Prince Harry moved to tears meeting parents in landmark social media lawsuit
The Duke of Sussex was visibly emotional and brought to tears as he met with grieving parents who have launched a landmark legal case against two major social media platforms. Prince Harry addressed families who believe YouTube and Meta, which owns Instagram, are directly responsible for their children's deaths through addictive platform designs.
"None of you should be here"
In an exclusive BBC Breakfast footage, Prince Harry told the assembled parents, "None of you should be here" while thanking them for their courage in repeatedly sharing their painful stories. The father-of-two delivered an impassioned speech to approximately fifty bereaved parents who had gathered in California following the trial's commencement.
"Thank you for doing everything that you've done. Thank you for telling your stories over and over again," the royal stated, visibly holding back tears during the emotional gathering.
David versus Goliath legal battle
The families are pursuing what Prince Harry described as a "David versus Goliath situation" against the technology giants. Their lawsuit alleges that YouTube and Meta deliberately create addictive platforms that harm young people's mental health, ultimately contributing to children's deaths.
Prince Harry drew parallels to his own legal experiences, stating, "I've been in some similar situations myself — vastly different — but when you're sitting in court and if you have that feeling of just overwhelming emotion, because you can't believe that the people on the other side are saying what they're saying."
Seeking truth and accountability
The Duke expressed hope that the case would bring about "truth, justice and accountability" for the affected families. He emphasized how the platforms' defense strategies devalue children's lives, telling parents, "By the very nature of defending what they're defending, the lies that they are stating, is devaluing life, is devaluing your children's lives."
Among those present was Ellen Roome, who believes her 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney died after participating in a dangerous online challenge. Roome told BBC Breakfast, "We can't make a difference for our children, but we can make a difference for other people's children."
Continued advocacy through Archewell
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle continue their advocacy for children's online safety through their Archewell initiative's Parents' Network, which supports families affected by social media harm. This appearance follows Prince Harry's January testimony against the Daily Mail's publisher in a separate unlawful information gathering lawsuit.
Legal representatives for YouTube and Meta have rejected the families' claims about platform addiction and responsibility for children's deaths. The trial will examine whether these social media platforms indeed harm young people's mental health through their design and algorithms.
