Meghan Markle's SXSW speech in full from 'cruel' cyberbullying to Harry shoutout
Meghan Markle gave a passionate speech at the SXSW festival as she opened up about how social media can be a "dangerous" place for young girls.
The Duchess of Sussex appeared alongside journalist Katie Couric, actress Brooke Shields and diversity equity and inclusion consultant at Peoplism, Nancy Wang Yuen. Errin Haines, host of The Amendment podcast, moderated the session.
Speaking on International Women's Day, Meghan talked about how social media is creating an "often dangerous environment" which has led to serious mental health issues for teenage girls in particular. The keynote session also touched on how women's representation in media and entertainment "has come a long way, but there's still much to be done, especially for women of colour and mothers".
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Meghan Markle appeared on a panel at SXSW (SXSW/YOUTUBE)Announcing the Duchess of Sussex as a participant, SXSW noted how she is a "feminist and champion of human rights and gender equity", as well as a New York Times best-selling author.
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Meghan has a long history of supporting women's rights. On her website, Meghan is described as a "feminist and champion of human rights and gender equity".
The statement continued: "Her lifelong advocacy for women and girls remains a constant thread in her humanitarian and business ventures. She has been named one of the most influential women in the world in rankings including TIME Magazine's Most Influential People, The Financial Times' 25 Most Influential Women, Variety Power of Women, and British Vogue's Vogue 25."
Here is everything Meghan said during her speech.
Meghan calls out sexist commercial along with awkward response to Brooke Shields
(AFP via Getty Images)Meghan shared a story about how she took action over a commercial she felt was sexist when she was just 11 years old.
"I was about 11 years old and I had seen a commercial on TV for a dishwashing liquid that said 'women all over America are fighting greasy pots and pans.
The boys in my class at the time said 'yeah, that's where women belong, in the kitchen' - and at 11 I just found that infuriating. I wrote lots of letters and put pen to paper and they ended up changing the commercial to "people all over America."'
"It's funny to look back at it now because that was before social media where you had a reach that was so much greater. It was just an 11-year-old with pen and paper. But it just goes to show that if you know that there is something wrong and you are using your voice to advocate in the direction of what is right that can really land and resonate and make a huge change for a lot of people."
'Your voice is not small it just needs to be heard.''
“When I was 11, I was playing a prostitute. I wish I had known you,” Shields jokingly said.
“A little different,” Meghan laughed.
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Meghan hits out at cyberbullies, claiming she fell victim to 'catty' and 'cruel' comments
(SXSW/YOUTUBE)During her speech, Meghan spoke out about the "catty" and "cruel" comments she received during both of her pregnancies.
"Yes, social media is an environment that I think has a lot of that. You know I think, it’s really interesting as I can reflect on it, keep my distance from it right now, just for my own wellbeing, but the bulk of the bullying and abuse that I was experiencing in social media and online was when I was pregnant, with Archie and with Lili, and with a newborn with each of them," she said.
"And you just think about that and really wrap your head around why people would be so hateful. It’s not catty, it’s cruel."
She then shared how she overcame the judgment on social media.
“You could either succumb to it, nearly succumb to how painful that it is, and maybe in some regards, because I was pregnant, that mammalian instinct just kicked in, you do everything you can to protect your child, and as a result, protect yourself too,” she said.
She then commented that it was "disturbing" how "much of the hate is women completely spewing it to other women."
"I cannot make sense of that, because I understand that there are certain platforms, today is a really good example, this is being streamed on one of those platforms, and it’s also fantastic because people are going to have access to hear all of this brilliance and all of this insight, and at the same time, it’s a platform that has quite a bit of hate and rhetoric and incentivizes people to create pages where they can churn out very, very inciting comments and conspiracy theories that can have a tremendously negative effect on someone’s mental health, on their physical safety,” she added.
She then shared how society can be held accountable for these issues and find solutions.
"We have a responsibility, and all of that the systemic change has to happen at the same time as the cultural change is happening. Because if you’re reading something terrible about a woman, why are you sharing it with your friends? Why are you choosing to put that out in the world? If it was your friend or your mom or your daughter, you wouldn’t do it," she said.
"That is the piece that is so lost right now with what’s happening in the digital space and certain sectors of the media: We have forgotten about our humanity."
Meghan champions working mothers and calls for action
(SXSW/Youtube)Meghan shared how she and Prince Harry are doing their part to help women - specifically working mothers.
"My husband and I, our foundation the Archewell Foundation, helped to fund it because from our standpoint—and certainly from mine—it felt vital to see the information," Meghan recalled. "It’s just always loved understanding women and our stories and our lives experiences and our shared experiences. I was really curious to see what the report would uncover."
"The way we see ourselves is reflected accurately or sometimes to our disservice, inaccurately," she added. "From a philanthropic standpoint there is obviously a lot of work to be done supporting moms. You can start with paid leave."
She then discussed the importance of representation and how difficult being a new mom can be, all while acknowledging her priveledge.
“I’ve said this for so many years and I hope it starts to land, but I think we can all agree that representation matters,” the actress expressed.
“As I was saying earlier when you’re a new mom, it’s a really vulnerable time. The effect that social media can have on new mothers, even just the lack of sleep because they spend all this time scrolling, but it can also be really dizzying for them to see this portrayal of motherhood that looks so perfect when we all know it’s not perfect. We all know that it’s messy. I’m fortunate in that, among the privileges I have in my life, I have an incredible partner."
Meghan then pointed out Harry, who was sitting in the front row.
"My husband is such a hands-on dad and such a supporter of me and my family. That I don't take for granted. That is a real blessing. But a lot of people don’t have that same level of support," she continued. "So I think for us, it’s about putting safeguards in so women, and moms especially, can not feel like they’re even more vulnerable when they go online."
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