Meghan Markle Praises Grenfell Tower Community Workers on Anniversary of Deadly Fire

🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.

Meghan Markle has praised the "love in action" of a canteen set up after one of Britain's worst disasters in modern times.

The Duchess of Sussex sent an audio message to volunteers at the Hubb Community Kitchen on the 3rd anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire yesterday.

The blaze killed 72 people as it engulfed a residential block in a deprived area of the same London borough as Kensington Palace, becoming a symbol of injustice and inequality in modern Britain.

The Hubb was born in the aftermath of the fire, when women displaced by the disaster began cooking at the kitchen of local Al Manaar mosque.

More recently, the volunteers have been helping to keep the community fed amid the coronavirus lockdown.

In an audio message yesterday, Meghan said: "I think back to when I met all of you and how you had all come together in the wake of what you experienced in your community.

"And now what you have done is such an inspiration, you continue to give back, you continue to to put love in action.

"And that's really what Hubb is all about... we know it means love but you are the example of love in action, and that is your purpose."

The Duchess produced the Together cookbook in partnership with the kitchen, raising £550,000 for the charity from 130,000 copies sold as of last summer.

Meghan Markle Launch of Together Cookbook
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, interacts with a young girl at the launch of the 'Together' cookbook at Kensington Palace on September 20, 2018. Ben Stansall/Getty

She wrote a foreword for the book, which contained a collection of 50 recipes by the women who cook there.

In yesterday's message, Meghan said: "I'm so proud of you, so is Harry, and we are sending so much love to you from across the pond and thinking of you today, as I'm sure it's a difficult day.

"But also one where you can look at how much you've accomplished in the past three years, and how you continue to give back and be an example for all of those around you."

Data from 2015 showed the area around Grenfell Tower was in the top 10 percent of most deprived areas in England, according to The Guardian.

Yet it is less than two miles from Kensington Palace, where Prince Harry was living at the time of the blaze and both buildings are in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

Campaigners are pushing for a public inquiry into the disaster to examine the role of racial prejudice after repeated warnings by residents about fire safety were ignored.

British rapper Stormzy encapsulated the sense of injustice surrounding the fire in an emotional message yesterday.

He said: "We had a community who were screaming out, taking all the proper routes, crying to the councils saying that the cladding was unsafe, and they were constantly denied and ignored.

"What that left us with is the greatest tragedy we've seen, which I'll also say is the greatest injustice I've ever seen.

"The council, authorities and Governments ended up destroying lives. Let this be a constant stain on British society. There has not been any justice."

About the writer

Jack Royston is Newsweek's Chief Royal Correspondent based in London, U.K. He reports on the British royal family—including King Charles III, Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle—and hosts The Royal Report podcast. Jack joined Newsweek in 2020; he previously worked at The Sun, INS News and the Harrow Times. Jack has also appeared as a royal expert on CNN, MSNBC, Fox, ITV and commentated on King Charles III's coronation for Sky News. He reported on Prince Harry and Meghan's royal wedding from inside Windsor Castle. He graduated from the University of East Anglia. Languages: English. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page. You can get in touch with Jack by emailing j.royston@newsweek.com.


Jack Royston is Newsweek's Chief Royal Correspondent based in London, U.K. He reports on the British royal family—including King Charles ... Read more