All About Violet Affleck's Powerful Speech at the United Nations in New York City

Violet Affleck stepped onto the world stage this week, delivering a forceful call for accountability and change during a United Nations event in New York City.

Violet Affleck, the eldest daughter of Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck, took the global stage this week with a passionate speech at the United Nations in New York City, calling for urgent action on indoor air quality and continued measures against Covid-19.

The 19-year-old student and activist emphasized that protecting communities from airborne illness remains a pressing issue more than five years after the pandemic began.

Speaking at "Healthy Indoor Air: A Global Call to Action," Violet used her platform to stress the responsibility of governments, institutions, and individuals in safeguarding public health. Now a first-year student at Yale University's Davenport College, she urged world leaders not to turn away from lessons learned during the pandemic. "It is neglect of the highest order to look children in the eyes and say, 'We knew how to protect you, and we didn't do it,'" she said.

Delivering her impassioned address, Violet warned that "our present is being stolen right in front of our eyes" and highlighted how young people have "lacked both real choice in the matter and information about what was being chosen for us."

She criticized what she described as society's eagerness to return to "business as usual," despite the lasting risks of the virus. "For adults, the relentless beat of 'back to normal,' ignoring, downplaying, and concealing both the prevalence of airborne transmission and the threat of long Covid manifested in a series of choices," she told attendees.

Violet concluded her remarks by pushing for systemic change. "We can recognize filtered air as a human right as intuitively as we do filtered water," she said. "We can create clean air infrastructure that is so ubiquitous and so obviously necessary, tomorrow's children don't even know why we need it."

Her commitment to the issue extends beyond the UN stage. In May, she authored an article in the "Yale Global Health Review" examining Los Angeles' response to Covid-19 and its intersection with climate change.

She argued that eliminating the virus fully requires mask use, paid sick leave, universal healthcare, and stronger environmental protections. She also encouraged communities to remain organized and ensure free access to masks for those in need.

Violet has long been vocal about public health. In 2024, she called for mask mandates in medical facilities, citing her experience with a "post-viral condition" in 2019. She has also been photographed consistently wearing a mask at public events with her family, underscoring her advocacy through personal practice.

With her UN speech, Violet Affleck reinforced her growing voice as a young leader pushing for accountability and systemic solutions in the face of ongoing global health challenges.