Prince Harry has again waded into US politics as he blasted the ‘rolling back of constitutional rights’ during his keynote speech at the UN General Assembly for Nelson Mandela Day, in New York City.
The Duke of Sussex launched a thinly-veiled attack on the Supreme Court’s Roe v Wade ruling last month that handed abortion rights back to individual states.
The 37-year-old claimed it was part of a ‘global assault on democracy and freedom’ as he also cited Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine among problems facing the world.
The comments, heard by a mostly-empty room at the United Nations on Monday morning, were the latest broadside at US politicians.
It comes after his wife Meghan told how the Duke had a ‘gutteral’ reaction to the Supreme Court’s bombshell overturning of Roe v Wade last month.
Elsewhere in Harry’s speech, he said:
- A photograph of Princess Diana meeting Nelson Mandela in 1997 remains on his ‘wall and his heart’;
- The Duke said that he knew Meghan was his soulmate when they visited Africa together in 2019;
- Covid and climate change left him feeling ‘battered and helpless’ after ‘a painful year in a painful decade’;
- Fatherhood had made campaigning more important to him after sharing Archie and Lilibet with Meghan.
Prince Harry told of his joy of seeing his mothers ‘playfulness’ in a photograph with Nelson Mandela in Cape Town when he met Desmond Tutu in 2019
His wife Meghan told Vogue that her ‘feminist’ husband had a ‘guttural’ reaction to the overturning of abortion laws last month as he again waded into the row
The 37-year-old attacked American politics during his keynote speech at the United Nations event in New York City today
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle held hands as they arrived at the meeting ahead of his keynote speech later on today
During his speech, to an empty UN, Prince Harry talked about the Archewell Foundation, which he and his wife launched after stepping back as working royals
They clapped as they listened along to the speakers, as two winners of the Nelson Mandela Prize were awarded in person
Both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex ignored questions about the impact of Tom Bower’s book Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsor’s
Meghan Markle watched on as her husband gave his speech at the UN today, after being invited by the Nelson Mandela Foundation
The Duke of Sussex is also understood to be preparing for to lecture delegates on climate change and poverty
Harry and Meghan met with the President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Ahahid as well as the two winners of the 2020 Nelson Mandela prize
Harry says photo of Diana meeting Mandela in 1997 remains on ‘his wall and his heart’
Prince Harry has said a photograph of Diana meeting Mandela in 1997 remains on his ‘wall and his heart’. The Duke also revealed how he ‘knew he had found a soulmate’ in Meghan Markle, 40, on a visit to Africa.
During his speech, he spoke about his love for the continent, which he first visited when he was 13 years old with his mother and explained he went there to seek solace following her death. It was then he called Meghan, who he whisked to Botswana on their third date, his ‘soulmate’.
Prince Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, famously met with Mandela in Cape Town in March 1997, just five months before her tragic death
Harry and Meghan arrived hand-in-hand ahead of his speech to delegates on climate change and poverty during the two hour meeting.
It is the first time that the couple have been seen in public since jetting to the UK to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee last month, where they kept a low profile. During his speech, Harry said a photograph of his mother Princess Diana meeting Nelson Mandela remains ‘on his wall and his heart’.
He said that his mother’s ‘joy and playfulness’ can be seen in the photograph, taken in Cape Town in March 1997, just five months before her tragic death. ‘We’ve also come to know him through the photographs of a person who even when confronting unimaginable cruelty and injustice, almost always had a smile on his face,’ said Harry.
‘For me, there’s one photo in particular that stands out. On my wall, and in my heart everyday, is an image of my mother and Mandela meeting in Cape Town in 1997.
Meghan and Harry arrived hand in hand ahead of his speech to delegates on climate change and poverty during the two hour meeting at the UN.
It marks the first time the couple have been seen in public since jetting to the UK to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee last month, where they kept a low profile.
Despite the event meant to be in celebration of Nelson Mandela Day, the Prince launched an attack on American politics during his keynote speech.
He said: ‘This has been a painful year in a painful decade. We are living through a pandemic that continues to ravage communities in every corner of the globe.
‘Climate change wreaking havoc on our planet with most vulnerable suffering most of all. The few weaponizing lies and disinformation at the expense of the many.
‘And from the horrific war in Ukraine to the rolling back of constitutional right in the US we are witnessing a global assault on democracy and freedom the cause of Mandela’s life.’
It is not the first time the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have waded into American politics, finding themselves in hot water after commenting on the US election.
During a Time 100 video in September 2020 they called on American voters to ‘reject hate speech, misinformation and online negativity’ in ‘the most important election of our life.’
Members of the royal family are supposed to be politically neutral, when they stepped back from their roles the Sussex’s vowed that ‘everything they do will uphold the values of Her Majesty’.
Prince Harry went on to say a photograph of his mother Princess Diana meeting Nelson Mandela remains ‘on his wall and his heart’.
He said his mothers ‘joy and playfulness’ can be seen in the photograph, taken in Cape Town in March 1997, just five months before her tragic death.
Addressing the UN, Harry said: ‘For me there is one photo in particular that stands out. On my wall and in my heart everyday is an image of my mother and Mandela meeting in Cape Town in 1987.
‘It was presented to me by the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu, whose friendship and inspiration were their own treasured gift.
‘My wife and I had the honor of introducing our four-month-old son to him in 2019. But when I first looked at the photo straight away what jumped out was the joy on my mother’s face.
‘The playfulness, cheekiness even, the pure delight to be in communion with another soul so committed to serving humanity.’
Meghan beamed as she spoke to other members of the audience as her husband watched on after giving his speech in New York
Members of the UN watched on as the Duke of Sussex gave his speech, with some taking photos and videos as the royal spoke
In his speech, Harry said ‘this has been a painful year in a painful decade’ after describing his mother’s ‘delight’ when meeting Nelson Mandela
The couple were deep in conversation ahead of Harry’s keynote speech, and they were thanked for their ‘consistent advocacy around public service’
During the event, which begins at 10am EST, the 2020 UN Nelson Mendela Prize will be awarded to Mrs Marianna V. Vardinoyannis of Greece and Dr Morissanda Kouyaté of Guinea
The Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation gave the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was set of framed photographs of Princess Diana’s meeting with Nelson Mandela in 1997
Harry and Meghan introduced their son Archie, then four months old, to Desmond Tutu when they visited South Africa on a Royal Tour in 2019
President Nelson Mandela shares a moment with Prince Charles as they visited Brixton in South London on the last day of Mandela’s four day state visit to the United Kingdom in 1996
Harry is giving the keynote and participants including assembly president Abdulla Shahid, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, New York Mayor Eric Adams and Guinea´s Foreign Minister Morissanda Kouaté
Whilst praising the work of Mandela, President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Ahahid welcomed the royal couple, adding: ‘consistent advocacy around public service’
Prince Harry and Meghan meet Graca Machel, the widow of the late Nelson Mandela, in Johannesburg, South Africa, October 2, 2019
This year will see the 77th meeting of the United Nations General Assembly. The first was held in London in 1945
Meghan stunned with her $1500 black Mulberry bag, which she paired with a black Givency short sleeve top and midi-length pencil skirt with pocket detailing at the waist
Harry shook hands with New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who also gave a speech at the event – comparing Mandela’s struggles to his own dyslexia
The couple smiled as they were asked about claims made in Tom Bowers new bombshell books as they arrived for Mandela Day
General Assembly spokesperson Paulina Kubiak officially announced the program for Nelson Mandela International Day on Friday.
Meghan stunned with her $1500 black Mulberry bag, which she paired with a black Givency short sleeve top and midi-length pencil skirt with pocket detailing at the waist.
She slicked back her long dark hair into a sleek ponytail, donning $725 black suede Manolo Blahnik pumps, clutching Prince Harry’s hand before they were seen laughing before the meeting got started.
Opening up about his love of Africa, after first visiting age 13, Harry added: ‘For most of my life, it has been my lifeline, a place where I found peace and healing time and time again.
‘It’s where I felt closest to my mother and sought solace after she died, and where I knew I had found a soulmate in my wife.’
Whilst praising the work of Mandela, President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Ahahid welcomed the royal couple, adding: ‘consistent advocacy around public service’.
The prince described the world as being ‘on fire’ due to climate change, with previously rare weather events becoming ‘part of our daily lives’.
He added: ‘And this crisis will only grow worse unless our leaders lead. The right thing to do is not up for debate, and neither is the science.
‘A moment when multiple converging crises have given way to an endless string of injustices… a moment when people around the world are experiencing extraordinary pain…’
Both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who were invited by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, ignored questions about the impact of Tom Bower’s book Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsor’s.
They glanced over at UN correspondent for Voice of American Margaret Besheer but quickly turned away.
Ms Besheer asked: ‘Are you worried that Tom Bower’s new book is going to widen your rift with the Royal Family?’
Harry gave the keynote and participants included UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, New York Mayor Eric Adams and Guinea´s Foreign Minister Morissanda Kouaté.
New York Mayor Eric Adams used his platform at the event to compare Mandela’s 27 years behind bars to his struggles with dyslexia.
He said: ‘We must be inspired by the courage of Nelson Mandela. The ongoing crisis of covid, war and crime have imprisoned us in our own Robin Island Prison.
‘But these are temporary conditions, not life sentences.
‘My own personal story is reflected in that. I was dyslexic and denied support services as a child.
‘I was arrested as a youth and felt rejected as a person but I knew it was not the end, not a burial.
‘And today I stand before you energized with all that I have endured on my journey too.’
The General Assembly established July 18 – Mandela´s birthday – as an international day to honor him not only by celebrating his life and contributions but by carrying out the tradition of participating in a community service activity.
During the event the 2020 UN Nelson Mendela Prize was awarded to Mrs Marianna V. Vardinoyannis of Greece and Dr Morissanda Kouyaté of Guinea.
This prize is handed out every five years and recognises people who have dedicated their lives to the service of humanity.
Harry was accompanied at the U.N. by his wife Meghan. The former actress spoke at a conference at UN headquarters organized by UN Women on International Women´s Day in 2015, before her marriage to the prince.
In January 2020, the couple stepped down as senior members of the royal family and moved to the duchess´ native Southern California, where they continue to live with their two children.
Harry and Meghan visited South Africa in 2019 with their son, Archie, on their first official tour as a family before they gave up royal duties.
They then travelled to Canada for a family holiday, and planned their move away from the Royal Family – stepping down from their roles before moving to the US.
Harry´s mother, the late Princess Diana, met Mandela in March 1997, just five months before her death in a car crash in Paris.
His speech comes hours after it was revealed in a new bombshell book that his Eton pals called him ‘f***ing nuts’ for dating Meghan.
Tom Bower, journalist and author of ‘Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors’ says Harry invited Meghan to join him at Sandringham for his weekend shoot in 2016.
Their relationship had only just been publicly revealed, and the Prince reportedly invited 16 friends to join him over the weekend.
They mostly included old school pals from Eton, employed by international banks and auction houses, who joined him for dinner, shooting and lunch with the Queen’s permission.
Bower claims the Duke of Sussex had been excited for a weekend of ‘endless banter’ with his pals, but Meghan, 40, was less than impressed and ‘challenged every guest’ who ‘contravened her woke values’.
Meghan ‘lacked any sense of humour’ and was a ‘dampener on the party’, Bower says in his new book, according to The Times newspaper.
She also reportedly ‘reprimanded them for their jokes about sexism, feminism and transgender people’, with Bower writing that Harry had ‘not anticipated’ Meghan’s reaction.
He wrote: ‘She lacked any sense of humour. Driving home after Sunday lunch, the texts pinged between the cars: ‘OMG, what about HER?’ said one. ‘Harry must be f***ing nuts’.’
Bower claims Meghan ‘reprimanded guests’ if they made the ‘slightest inappropriate comment’ and ‘nobody was exempt’.
The claims comes after it was revealed Meghan ‘called her PR team in hysterics’ after Buckingham Palace reacted with ‘fury’ to ‘her Vanity Fair interview about Prince Harry’.
Bower says Meghan was ‘ecstatic’ when she was asked to appear on the cover of Vanity Fair’s September 2017 issue and do an interview with the magazine.
New York Mayor Eric Adams used his platform at the event to say that Covid, war and crime have ‘ imprisoned us in our own Robin Island Prison’
The couple listened intently to the speakers, chatting with those around them during the breaks before Harry took to the stage
Harry looked calm and relaxed ahead of his keynote speech, listening intently with his wife as they attended the event marking Nelson Mandela day
Meghan ‘lacked any sense of humour’ and was a ‘dampener on the party’, Bower says in his new book
Tom Bower, journalist and author of ‘Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors’ says Harry invited Meghan to join him at Sandringham for his weekend shoot in 2016 – shortly after the pairs relationship was publicly revealed
Bower says the Duke of Sussex was ‘looking forward’ to ‘endless banter’ with his friends – but Meghan, 40, was less than impressed and ‘challenged every guest’ who ‘contravened her woke values’
But when the magazine ran with the headline ‘Wild About Harry’ on its cover – focusing on Meghan’s relationship with the British prince rather than her work as an actor, activist and philanthropist – Bower says the Palace was taken aback.
Within hours of the magazine’s pre-publication copies being sent to Buckingham Palace, Bower says Meghan phoned her PR firm and ‘hysterically’ told them of the Palace’s fury.
Bower reports that Meghan was furious that the piece was not more focused on her philanthropy but says this was due to the fact Vanity Fair researchers were unable to substantiate two key stories she had told about her activism as a young child.
After first discussing Meghan’s speech at the United Nations and a letter she sent to Procter & Gamble as an 11-year-old requesting that they change a slogan promoting washing-up liquid that was deemed sexist, she was asked about Harry.
A bombshell new book claims that the Queen told her closest aides ‘thank goodness’ that Meghan was not coming to Prince Phillip’s funeral in April 2021. Harry and Meghan named their daughter Lilibet – a nickname the Queen was given in her youth
Meghan and Harry were not allowed on the balcony during the Queen’s Jubilee events last month, but was snapped appearing to shush the royal children as she is seen inside the Major General’s Office overlooking Horse Guards Parade in London during Trooping the Colour celebrations
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex flew over to the UK in June for the first time Lilibet and her brother Archie (pictured last December)
Earlier this year, Princess Diana’s biographer Tina Brown claimed that the Duke ‘can’t stand’ Camilla and might deepen his rift with the royal family by ‘going after’ her and Prince Charles in his upcoming memoirs
Nelson Mandela: Anti-apartheid fighter jailed for the cause
Prince Charles along with the Spice Girls meeting with Nelson Mandela in 1997
Nelson Mandela was arguably the world’s most potent symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle against thanks to his courage in the face of persecution. He was known for trying to unite South Africa after its long history of division, and was affectionately known as ‘Madiba’, his clan name, meaning ‘grandfather’.
Mr Mandela guided South Africa towards multi-racial democracy, and was imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against white minority rule. Upon becoming South Africa’s first black president in 1994, he said: ‘The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come. We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation.’
A year earlier, Mr Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, which he shared with F.W. de Klerk, the white Afrikaner leader who freed him from jail. He became a global advocate of human dignity, before officially leaving public life in June 2004, telling his country: ‘Don’t call me. I’ll call you’. Mr Mandela, who defended himself at his own treason trial in 1963, married three times and had more than 30 children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
He wed his first wife Evelyn Mase, who was a cousin of his political mentor Walter Sisulu, aged 26 – and they were married for 13 years, having four children. His romance with second wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who was 16 years his junior, began while he was on trial for treason. However they also separated before Mr Mandela became president following political and personal differences.
He then married his third wife Graca Machel – widow of Mozambican president Samora Machel, who died in a plane crash – on his 80th birthday in 1998. She already had six stepchildren and two of her own children, and helped him in his final years but admitted: ‘To see him ageing is something that pains you.’ Mr Mandela was treated in the 1980s for tuberculosis and had an operation to repair damage to his eyes as well as prostate cancer treatment in 2001.
After his departure from politics, Mr Mandela gradually stepped away from the public eye and made his last significant public appearance at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. His death came on the day the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended the London premiere of biopic Long Walk to Freedom, in which Mr Mandela was played by Idris Elba. Mr Mandela died at home in December 2013 aged 95 after a long battle with illness.
As reported by Vanity Fair in 2017, Meghan said: ‘We’re a couple. We’re in love.
‘I’m sure there will be a time when we will have to come forward and present ourselves and have stories to tell, but I hope what people will understand is that this is our time.
‘This is for us. It’s part of what makes it so special, that it’s just ours. But we’re happy. Personally, I love a great love story.’
The Duchess guest-edited the September 2019 issue of British Vogue, which reportedly left the editorial staff in ‘silent exasperation’ according to Bower.
They found her contributions ‘superficial’, with the former actress coming under fire for mission off the Queen in her list of 15 women that she admired as ‘forces for change’.
In one telephone conference Bower claims that Meghan announced to the gathered editorial staff ‘I want to break the internet.’
He wrote: ‘They believed most of her contributions were superficial, lacking rhyme or reason. To avoid confrontation she was never asked to explain.’
His book also alleges that the Queen said ‘thank goodness Meghan is not coming’, when she discovered that the Duchess was not attending Prince Philips funeral.
The Duchess reportedly did not attend because doctors advised her against flying, as she was seven months pregnant with the couple’s daughter Lilibet.
However the couple last month jetted off to the UK with their two children for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee – with sources confirming that the Queen had met her granddaughter.
Her Majesty, who was nicknamed Lilibet as a child, was reportedly introduced to the little girl in Windsor after a private Royal Family lunch at Buckingham Palace.
The Sussexes, who are stayed at their old home Frogmore Cottage in Windsor while visiting from California, were not allowed on the Buckingham Palace balcony yesterday and instead watched proceedings from Horse Guards Parade.
The event in June was the couple’s first appearance with The Firm since the frosty Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in March 2020 shortly before they officially stepped down as senior royals.
It comes after a royal expert claimed that Prince Harry ‘doesn’t have great respect’ for the Duchess of Cornwall and has ‘no interest’ in ‘developing’ a relationship with her.
Camilla, 75, has been stepmother to the Duke of Sussex, since she married Prince Charles in 2005.
However royal expert Ingrid Seward has revealed how the pair’s relationship went ‘off the boil’ and Harry now does not ‘have a great deal of warmth for her.’
Speaking on the Mirror’s Pod Save the Queen podcast, Ingrid said: ‘I don’t think Harry is interested in developing a relationship with his stepmother at this stage in his life.
‘I don’t think Harry has a great deal of warmth for her, he waxes and wanes with her.
Ingrid’s comments come after Princess Diana’s biographer Tina Brown claimed that the Duke ‘can’t stand’ Camilla and might deepen his rift with the royal family by ‘going after’ her and Prince Charles in his upcoming memoirs.
Speaking in April, Brown said Prince Charles’ estranged son is likely to voice his frustration in his memoirs, which are set to be published later this year.
Meghan Markle looks perfectly poised in a $1,590 Givenchy pencil skirt as she joins Prince Harry in New York City for his keynote speech to UN General Assembly
BY JESSICA GREEN
Meghan Markle showed she meant business in a sophisticated pencil skirt and blouse as she stepped out with Prince Harry today in New York City.
The Duchess of Sussex, 40, who shares Archie, three, and Lilibet, one, with the Duke of Sussex, 37, donned a $1,590 Givenchy patch pocket skirt when appearing alongside her husband as he featured as a keynote speaker at the UN General Assembly.
With her hair pulled back into a ponytail, Meghan looked typically stylish in her statement garment from the French brand, which she teamed with a simple black blouse, Manolo Blahnik heels and a matching Mulberry handbag.
Prince Harry is expected to talk about Nelson Mandela’s legacy, as well as lecture delegates on climate change and poverty during the two hour meeting.
South Africa’s UN Mission said Friday his remarks ‘will be around the memories and legacy of Mandela and what has been learned from his struggle and his life that can help up face the new challenges in the world today.’
With her hair pulled back into a ponytail, Meghan looked typically stylish in her statement garment from the French brand, which she teamed with a simple black blouse, Manolo Blahnik heels and a matching Mulberry handbag
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex attend a celebration of Nelson Mandela International Day at the United Nations Headquarters in New York
Meghan previously wore the same skirt when visiting Dublin, Ireland on July 10, 2018, but selected a dark green shade rather than the black version she sported today.
She kept her look simple, forgoing a necklace and sporting only dainty golden earrings – however, she did opt for several bracelets, a watch and plenty of rings.
The mother-of-two completed her look with a smattering of glamorous makeup – including a pink lip, rose blush and a smokey eye.
General Assembly spokesperson Paulina Kubiak officially announced the program for Nelson Mandela International Day on Friday.
Harry is giving the keynote and participants include assembly president Abdulla Shahid, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, New York Mayor Eric Adams and Guinea´s Foreign Minister Morissanda Kouaté.
The General Assembly established July 18 – Mandela´s birthday – as an international day to honour him – not only by celebrating his life and contributions but by carrying out the tradition of participating in a community service activity.
The General Assembly established July 18 – Mandela´s birthday – as an international day to honour him – not only by celebrating his life and contributions but by carrying out the tradition of participating in a community service activity. Pictured, Meghan and Harry at the event
The mother-of-two completed her look with a smattering of glamorous makeup – including a pink lip, rose blush and a smokey eye
During the event, which begins at 10am EST, the 2020 UN Nelson Mendela Prize will be awarded to Mrs Marianna V. Vardinoyannis of Greece and Dr Morissanda Kouyaté of Guinea. This prize is handed out every five years and recognises people who have dedicated their lives to the service of humanity.
Meghan spoke at a conference at UN headquarters organized by UN Women on International Women´s Day in 2015, before her marriage to the prince.
In January 2020, the couple stepped down as senior members of the royal family and moved to the duchess’ native Southern California, where they continue to live with their two children.
Harry and Meghan visited South Africa in 2019 with their son, Archie, on their first official tour as a family before they gave up their royal duties.