Meghan Markle Removes Her Earpiece and Speaks Spanish on Stage in Colombia

“She spoke Spanish perfectly with one young woman,” Father Greg Boyle of Homeboy Industries, a group that supports people moving on after incarceration or gang involvement, told PEOPLE following the visit. “She just went right into Spanish, which was a revelation — and it was very good.”

At the forum, Meghan said, “I was very, very fortunate at a young age to feel as though my voice was being heard, and I think that is a luxury that a lot of young girls and women aren’t often afforded,” she said, recalling how she penned a letter to have a commercial’s language changed to be less sexist at age 11.

“For us and the work that we do with the Archewell Foundation, certainly the work that we do as parents and that I do as a mother is ensuring that young girls feel as though their voices are being heard and also that young boys are being raised to listen and to hear those young women as well,” she said.