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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry teamed up over the weekend for a surprise appearance in honor of Black History Month. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex virtually joined a Get Lit – Words Ignite poetry class on Saturday, during which the American-born royal shared some “of her favorite poetry lines,” according to the California-based arts education nonprofit.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were magic and kind and interested in poetry!” Get Lit — Words Ignite wrote on Instagram. “We are so grateful for their visit in honor of Black History Month. It goes down as most epic experience in Get Lit history!!!”
Sheila J Sadr , a teaching artist at Get Lit, opened up about the virtual royal visit in an Instagram post on Monday. Sharing a screengrab from the video call, she penned, “On Saturday, I saw this in the way Meghan & Prince Harry (I’m sorry I’m not sure the proper way to address these lovely people) talked to my students—how they had learned their names, where they were from. How they engaged with their writing & their voices. How they validated their art, how they express themselves 🥲💖The impact is enormous.”
Sheila added, “Gratitude to The Duke & Duchess of Sussex & your staff for all the kindness & generosity of your time & energy to these kids. It was cup-filling for all of us & I know it’s something we will always remember 🙏🏽🌹.”
Meanwhile, Mason Granger, manager of public outreach at Get Lit, revealed that Archie Harrison’s parents spoke with students “for a multitude of minutes.” Recalling his favorite part, he shared, “Was Meghan echoing so many sentiments we’ve talked about in class, about this particular moment in time/history to be a young person and the ripple effect of a single voice. The root of them deciding to come is because at some point in their lives, they were moved by a poem. And whoever wrote that poem at some point thought to themselves, ‘Does this even matter? Is anyone even listening?’ And they shared it anyway.”
Mason continued, “Fast forward ripple ripple ripple and these kids get a surprise 45 minute chat with the Prince Harry and Meghan. It was pretty surreal. My kids shared poems, they asked questions, the kids answered and asked questions back, they responded authentically (they actually read and learned the kids bios I’d sent earlier). The org and all the kids are posting today with more details about the visit— I just want to say that the Get Lit Players are brilliant and 10/10 would recommend The Duke and Duchess of Sussex for your next Zoom poetry practice.”
Get Lit uses poetry to increase literacy, empower youth and inspire communities.