What we would have given to be invited to that particular tea party! Prince Harry had Michelle Obama over for tea at Kensington Palace to kick off the First Lady’s two-day visit to the United Kingdom. Michelle’s daughters, 16-year-old Malia and 14-year-old Sasha, as well as her 77-year-old mother Marian Robinson, also joined the prince at his home.
Kensington Palace said that Harry was “very pleased” to have had the chance to meet with the family, and about 40 minutes were spent discussing both Harry and Michelle’s charitable initiatives.
“They discussed their shared interest in support for veterans and their families,” said the palace. “Prince Harry was also interested to hear from the First Lady about the Let Girls Learn initiative to further adolescent girls’ education around the world, which is the focus of her visit to the United Kingdom.”
Of course, Harry and Michelle are far from strangers—in 2013, on a visit to the U.S., the prince paid a surprise visit to military mothers and their kids who were having tea with Michelle Obama in the White House for Mothers’ Day.
Later, Michelle visited the Mulberry School for Girls in London to give a speech, in which she told the assembled schoolgirls, “Girls like you inspire and impress me every single day.
“When I look out at all these young women, I see myself. In so many ways your story is my story,” she said, referring to her own working-class background.
Speaking about the discrimination that young Muslim girls often face, she said, “Maybe you see the news and see people talking about your religion, and wonder if anyone will ever see beyond your headscarf.”
But she went on, “I see a room full of surgeons and business leaders and barristers. I see women who are going to win elections.”
She added, “I’ve seen it again and again that what our parents told us really is true. That if we get our education we can do anything. We can lift up our sights to anything we can imagine. We truly can be builders of a new day.”
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