Prince Harry breaks down speaking to parents impacted by social media addiction

Prince Harry got visibly emotional as he addressed grieving parents who have lost children due to online harms during an unannounced appearance in Los Angeles.

On Wednesday, The Duke of Sussex, 41, spoke to families who are part of a major legal challenge against Instagram and YouTube, which seeks to hold the platforms accountable for allegedly harming young people’s mental health.

As seen in a video shared by BBC Breakfast, Harry fought back tears while telling the families, “None of you should be here.” He reflected on his own courtroom experiences, including his recent testimony against the Daily Mail in London, noting the emotional toll of fighting for truth and justice.

“We’ve said time and time again that this is a David versus Goliath situation. 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, that 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, if that brings stuff up for you, it is totally normal,” Harry said.

Harry emphasized the importance of speaking up and sharing stories, saying, “Do not feel ashamed… even if the judge asks you not to show emotion. Thank you for doing everything that you’ve done. Truth, justice, and accountability — those are the three things that will come from this.”

The Duke of Sussex joined British families who traveled to California for the start of the case in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Opening statements began this week as Meta-backed Instagram and YouTube, owned by Google, respond to claims that their platforms deliberately addict and harm children. Other platforms, including TikTok and Snap, had previously settled similar claims.