Duke and Duchess of Sussex unveil memorial in New York

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have unveiled a memorial in New York dedicated to children who lost their lives due to the harms of the internet.

Prince Harry told BBC Breakfast, “Life is better off of social media. I say that as a parent, and I say that as someone who has spoken to many of the kids here tonight who aren’t on social media because they have lost a brother or a sister to social media. But clearly enough is not being done. Some of the stories here are truly harrowing.”

The memorial consists of 50 smartphones that each display a photo of a child who died. Prince Harry added, “Having done this for the last three years and being aware of it for the last five years, you think you’ve heard the worst of it until nights like this here in America, some of these stories are … full-blown crime scenes.” The Duke and Duchess set up Parents’ Network as part of their Archewell Foundation. The Parents’ Network was launched last August as a resource for parents. They attended a private vigil with parents a day earlier.

The Duchess only recently rejoined social media with her Instagram account, and she is confident that she can “lead by example.” During the memorial, Meghan said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. I think in many ways what we see through these parents is the hope and the promise of something better because every single one of them and their resilience is an example…we are just here to support them in such a huge way.”