Podcast 79 – Meghan continues to elevate the voices of girls & women

Just released is news that Meghan had convened a roundtable, sitting down with a group of 13- to 18-year-old young women, primarily girls of colour, who are part of the North American Girls. Inc. organization. Also present were representatives from the National Women’s Law Centre. 

The sit down took place on April 8th, 2021, one day prior to the death of Prince Phillip. Meghan likely delayed releasing details of this event out of respect to the Queen and due to the two-week period of mourning for members of the Royal Family.

So, who can guess when Girls Inc. (Girls Club of America) was first established?  Amazingly in 1864, a non-profit organization was set up to encourage all girls to be "Strong, Smart, and Bold" through direct service and advocacy. 

According to Wikipedia and their website,  https://girlsinc.org/ the movement started in Waterbury, Connecticut after the Civil War, primarily aiming to help young women who had migrated from rural communities in search of job opportunities. 

In 1945, fourteen charter Girls Clubs joined together to form a national organization.  In 1990 the Girls Club of America changed their name to Girls Inc. As of 2021 the network of local Girls Inc. has grown to 1,500 sites in 350 cities across the United States and Canada. 

Girls Inc. say that the girls involved in their organization live healthy and active lifestyles and are less likely to engage in risky behavior; they are eager to learn, successful in school, and more likely to graduate from post-secondary education; and they display diligence, perseverance and resilience.

Also, at the round table were representatives from Washington based National Women’s Law Center. The MWLC fights for gender justice through advocacy and litigation, working across the issues that are central to the lives of women and girls. 

The organization started in 1972 when secretaries and law students at the Centre For Law and Social Policy made 4-demands of their bosses:

1.    Better pay for women

2.    More women staff lawyers

3.    Work of women’s rights

4.    And Women not having to serve coffee.

According to the news story published on the Archewell website during the sit down Meghan asked the girls about their ambitions, what do they aim to be when they leave school. She also asked them which female figures past or present inspire them. 

The National Women’s Law Centre posted on their Facebook account that they were honored to have joined The Duchess of Sussex, Girls Inc., and a group of amazing teens in a discussion to address real, systemic change for girls. 

Please keep listening  out for future podcasts on all things Meghan, Harry and Archie. Please feel free to reach out to me through my twitter account, and by email at [email protected]