Meghan Markle is the proud mum of Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
She also starred in the popular television show Suits for seven years.
Therefore, it’s no surprise that the Duchess of Sussex is hoping to change the way mothers are currently portrayed on television.
On March 7, she teamed up with actress Geena Davis and Moms First – a longtime charity partner of Meghan and Prince Harry’s Archewell Foundation – and shared the results of a study that highlighted how current portrayals of mums aren’t always realistic.
The study, which was funded by the Archewell Foundation, found that TV mums are still underrepresented as breadwinners and, while they have become more diverse in recent years, are still mostly portrayed as young, white, and thin.
“The representation of motherhood seemed like such a throwback,” Geena told Vanity Fair in regards to the study’s results.
“It didn’t reflect modern reality anywhere near as closely as I had hoped or imagined.”
Geena, along with Meghan and Moms First, are now arguing that a change is necessary if we want to shift public attitudes and policy.
The Thelma & Louise actress has long advocated for accurate on screen representations of women; it’s why she founded the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media in 2004.
“Images have a profound impact on people’s perceptions of themselves and others, and therefore the images can be used to create good,” Geena explained.
“I saw that children’s movies and TV made specifically for kids seemed to have a huge gender disparity…. What if we’re training kids from the beginning to have unconscious gender bias by showing boys as more important and taking up more space in the world?”
As for why Meghan decided to get involved, she said in a statement:
“My past experience as an actress, and now today as a producer and mother, have amplified my belief in the critical importance of supporting women and mums both behind the lens and in front of it.
“This report about the portrayal of mothers in entertainment highlights the gaps we need to fill to achieve true representation in the content we create and consume, and I’m honoured to support this work through the Archewell Foundation.”
