Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex has been honoured with the 2023 Ms. Foundation for Women’s ‘Woman of Vision’ Award – and she’s used her moment in the spotlight to remind us just how important service and kindness can be.
Accompanied by her loved ones, Prince Harry and mum Doria Ragland, at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan, Meghan spoke of the power we each have to be a visionary in our own lives:
“You can charter a path in which what you repeat in your daily acts of service, in kindness, in advocacy, in grace and in fairness, that those become the very things that are recognised by the next wave of women, both young and old, who will also choose this moment to join the movement, and make our vision for an equitable world, reality,” she said (as per footage shared online).
She also described being an avid reader of Ms. Foundation’s Ms. magazine at school, a publication co-founded by journalist and feminist icon Gloria Steinem who presented her with the award.
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“It’s funny because as a young girl, I would come home, I would settle in after a day of school, pull up my TV tray dinner, and I would turn on my evening ritual, Jeopardy! And I would glance at the coffee table, where I would see an array of things. It could be the cat’s collar, my homework, some mail that had just been brought in and some magazines. The magazines said ‘Ms.’ on them. And I remember them vividly because the pictures were different. There was a diversity I hand’t seen very often both in colour and in age, and the names were different. There were Congresswomen, there were astronauts. The topics were different, from mothering to being a working mum, to heavier topics such as domestic violence, the poverty line, unearthing its roots, where it comes from and matters of equity.”
During her speech, she described Ms. Steinem as an inspiration and a mentor with an “extraordinarily cheeky sense of humour” before praising the evening’s other honourees including Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown, abortion rights activist Olivia Julianna and LGBTQ+ advocate Rebekah Bruesehoff.
The Woman of Vision award, which celebrates feminist change-makers, recognised Meghan for her dedication to human rights and gender equality.
“I am a woman who remains inspired and driven by this organisation,” Meghan added. “It allowed me to recognise that part of my greater value and purpose in life was to advocate for those who felt unheard, to stand up to injustice, and to not be afraid of saying what is true and what is just and what is right.”
(Feature Image Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images Ms. Foundation for Women)