LONDON 鈥� Explosive allegations by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex that she faced racist attitudes from both the palace and the U.K. press have sent ripples of shock around the world. But they came as no surprise to many Black Britons.
Whether it鈥檚 the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on people of
鈥淭his is a country that doesn鈥檛 want to have an honest conversation about race,鈥� historian David Olusoga, who presented the TV series 鈥淏lack and British: A Forgotten History,鈥� said Tuesday.
In a TV interview with Oprah Winfrey, the former Meghan Markle said isolation and a lack of support from the royal household after her marriage to Prince Harry drove her to thoughts of suicide. She also said an unnamed member of the royal family expressed 鈥渃oncerns鈥� to Harry about the
Tiwa Adebayo, a communications consultant and journalist, said the couple鈥檚 revelations in the interview bore out her worst fears.
鈥淲hen Meghan joined the royal family, every person of
鈥淚 expected there to always be that undercurrent of racism,鈥� she added. 鈥淏ut to hear it so outright, it鈥檚 really scary. It鈥檚 very shocking. And it鈥檚 hard to see how the royal family is going to come back from this.鈥�
It鈥檚 a long way from the optimism that surrounded Harry and Meghan鈥檚 royal wedding in 2018. The relationship between a grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and a biracial American actress was hailed as evidence that, in modern Britain, skin
Harold Wilson, a 57-year-old local authority worker in Brixton, a district at the heart of London鈥檚 Afro-Caribbean community, said Meghan joining the royal family 鈥渟hould have been an opportunity for them to move forward 鈥� but the royal family are not like that.鈥�
鈥淓ven before the child has been brought into the world, they are worried about the actual tone of the skin of the baby,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat tells you everything about them.鈥�
The fairy tale image surrounding the wedding at Windsor Castle faded quickly. Meghan faced tabloid stories about her allegedly demanding
Even before the wedding, Harry had complained in 2017 about the 鈥渞acial undertones鈥� in British media coverage of his then-girlfriend. One tabloid columnist referred to Meghan鈥檚 鈥渆xotic鈥� DNA. A Daily Mail headline described her Los Angeles roots as 鈥�(almost) straight outta Compton鈥� and claimed she came from a 鈥済ang-scarred鈥�
Meghan and Harry cited the intrusive, racist scrutiny of Britain鈥檚 tabloid press as a reason for their decision a year ago to give up their jobs as senior royals and move to North America.
The palace issued a rare public statement on a personal matter, saying the royal family was 鈥渟addened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.鈥�
鈥淭he issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淲hile some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.鈥�
Like other countries, Britain has faced an uncomfortable reckoning with race since the death of George Floyd, a Black American, at the knee of a U.S. policeman in May 2020 sparked anti-racism protests around the world.
Large Black Lives Matter protests in cities across the U.K. called on the government and institutions to face up to the legacy of the British Empire and the country鈥檚 extensive profits from the slave trade.
The toppling of a statue of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston in the city of Bristol in June prompted a pointed debate about how to deal with that history. Many felt such statues extol racism and are an affront to Black Britons. Others argued that removing them was erasing a piece of history.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has criticized the removal of statues, saying 鈥渨e cannot edit our past.鈥� Opponents accuse him of trying to sweep the negative aspects of British history under the carpet.
Olusoga said many Britons like to believe that racism is an American problem, something that takes place elsewhere. He said the U.K. had failed to live up to the story it told itself at the time of Harry and Meghan鈥檚 wedding: 鈥渢hat we were this modern multicultural country, a country with a Black princess, a country that was at ease with itself, with its history, with its multiculturalism.鈥�
鈥淲e need to look at ourselves more honestly," he told the BBC. "Now is a moment for self-reflection, not just for the palace, but for the country.鈥�
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Hilary Fox and Jo Kearney contributed to this report. ___
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Jill Lawless, The Associated Press
