Meghan Markle Discusses Her Experience With Racism In Resurfaced Video

Before marrying Prince Harry and joining the British Royal Family, Meghan Markle candidly spoke about her personal experience with racism in a 2012 campaign called 'I Won't Stand for Racism.' Following the death of George Floyd and the resulting worldwide protests about police brutality, the video resurfaced in Hello! magazine.

in the video, Meghan discusses growing up biracial in Los Angeles, as well as her hopes that by the time she had children the world would be a more peaceful and equal place. Meghan's statements from eight years ago, unfortunately, still ring true today. Though she and Prince Harry haven't spoken publicly about their decision to step down from their roles within the British Royal Family, it's believed that their decision was made in large part due to the racist attacks Meghan was subjected to over the past few years.

Here are Meghan's comments in full:

“My name’s Meghan Markle and I’m here because I think it’s a really important campaign to be a part of. For me, I think it hits a really personal note. 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. 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 to want things to be better.
“Quite honestly, your race is part of what defines you. I think what shifts things is that the world really treats you based on how you look. Certain people don’t look at me and see me as a Black woman or a biracial woman. They treat me differently, I think, than they would if they knew what I was mixed with, and I think that that is—I don’t know, it can be a struggle as much as it can be a good thing depending on the people that you’re dealing with.
“Leaving L.A. was sort of like leaving this bubble where I was used to everything and had been exposed to everything except for a closed-mindedness that I experienced when I traveled outside of where I was from. And I think that in doing that, it just really opened my eyes to a mentality that still exists that I thought was backdated to the days of when my grandfather moved our family from Cleveland to L.A., and they drove across the country and to stop and get food, whatever kind of place they were going to, and they had to go round the back to get food for the family. You know, I thought that was really isolated to those days that we were past, and sadly, they’re not.
“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. But, yeah, 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. I mean certainly, it makes it a lot more beautiful and a lot more interesting.”

Though Meghan has released a personal public statement on what's been going on, she, along with her husband and Queen Elizabeth, took a stand against racism through the Queen's Commonwealth Trust's Twitter account. Meghan was appointed VP of the Trust last year and she oversees the organization with Harry and the Queen. The statement reads: "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. Silence is not an option. #BlackLivesMatter."

Photo: Getty


Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content