Meghan Markle has melted hearts at an East London school, where she urged young men to support and protect the women in the lives.
In the videos from her trip to the Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham for International Women's Day posted to the @sussexroyal account, Markle had a special message for young men - telling them to value the women in their lives and set the example "for some men who are not seeing it that same way."
"You have your mothers, sisters, girlfriends, friends in your life, protect them," she said, according to Insider.
"Make sure that they are feeling valued and safe and let's all just rally together to make International Women's Day something that is not just on Sunday, but frankly feels like every day of the year."
The school erupted into applause after head boy Aker Okoye took up her offer for an audience volunteer to offer his thoughts on gender equality.
He offered her a quick peck on the cheek and commented, "She's beautiful, innit" to cheers from the school.
View this post on Instagram The Duchess of Sussex visited Robert Clack School, to celebrate the women of the future, and also highlight the important role men and boys play in International Women’s Day. The Duchess asked a young student to come on stage and share his perspective on the importance of the day, and whilst much attention has been focused on his initial comment, what he shared beyond that was compelling and true. Please watch the full video and tag a man in your life, and have him share what #IWD means to him A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Mar 8, 2020 at 9:23am PDT
Markle and her husband Prince Harry made headlines, after announcing they would be stepping down from the Royal family.
Markle had previously spoken out about the emotional cost of life in the public eye in an interview, telling a reporter she felt particularly vulnerable against negative press coverage as a new mother. It came after Prince Harry announced he was suing the UK tabloids for invading the couple's privacy by allegedly hacking into voicemails.
