Not holding back. Meghan Markle shared her perspective on racism and her hopes for a better future in a resurfaced video from long before her days in the royal family.
The 2012 clip began making the rounds online on Tuesday, June 2, as protestors continue to demand justice after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. In the video, the 38-year-old former Suits star stands proudly in a shirt that says “I Won’t Stand for Racism” and speaks out about her own experiences with prejudice.
“I’m biracial. Most people can’t tell what I’m mixed with and so much of my life has felt like being a fly on the wall. And so some of the slurs that I’ve heard or the really offensive jokes, or the names, it’s just hit me in a really strong way,” the retired actress said at the time. “And then, you know, a couple of years ago I heard someone call my mom the N-word. So I think for me, beyond being personally affected by racism, just to see the landscape of what our country is like right now, and certainly the world, and [I] want things to be better.”
The California native stated that “race is part of what defines you,” and that the way a person looks shouldn’t impact the way they are treated. “I am really proud of my heritage on both sides, I’m really proud of where I’ve come from and where I’m going,” she concluded. “I hope that by the time I have children, that people are even more open-minded to how things are changing and that having a mixed world is what it’s all about.”
Four years after recording this powerful video, Markle began dating Prince Harry and became the subject of scrutiny in the U.K. The couple tied the knot in May 2018, and nearly a year and a half later, the 35-year-old prince defended his wife against the extreme “bullying” she had faced.
“I have been a silent witness to her private suffering for too long. To stand back and do nothing would be contrary to everything we believe in,” he wrote in an October 2019 statement. “There comes a point when the only thing to do is to stand up to this behaviour, because it destroys people and destroys lives.”
When the duo announced the next year that they would be stepping down from their senior roles in the royal family, an insider explained that they had been pushed to their limits. “When it became clear Meghan was never going to get a fair shake, Harry snapped,” the source said in March as the pair briefly settled down in Canada with their son, Archie. Us Weekly confirmed later that month that the family of three moved to Los Angeles.
Though the former duchess and her husband have not spoken directly about the nationwide protests against police brutality in the wake of Floyd’s death, their Queen’s Commonwealth Trust organization showed their support for the movement.
“Young people are vital voices in the fight against injustice and racism around the world. As a global community of young leaders we stand together in pursuit of fairness and a better way forward,” a statement from the foundation said on Monday, June 1. “Silence is not an option.”
Listen on Spotify to Us Weekly’s Hot Hollywood as each week the editors of Us break down the hottest entertainment news stories!