Meghan borrows Queen’s mantra as she receives Women of Vision award in New York
Meghan Markle borrowed the Queen's mantra last night by hailing 'daily acts of service' as she urged women to 'be the visionary of your own life' while accepting a feminist award at a New York gala - in a boost to her US relaunch.
According to MailOnline, the Duchess of Sussex was attending her first public event with husband Prince Harry since her absence at her father-in-law King Charles III’s Coronation in London 11 days ago, which the Duke attended alone on May 6.
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Addressing the Ms Foundation for Women’s 50th anniversary event at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan last night, the Duchess told the crowd: ‘It’s just never too late to start. You can be the visionary of your own life. 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.’
The California-based couple were accompanied yesterday by Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland. And the Duchess’s comments on service were notable given that her brother-in-law Prince William paid tribute to Charles’s ‘service’ during the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle on May 7, one day after the ceremony. William had said: ‘For all that celebrations are magnificent, at the heart of the pageantry is a simple message. Service. My father’s first words on entering Westminster Abbey yesterday were a pledge of service. It was a pledge to continue to serve.’
And on May 8, at the end of the bank holiday weekend, Charles issued a message insisting that he and Queen Camilla would ‘rededicate our lives to serving the people of the United Kingdom, the realms and commonwealth’.
And Queen Elizabeth II famously said on her 21st birthday in 1947 in a speech broadcast on the radio from South Africa, when she was still Princess Elizabeth: ‘I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.’
Meghan’s words also recalled when she and Harry made a statement in February 2021 after Buckingham Palace confirmed they would step down as working royals, saying: ‘We can all live a life of service. Service is universal.’
The Duchess’s relaunch – dubbed ‘Meghan 2.0’ – has already seen her speak about mental health with youngsters in Santa Barbara and dine with Hollywood stars including Cameron Diaz and Gwyneth Paltrow over the past week.
Last night Meghan, who wore a strapless $1,850 gold dress with scalloped pattern detailing, received the Women of Vision Award – recognising her ‘global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls’.
