Duchess Meghan is paying tribute to her "friend and mentor" Gloria Steinem.
Writer and civil rights activist Steinem died Wednesday, Sept. 2, at the age of 92, according to her official Instagram page.
In a lengthy Instagram post on Thursday, Meghan
noted that while the pair often appeared in public, carrying out interviews and attending events, behind closed doors is where they struck up a warm and meaningful friendship."Privately, she was even better than you would imagine- spending Thanksgiving with our family, introducing me to one of my best friends (forever the champion of female friendship), loving our children with her whole heart, counseling me during hard times, and giving extraordinary advice and perspective with a cup of tea and an unrivaled
cheekiness and wit," Meghan wrote.
Along with her emotional tribute, the duchess shared a series of snaps of Steinem, including one of them both sitting outside in the California sunshine. The photo, which was reportedly taken on the grounds of Meghan and Harry's Montecito mansion, was taken in 2020 as the duchess conducted a socially distanced interview with Steinem amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
During their conversation, about women's rights and voting, Meghan seemed to be excited about sitting down with Steinem, who was 86 at the time. Their chat was posted by Makers, a Yahoo-hosted site that describes itself as "a media and community-focused brand."
"People forget how hard women like you and so many others like you fought for us to be where we are right now," she told the legendary feminist.
"If you don't vote you don't exist," Steinem replied. "It is the only place where we're all equal, the voting booth."
Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex and @GloriaSteinem discuss representation, why each vote matters and how all women “are linked, not ranked." MAKERS has an exclusive look at that historic backyard chat! 🙌 Q&A to come tomorrow! https://t.co/e0WY2hjTju pic.twitter.com/AExOmNdWIb
— MAKERS (@MAKERSwomen) August 25, 2020
The duchess also revealed during their backyard conversation that husband Prince Harry is a feminist.
"As I've gotten older I’ve been able to understand that it’s not mutually exclusive to be a feminist and be feminine," Meghan told Steinem "And to own that and harness your femininity and your identification as a woman in all of the different layers."
"Well, you can be a feminist and be masculine and a guy," Steinem responded.
"Like my husband!" exclaimed the duchess. "I love that when he just came in he said, 'You know that I'm a feminist, too, right, Gloria?! It's really important to me that you know that.'"
Meghan's tribute to Steinem is her first Instagram post since the Sussex family moved back to Britain last week
The couple's two children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5 are due to start school on British soil imminently, though the school's location and whereabouts of the family home has not been disclosed for security reasons. The pair's decision to relocate to Harry's home country after spending six years in California stunned both sides of the Atlantic.
"Rest in peace, and rest in pride. Look at what you've done for all of us," the duchess wrote. "Thank you."
Contributing: Maria Puente, Andrea Mandell, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Duchess Meghan honors Gloria Steinem – Revisit her interview
