out from professional basketball since 2019 to free a man who served 20 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. And those are just two examples; as you well know there are so many others."
The Duchess of Sussex didn't try to sugarcoat the seriousness of the work ahead. She never tried to make it seem easy. She did, however, seem to wholeheartedly believe that change lies in the hands of every young person who wants it.
"Like them, I know all of you will use your voices courageously. And I also know that all of you will use them compassionately," she said.
"Compassion doesn't mean we shouldn't feel anger and outrage when we see blatant injustice all around us — of course we should. But I challenge you to broaden that feeling.
"The Dalai Lama famously said, 'Compassion is the radicalism of our time.' Compassion means seeing the pain and suffering of others and knowing it's our duty to try to help relieve it."
At points in the speech, you could guess, and even hope, that Meghan's wisdom drew from her own experiences, which have clearly required a desire for change:
"Continue to believe in yourselves, believe in what makes you unique, and don't be afraid to do what you know is right even when it's not popular. Even when it's never been done before. Even if it scares people. And even if it scares you."
Meghan lamented that she couldn't meet these incredible young people in person, but she noted the poignancy of each of them being in their communities, each of which is changing in its own ways. She encouraged the young women to believe that they are already armed with what they need to make real and lasting change:
"Don't underestimate your ability to push through the fear. You have, rooted in your convictions, the ability to craft a world that you know is just and kind. Your gut will tell you what's right and what's wrong; what's fair and what's unfair. The hardest part — and it was the hardest part for me — is to chase your convictions with action."
She acknowledged the overwhelming nature of this moment in history. In doing so, Meghan said that sometimes we seem at a standstill, but every little bit we do adds up over time.
"We make better communities and a better world for ourselves step-by-step. And the pace of those steps is getting quicker. It's in looking at the aggregate, looking at the big picture, that you can see how far we've progressed," she noted.
She finished her speech by expressing her pride in these young women. She offered her entire family's heartfelt support:
"I am extraordinarily proud of what you've already accomplished. Please, continue to honor the conviction and compassion that's awoken within you. I will be cheering you on, so will my husband, so will Archie, as you all continue marching, advocating, and leading the way forward."
