Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are back in the Big Apple for a special reason.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex performed at the Robert F. Kennedy Ripple of Hope Award Gala in New York City on Tuesday night. The couple were honored with the award for their work in racial justice, mental health and other social action through their Archewell Foundation.
Meghan stepped down in a white, long-sleeved, off-the-shoulder dress paired with black accessories and her hair in a low bun, while Prince Harry wore a classic suit and black tie.
They held hands while Prince Harry held an umbrella as they walked from the car to the blue carpet where they posed for photos with Kerry Kennedy.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Mike Coppola/Getty
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also attended the gala and received the Ripple of Hope Award for his courageous leadership amid the Russian invasion. Fellow 2022 honorees were Frank Baker, co-founder of Siris, Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America, and Michael Polsky, CEO of Invenergy. The ceremony also posthumously paid tribute to NBA legend and civil rights activist Bill Russell.
Previous Ripple of Hope winners include Dr. Anthony Fauci, Colin Kaepernick, Nancy Pelosi, former President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden.
The event was moderated by Alec Baldwin.
Kerry Kennedy previously told Spanish news agency El Confidencial’s Vanitatis magazine that Prince Harry, 38, and Meghan, 41, exemplified the “civil courage” against injustice expressed by their father in his legendary “Ripple of Hope” speech at university Cape Town was known to have demanded from South Africa more than 50 years ago, when apartheid was in force.
“When my father went to South Africa in 1966, he spoke to a white audience and said that the problem with this generation is talking about racial justice. He also spoke of moral courage, saying that few would have the courage to question their colleagues, family and their community about the power structure they maintained,” Kerry said, via translation. “And that’s what Meghan Markle and Prince Harry did.”
“They went to the oldest institution in the history of the UK and told them what they were doing wrong, that they couldn’t have structural racism within the institution, that they couldn’t perpetuate a misunderstanding about mental health,” she continued, referring to the British monarchy. “They knew there would be consequences if they did that, that they would be ostracized, they would lose their family, their position within this structure and that people would blame them. They did it anyway, believing that if they didn’t challenge that authority, they couldn’t live with themselves. I think they took that step heroically.”
Meghan Markle, Prince Harry and Kerry Kennedy. Mike Coppola/Getty
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Meghan and Prince Harry have visited New York City several times since moving to California in 2020.
The couple spent several days in the city in September 2021, beginning with a visit to One World Observatory at the World Trade Center with former Mayor Bill de Blasio, his wife Chirlane McCray, their son Dante de Blasio, and Governor Kathy Hochul. During the trip, they met with US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield and Meghan read her children’s book The Bench to second grade students at PS 123 Mahalia Jackson School in Harlem. The duo then appeared on the Global Citizen Live stage in Central Park, where they spoke about the global need for COVID-19 vaccine justice.
They last appeared at the United Nations in July when Prince Harry gave a special address in honor of Nelson Mandela Day.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Meghan and Prince Harry’s New York outing follows the release of two trailers previewing their Netflix docuseries, which premieres Thursday.
In the trailer, Prince Harry says he was “appalled” by the media attention Meghan was receiving. “I didn’t want history to repeat itself,” Harry said as the footage showed cameras flashing – on both Meghan and Harry, as well as his mother, Princess Diana.
The couple also appeared to be targeting the royal family: “There is a hierarchy of the family,” said Prince Harry. “There are leaks, but stories are also being planted.”
The project is by Oscar-nominated director Liz Garbus, whose previous feature films Love, Marilyn, What Happened, Miss Simone? and become Cousteau.
According to Netflix, “The series explores the clandestine days of their early courtship and the challenges that led them to feel compelled to step down from their full-time roles at the institution. With commentary from friends and family, most of whom have never spoken publicly about what they witnessed, and historians discussing the state of the British Commonwealth today and the Royal Family’s relationship with the press, the series does more than just that A couple’s love story that paints a picture of our world and how we treat each other.”