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Prince Harry & Meghan Markle Detail Their New Civil Rights Award with a Post on Their Archewell Site

Although Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may not use social media these days, they have been quite active on their Archewell site as of late.

Just a couple days back, the pair posted a powerful message to show their support for the people of Ukraine as the country experiences invasions from Russian troops. And now, we have another new message that details an award that has been founded by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Earlier this week, we learned that the couple is being recognized at the NAACP Image Awards with the prestigious President's Award for the way in which they have “heeded the call to social justice and have joined the struggle for equity both in the U.S. and around the world.”

But not only that—we also discovered that the pair would be presenting their own award, which was explained in further detail thanks to a post on their Archewell site. Along with a headline that read, “Archewell & NAACP Pursue a New Era for Digital Civil Rights,” the post said, “The NAACP Empowerment Programs and Archewell Foundation are introducing the NAACP-Archewell Digital Civil Rights Award. This award acknowledges and supports a new generation of leaders that are creating transformational change at the intersection of social justice and technology—working to advance civil and human rights.”

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Roy Rochlin/Stringer/Getty Images

The post also described the criteria for the award: “Each year, an individual will be recognized for their work in advancing solutions to some of tech’s biggest social justice issues; topics such as discrimination, misinformation, privacy, profiling, surveillance, and increasing diversity in the tech sector. The winner will also be awarded $100,000 to be used to advance new work, expand leadership and expertise, and/or continue their impact in the field of digital equity.”

Finally, they highlighted the first recipient of the prize, saying, “The inaugural recipient of the 2022 award is Dr. Safiya Noble, an internet studies scholar and Professor of Gender Studies and African American Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA).”

They detailed the winner's accomplishments, adding, “Dr. Noble serves as the Co-Founder and Faculty Director of the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry, which is a partner to Archewell Foundation. In 2021, she was recognized as a MacArthur Fellow for her groundbreaking work on algorithmic discrimination, which enabled her recent founding of Equity Engine, a new nonprofit committed to creating the conditions for Black women and women of color to thrive through access to education, investments, mentorship and mutual aid. In addition, Dr. Noble is the author of a bestselling book Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines reinforce Racism (NYU Press).”

To close, the message said, “Dr. Noble has demonstrated leadership and innovation in her trailblazing approach to creating a digital ecosystem that contributes to a more inclusive and equitable society. It is with great admiration that The Archewell Foundation and the NAACP recognize her for her work.”

The NAACP Image Awards will air tonight, February 26 at 8 p.m. ET on BET. We can't wait to see Harry and Meghan hand out their prize (and receive one of their own).

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calfee

Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

Joel is the former Associate Editor for News & Entertainment and has been reporting on all things pop culture for over 5 years. Before working at PureWow, he served as a Features Editor at ROCKET Magazine. When he's not dissecting the latest trends in entertainment (or guiding you on what to watch), he covers all the hottest red carpet looks and fashion movements. When he steps away from the keyboard, you can likely find him at an NYC concert, thrift store or LGBTQ+ bookstore happily perusing the shelves.