Prince Harry and Meghan Markle plead with parents to save their children as they break a 3-year vow of silence to make ‘a change for good’

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle rocked the Royal world when they decided to spill all their secrets to Oprah Winfrey in an infamous 2021 interview that only widened the gulf between them and their estranged relatives. Three years later, they are back for their first joint televised interview since Oprahgate, but this time they have some very different messaging to impart.

Harry has been a busy boy of late, in particular, as he’s fresh off an equally rare interview on documentary Tabloids on Trial, in which he spoke honestly about defending his mother, Princess Diana, against claims she was paranoid and how grandmother Queen Elizabeth II was the only Royal to support him. It’s unlikely the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be getting quite as personal in this latest interview, but they have some all-important words to share with the parents of the world all the same.

Harry and Meghan’s imploring message to parents: “Every parent needs to be a first responder”

Harry and Meghan’s first interview since Oprah is set to unfold on this weekend’s edition of CBS News’ Sunday Morning show, airing Aug. 4. A preview has been released ahead of time that reveals what has caused the couple to sit in front of the camera again: they’re promoting a new program of theirs that combats adolescent depression caused by cyberbulling.

The Sussexes have already recorded the interview with Sunday Morning host Jane Pauley, in which they discuss their pilot program that aims to “support parents whose children have been affected by online harm.” In the interview clip, Meghan explains how they hope to make a difference now while their own children, Prince Archie (5) and Princess Lilibet (3), are still young.

“Our kids are young, they’re three and five, they’re amazing, but all you want to do as parents is protect them,” Meghan said. “And so, as we can see what’s happening in the online space, we know that there’s a lot of work to be done there. We’re just happy to be able to be a part of a change for good.”

Harry, meanwhile, decided to take the opportunity to appeal to the parents out there to be pro-active in ensuring their children are doing OK and to work harder at better understanding the tells and indicators that their kids are struggling.

“At this point we’ve got to the stage where almost every parent needs to be a first responder,” Harry stated. “And even the best first responders in the world wouldn’t be able to tell the signs of possible suicide. That is the terrifying piece of this.”

Harry and Meghan obviously know a thing or two about receiving negative comments online and in the media that causes harm — Meghan has only set foot in the U.K. once since 2020 because Harry is convinced the scorn heaped on her by the press will incite someone to attack her with a “knife or acid” if she ever does come back. Although the couple have a lot of critics out there, it’s clear that the most important thing to both of them is protecting their family.