Meghan Markle is a woman of many hats. The American actress is best known for her roles on Suits and Fringe (and, yes, being in a relationship with Prince Harry). The 35-year-old is also revered for her humanitarian work as a women's advocate for the United Nations. On top of all that, she serves as editor-in-chief of her lifestyle blog, The Tig, where she published a moving personal essay on her experiences as a woman of mixed race.
In the piece, Markle talks the effects racism have had on her throughout her life. She recounts a story her Black grandfather told her about being forced to eat in the back parking lot at KFC. "That story still haunts me. It reminds me of how young our country is. How far we’ve come and how far we still have to come," she writes. Markle continues, revealing that decades after her grandpa's experience, she still comes face-to-face with racism. "It makes me think of the countless black jokes people have shared in front of me, not realizing I am mixed, unaware that I am the ethnically ambiguous fly on the wall." The actress also recalled a verbally abusive incident she had with her mom once. "It echoes the time my mom and I were leaving a concert at The Hollywood Bowl, and a woman called her the “N” word because she was taking too long to pull out of the parking spot. I remember how hot my skin felt. How it scorched the air around me." Markle ends her essay on a strong, uplifting note expressing gratitude for the bravery of her heroes. "To Martin Luther King Jr., to Harvey Milk, to Gloria Steinem and Cesar Chavez, to my mom and dad for choosing each other not for the "color of their skin but the content of their character,” to all of you champions of change: Thank you." In dedicating herself to social justice and sharing her own experiences as a biracial woman, Markle herself is following in her heroes' footsteps.
In the piece, Markle talks the effects racism have had on her throughout her life. She recounts a story her Black grandfather told her about being forced to eat in the back parking lot at KFC. "That story still haunts me. It reminds me of how young our country is. How far we’ve come and how far we still have to come," she writes. Markle continues, revealing that decades after her grandpa's experience, she still comes face-to-face with racism. "It makes me think of the countless black jokes people have shared in front of me, not realizing I am mixed, unaware that I am the ethnically ambiguous fly on the wall." The actress also recalled a verbally abusive incident she had with her mom once. "It echoes the time my mom and I were leaving a concert at The Hollywood Bowl, and a woman called her the “N” word because she was taking too long to pull out of the parking spot. I remember how hot my skin felt. How it scorched the air around me." Markle ends her essay on a strong, uplifting note expressing gratitude for the bravery of her heroes. "To Martin Luther King Jr., to Harvey Milk, to Gloria Steinem and Cesar Chavez, to my mom and dad for choosing each other not for the "color of their skin but the content of their character,” to all of you champions of change: Thank you." In dedicating herself to social justice and sharing her own experiences as a biracial woman, Markle herself is following in her heroes' footsteps.