Prince Harry Condemns "Institutional Racism" in Speech for Diana Awards

From Harper's BAZAAR

• Prince Harry surprised attendees of the virtual Diana Awards Wednesday with a sentimental address for the charity's honorees. The Diana Award highlights U.K. youth who continue the late Princess Diana's charitable legacy.

• The Duke of Sussex applauded today's generation and mentioned the critical importance of the Black Lives Matter movement currently traversing the globe.

• Harry's special message took place on what would have been his mother's 59th birthday.

Prince Harry delivered a special video message during the virtual Diana Awards today. The recorded address—which was a part of the annual awards ceremony that highlights U.K. youth who continue the late princess's charitable legacy—took place on what would have been Princess Diana's 59th birthday.

"I am so incredibly proud to be part of these awards, as they honor the legacy of my mother and bring out the very best in people like you," said Harry in his speech. "You all are doing such incredible work, and at a time of great uncertainty, you have found the power and inspiration inside of you to make a positive mark on the world. And I love that The Diana Award is able to help you do it.

"I know that my mother has been an inspiration to many of you, and I can assure you she would have been fighting in your corner. Like many of you, she never took the easy route or the popular one or the comfortable one. But she stood for something, and she stood up for people who needed it," continued the duke. "Right now, we are seeing situations around the world where division, isolation, and anger are dominating, as pain and trauma come to the surface. But I see the greatest hope in people like you, and I'm confident about the world's future and its ability to heal, because it is in your hands."

Harry went on to mention the current Black Lives Matter movement taking place across America and how he and his wife, Duchess Meghan, feel that their respective generations haven't done enough to dismantle institutional racism within the United States and around the world. Though both Harry and Meghan are no longer active working royals since their stepping down this spring, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex remain the only members of the royal family who have spoken out regarding the current fight for racial equality in the States.

"My wife said recently that our generation and the ones before us haven't done enough to right the wrongs of the past. I, too, am sorry—sorry that we haven't got the world to a place you deserve it to be," said Harry. "Institutional racism has no place in our societies, yet it is still endemic. Unconscious bias must be acknowledged without blame to create a better world for all of you."

Harry added that he and Meghan remain "committed to being part of the solution and to being part of the change that you are all leading."

Before handing the mic over, he concluded, "Now is the time, and we know that you can do it."

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