The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020, relocating to the US to begin anew. However, their presence has remained prominent in the media.
Recent reports suggest Prince Harry faced a “snub” from his father, while Markle allegedly experienced distress over the harsh response to her new business endeavors.
Additionally, their supporters claim that the royals disrespected their son Archie during his birthday festivities.
Now, a new development has emerged in Prince Harry and Markle’s relationship with the royal family.
The rift within the family became evident in 2021 during the explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey, where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, then expecting their second child, made startling claims.
During the conversation, Meghan Markle alleged that there were “several conversations” within the royal family regarding “how dark” their baby’s skin would be.
Markle confirmed that these discussions were relayed to her by Prince Harry.
“That conversation, I am never going to share,” he stated. “At the time it was awkward, I was a bit shocked.”
Winfrey later clarified on CBS News, “He [Prince Harry] did not share the identity with me but he wanted to make sure I knew, and if I had an opportunity to share it, that it was not his grandmother or grandfather that were part of those conversations.”
To this day, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have declined to reveal which member of the royal family made the remark.
During the interview, Prince Harry expressed his disappointment that his family never addressed the “colonial undertones” present in news headlines and articles about Meghan.
He remarked, “For us, for this union and the specifics around her race, there was an opportunity – many opportunities – for my family to show some public support. And I guess one of the most telling parts and the saddest parts, I guess, was over 70 female members of Parliament, both Conservative and Labour, came out and called out the colonial undertones of articles and headlines written about Meghan. Yet no one from my family ever said anything. That hurts.”
Additionally, he criticized the UK media, describing it as “bigoted” and responsible for creating a “toxic environment” characterized by “control and fear,” as reported by the BBC.
In November 2016, Prince Harry issued a statement condemning certain media outlets for their “racial undertones of comment pieces.”
This statement, reportedly released by former Kensington Palace communications secretary Jason Knauf, came shortly after the public disclosure of the duke’s relationship with Meghan Markle.
The statement was prompted by an article from The Mail on Sunday, which featured the headline: “Harry’s girl is (almost) straight outta Compton: Gang-scarred home of her mother revealed – so will he be dropping by for tea?”
Kensington Palace issued the statement “on behalf of the Communications Secretary to Prince Harry.”
The statement expressed: “The past week has seen a line crossed. His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public – the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments.”
“Some of it has been hidden from the public—the nightly legal battles to keep defamatory stories out of papers; her mother having to struggle past photographers in order to get to her front door; the attempts of reporters and photographers to gain illegal entry to her home and the calls to police that followed; the substantial bribes offered by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of nearly every friend, co-worker, and loved one in her life.”
“Prince Harry is worried about Ms Markle’s safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her. It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms Markle should be subjected to such a storm.”
“He knows commentators will say this is ’the price she has to pay’ and that ’this is all part of the game.’ He strongly disagrees. This is not a game – it is her life and his.”
Prince Harry revealed in his 2023 memoir, “Spare,” that the statement caused frustration among King Charles and his older brother, Prince William, as it portrayed them unfavorably for not similarly defending their spouses.
According to Newsweek, the link to the statement is no longer active. The internet archive site Wayback Machine successfully captured a version of it on December 3, 2023, but a subsequent attempt on December 10 was unsuccessful, indicating its removal between these dates.
The reason behind the removal remains unclear. Earlier this year, reports emerged that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s profiles on the royal.uk site had been condensed.
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