Here in America, I tend to believe that most of us have good vibes about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Harry and William are well-liked here, and I think Americans (or Americans who pay attention to royalty) like that Harry is marrying a biracial American girl. It’s a cool story for us. But of course I’ve been taking note of how the British papers have been handling it, and I’ve been getting the sense that the British media establishment does not know how to deal any of this. What offends them so much about Meghan? That she’s American, or that she’s an actress, or that she’s biracial? In any case, it does feel like certain British media outlets have normalized the hatred towards her, and they’ve put a target on her back. Which may explain this:
Scotland Yard is investigating after a letter addressed to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry that contained white powder prompted an anthrax scare. The letter was received this month at Kensington Palace in central London. The powder inside was found to be harmless after being examined by experts.
The couple are due to be married in May and the letter was received at the palace shortly before a package containing white powder also prompted a scare at the Palace of Westminster. The Evening Standard newspaper said the royal couple had been informed of the suspicious package.
The police inquiry is trying to determine if the same person or people were responsible for the sending both letters. Anthrax can be weaponised in powder form and is potentially deadly. But there have been a number of scares where harmless white powder has been sent to prominent people. A Scotland Yard spokesperson said they could not yet comment. A spokesperson for Kensington Palace said they would not comment and it was a matter for the police.
Was this is a general threat against the monarchy and everything the monarchy stands for? Or was it much more specific, considering it did seem to be aimed at Meghan and Harry? I’m glad Meghan and Harry are safe and that they weren’t in contact with the package. But I can’t shake the feeling that Meghan has a target on her back. Maybe Meghan really does need to GET OUT.
The Daily Mail just couldn't let Meghan Markle win. The British tabloid uses the word "niggling" on the cover with Meghan and Harry's engagement photos: https://t.co/YmSQNnWFIR pic.twitter.com/zZItMKra3z
— theGrio.com (@theGrio) December 22, 2017
NOT OUR PRINCESS: I have a niggling feeling that Daily Mail readers aren't very happy about Harry marrying Meghan Markle… pic.twitter.com/Ro3gOwOPC0
— The DM Reporter (@DMReporter) February 12, 2018
Photos courtesy of WENN, Backgrid and Pacific Coast News, covers courtesy of People Magazine.
Why are people so stupid and awful??
But I understand what you mean, Kaiser— that’s how I felt about Barack & Michelle. I was always worried about them.
Same. I was always afraid for the Obama’s and now thanks to the dog whistling rags like the Daily Mail I’m worried about Meghan.
Oh my gosh, Me Too!!! I was always so worried for them and their daughers! That speaks to a lot of potential ugliness, doesn’t it?
No offence but u guys need to get a life if you’re worried about people who are living a completely different life. The britt Ishmael media did it to kate, Diana & anyone whose popular and sells their gossip site, not personal simply opportunistic.
I’m not surprised at all. The UK papers seem to have been vicious for months. I hope they tightened up security around all of them. Esp Meghan.
There is a band of wicked people out there on DM saying that it was all a fake publicity stunt organised by Meghan and her PR are the same people who have been saying that the wedding was never going to happen. They are the same people now praying for the wedding to be cancelled at all costs. I think that the people behind the stupid petition to stop Meghan marrying Harry should be investigated and all of the people who signed up to it. Many people on DM have admitted to signing it and they should be investigated too.
This is a racist hate crime and yet people on DM are making a big joke about it, some people are really rotten to the core! People on twitter are saying that DM online has a lot to answer for inciting hate by encouraging racist comments on all stories about Meghan. The police have confirmed that this is a racist hate crime so all avenues must be investigated. I feel so sorry for Harry and Meghan, I know she is strong but it must have affected her, and her mother must be shaking her head. As we all know racism is alive and kicking furiously in these ugly Brexit times unfortunately. DM, especially should take action to show it really is concerned, and the first step should be to remove those stupid arrow ratings.
A similar letter with white powder was sent to the Houses of Parliament, possibly by the same person. Police are investigating. Are people here as concerned about that? Doesn’t sound like it. What LAK is saying, very reasonably, is that Meghan is protected because she is in a rarefied royal orbit that affords her the kind of security that others could only dream about.
We are all targets these days, whether we are at work, school or just walking on a street. We all endure unreasonable prejudices. All are unacceptable. I feel for the people who have to open that mail, the people who have to perhaps take a bullet for a ‘royal’. No-one should have to die due to an act of mad men, but no-one’s life is more valuable than another’s.
I guess no Presidents, Prime Ministers, or government officials around the world should have security then. The Queen should also start packing a gun to protect herself. I hope you are sending letters to cops, firefighters, and first responders in your area to let them know they shouldn’t come if you are in danger, because you believe your life and that of your loved ones isn’t worth risking theirs. We should also call all troops back home because we should all fend for ourselves.
This is just ugly. This is also what happens when you let parts of the press run rampant with racism and bullsh*t. Not just in this case. It encourages people when their worst thoughts are mirrored in the press like that. No wonder US outlets get the better stories.
I have no idea whether other royals recieve this crap but if they don’t (or even if they do), I think the BRF needs to do for these two what they’ve been doing for W&K. Get in there and shut it down. Might not be easy but give it a go. And before anyone says anything, I have no patience for the censorship discussion today.
Firstly, the mail isn’t received directly by the royals. It’s checked and assessed to determine what can be passed on. If anyone is in danger, it’s the palace sorting office. Not the royals. And the royals may be unaware that these threats are being made against them.
Further, all royals receive these types of threats. Ditto from overzealous fans who overload the system. It’s an ongoing security nightmare for all of them. It’s a wonder they can talk to regular people during walkabouts without wondering about security, BUT the good news is they are made aware of specific threats IF the situation warrants it. Need to know basis etc.
Finally, the RPOs are not just excellent bodyguards, they are legally empowered policemen. Their presence means MM doesn’t have to worry about her security. She received her own cohort of guards the minute she was engaged.
At the moment the perception is that she’s being attacked directly, but that’s just media spin. The reality is that she’s now in the same secure bubble that WK are in. At every turn, she will always have her cohort of guards.
And should the marriage flounder, i hope she doesn’t follow Diana’s foolish decision to get rid of her RPOs because we all saw the disastrous effects of that decision.
You’ve just single-handedly destroyed the the narrative “I’m so worried about her security”
While it might be true that all Royals receive threats. It is also being reported that there was racist content in it as well. Let’s not act like Meghan is just receiving your basic Royal threats- there are other elements that are involved in how people attack her.
The Press, specifically the UK Royal Press, has done themselves no favors by consistently posting dog whistle articles about her (I’ll never forget the “niggling” one by the DM) or the narrative they are pushing as her being this “other”, “unroyal”, and all of these others things that directly plays into the hatred of some people who have issues with her that stem from her ethnicity and nationality. In a world where white supremacy seems to be gaining center stage again through politics, it is irresponsible to not think that isn’t reflecting on the treatment Meghan is receiving.
Sadly, I don’t see this getting better and though I trust their protection, it does make me wonder about her safety. It has to make Meghan feel uneasy. She’s never had to deal with these sort of threats against her life. No one ever gets used to that kind of stuff.
How about the “narrative” about Meghan being targeted by racists with tacit support from right wing British tabloids like the Daily Mail? That one is still alive and kicking.
Having an effective bodyguard service doesn’t mean she isn’t being targeted or attacked or that this is nothing for her to worry about. As JFK and Ronald Reagan can testify.
@lobbit: every member of every RF is a walking, breathing target. They do live with a lot of restrictions. This is probably what Harry meant with “…deal with all this” when he talked about his future wife. Meghan being bi-racial has an additional dimention. Nothing more in terms of security. Would be better if that letter was a misogynistic one?
I mean … I was talking about the press more than anything. I’m not actually worried about her physical wellbeing. I thought that was clear.
@micki – meghan being bi-racial brings the added dimension of RACISM. You can say the word. You should say the word. Because it’s not just a “narrative” – it’s a reality.
Manhattan: Racist abuse in a letter is the least of the type of threats they receive. They receive alot of abusive, threatening mail that makes one worry for the sanity of the senders.
As for the media, there are two situations going on here.
1. The media always attacks the royals. Some more than others. It’s a national pastime. They use rude names about them and are downright abusive. See how the Yorkies are abused for everything.
With MM, that abuse includes racism as well, but again, unless she’s reading her media which she told us she does not, she will be unaware of the extent of the media bashing. At least no one has fashioned a rude moniker for her yet eg Waity, Dolittle, Duchess of Pork, Gruesome twosome, Prince of whales etc
2. The other thing to wonder about this particular ‘racist’ letter is how the media can know for sure of this letter + contents given that royal mail is confidential. Even the abusive mail. I understand how mail is leaked from the Palace of Westminster, but it is a no no to leak anything from the Palace. Given the history of insider leaks from the various Palaces to push an agenda, i’m inclined to view the leaking of this racist letter with cynicism. We’ll know in a few months what the agenda is.
littlemissnaughty: she will have to get used to it, and ignore it. Press bashing the royals is nothing new. You want to see truly horrendous press bashing? Google media images of royals in the 18th century. Everyone from George 4 to Catherine the great. How do you think the legend of Catherine and a horse started?
ETA: they don’t receive media unless they specifically ask to receive it. Unless they google the online media or are delivered print copies of media, they can live their lives completely unaware of what is written about them.
Harry is unsual in admitting that he reads the papers and blogs, but MM said in her engagement interview that she stopped consuming media so she might not be aware of what’s written.
@lobbit: the attempt to avoid a direct answer doesn’t fly. Abuse is abuse, one type is not worse or better than the other. In MM case RASISM (here I SAID it) is a forever and ever present dimention. However the UK press attacks a lot more than her race so you never know what will rock the boat of any given psycho. With this I leave LAK’s tread.
@LAK
Racial abuse is usually always coupled with threats of violence or aggression. Again, it’s the not the least of any kind but very dangerous and passively regarded by many. You taking it lightly goes to show that. Plenty of people are attacked and lose their life from racial comments that escalate into far worse than “just words”. If you think Meghan should brush it off and ignore the tabloids when this can and will clearly affect her life outside of an article on the internet- you are mistaken.
The medias attacks on Meghan have had a lot of dog-whistle to it and the fact that they remain hush or ignorant to racial attacks that they flame doesn’t help. Normalizing this kind of behavior towards Meghan does no one favors. You should really stop trying to convince yourself and other that this is just “Another day as a Royal”. It’s troubling. Everyone brushes things off until someones actually gets hurt.
Also this is not just a leak about some ugly letter the mail person tossed after reading. There is an active police investigation into this. It was sent with a powder as well.
Manhattan: i don’t live in a utopia that doesn’t know or understand what racist abuse is or what follows or how that affects people.
Further, we are discussing royals NOT regular people. There is a bubble of security so thick around the royals that unless MM is going out of her way to google herself or read the media, she will never know that people or the media have racist comments about her just as the royals are kept away from all the extremely vile threats and abuse they receive on a daily basis. She’s not one of us anymore. She’s a Royal person or as good as one. That fact is emphasised by the police investigation into the letter because every abusive letter received by the royals is investigated. That’s standard procedure for the royals. That is not something regular people can expect to receive.
And the media discussing the police investigation is deliberately stoking the situation by pretending it is unusual occurence when the reality is it’s standard procedure for royals.
As for the abusive media, are you so naive as to think that type of behaviour started with MM?
@LAK, while I agree that the British press is vicious in general and has hardly been kind to Royals for a long time, I do think that the racism part is more dangerous.
This especially right now, as racists express their hatred with violence more and more.
@Lak – Under UK law, this letter is a racist hate crime, and no royal in your lifetime or mine has experienced such a thing – because Meghan Markle is the first and ONLY underrepresented minority to marry into the British royal family.
All this talk about none of this being a big deal because “royalty” and because Meghan isn’t “one of us” anymore is hilarious to a person of color because we grow up with the understanding that racism is the great equalizer for the many white supremacists among us. Meghan has been targeted – her very humanity is being denied – specifically because she is of African descent. And a racist attack of one POC is an attack on ALL POC. Which is why I’m glad we’ve been made aware of it – and you should be, too. Racists should be named and shamed.
Lobbit: As if the police investigate every hate crime that occurs in the UK. As if the police investigate every racist comment or incident.
The fact remains that racist or not, this threat / abuse would have been investigated BECAUSE she is royal. That’s the standard of service she receives. That is not the standard regular people receive even where there is overwhelming evidence that it is a hate crime.
The media patting themselves on the back for something they set in motion only makes one person safer, MM. No one else.
Are you old enough to remember when Ronald Reagan was shot? He was shot walking, not shaking hands, etc., surrounded by armed Secret service agents, the absolute best in the world.
There is no safety for anyone in the world, really, but especially for public figures like politicians and the royals. This is the main reason I would NEVER want to be any of them – not for my safety, but for the worries I would be tormented with for my children. I can’t even imagine living like this.
@Micki…well I am worried about how Harry and Meghan are feeling and her mother. Of course we know that they do not open their mail but the truth is that this is a racist hate crime that needs to be investigated and media comments sections like DM online should stop inciting and encouraging racist comments on all Meghan articles.
The press is going to be under more pressure to clean up. The way the media handled the Corbyn spy story was terrible and I am not a Corbyn fan.
LAK I am actually kind of shocked by your comment and ignoring why this is different. Yes the royals face abuse in the media and public, but Meghan has faced an onslaught not seen in a very long time and the racial undertones ARE important and different. Saying otherwise is plainly ignorant.
Ronald Reagan was almost killed and the SS is the best in the world. Princess Anne was almost kidnapped, Mountbatten was blown up, Harry was a dream target for various terror groups and still is, etc. Yes they have amazing security, but no security is full proof and it just takes a second for something to happen, especially during a walkabout where they are leaning into the crowd. Unlike with POTUS where you have one SS holding on to their belt in back, and two SS on the sides, the RPOs often give the royals more space. More than enough opportunity for something bad to happen. The media has already reported before this happened that Meghan and Harry have more security than Charles/William and Kate, do you think that is just happenstance? No, its because they are obviously receiving MORE threats/have a higher security concern around Harry and Meghan.
And yes, we do know that Harry reads the paper and comments. But we ALSO know that they were both briefed on this situation. I really feel for the Palace mail sorter who had to deal with the shock of opening that envelope and hope that got support too. But it cannot be easy to know, for Meghan, that people have such malice toward you. If you think that doesn’t get back to her, I have a bridge to sell you.
Wisdomheaven: Perhaps you should read the first comment in this particular thread and my first comment which responded to it.
I am not ignoring the situation. I’m giving reasons why MM is safer than regular people. I even mention the fear of the public during a walkabout. I wrote a comment in response to @Dee about security not being 100% which disappeared in which i said royals are very high value targets and gave several examples including the ones you’ve listed and the need to continue to be vigilant. I also mentioned that the media is/ has been irresponsible in stoking hatred of several royals which makes this article about this letter hypocritical.
And i stand by my point that no matter the level of hatred and abuse, MM is safer than regular people because of the level of security around her. Not just physical guards, but layers of people who prevent anything touching her directly eg communications unless she goes out of her way to make direct contact with the public or the media. One complaint from her and there is immediate action. The public don’t have that option even where clear and present danger is identified.
I can say with absolute confidence that unless she is reading her own media, or family members / friends are telling her about the media, she can be kept completely ignorant of it all because that is how the system operates. That’s how they become out of touch because they only receive what they request rather than being given an all round update on the media. That scenerio is broken if it is deemed necessary, but not before.
And the racist / general abuse in the media didn’t start with MM. Pity you think it did. Or perhaps it was easy to ignore because you didn’t care about the people being abused, and now you do.
@Lak….the fact that she is not the person opening her mail is not the point though is it?
PrincessK: ….but it is the point of the original comment which was enquiring after her security.
This entire thread feels like a determined effort to put words into my mouth and to reinterprete my comments so that the claim can be made that i don’t understand racism or i’m dismissing it.
Racism is going to happen whether i am aware of it or not. And as a regular person, have less protection from it than someone like MM.
This collective pearl clutching at the awful things the DM says because they are saying them about MM whilst ignoring everything else they have said since the 1930s including support for Nazis, and supporting Enoch Powell and his ‘rivers of blood’ speeches. Their longstanding dog-whistling against immigrants and foreigners and brown people. I guess because MM is the target THIS TIME y’all have finally noticed.
And yet, she is still better protected than a regular person suffering the same type of abuse, including the person at the Palace of Westminster who received a similar package and letter.
@LAK….I also think you are rather mistaken when you say that nobody has fashioned a rude moniker for Meghan. Maybe you don’t read DM where she is frequently called ‘MeAgain’ and ‘NutMeg’.
@ LAK : Diana did not get rid of her RPO’s voluntarily. After she lost her HRH title through the divorce, she was no longer entitled to her protection detail.
PrincessK: i haven’t read that before nor do i read DM comments. Further, the ones i have listed are used in the mainstream media articles as opposed to being limited to comments from the public under articles.
Still_Sarah: Yes she did. She wanted to cut her ties completely from the royals AND get a better divorce settlement. She voluntarily gave up her HRH AND her RPOs. Being divorced doesn’t remove security or RPOs. Following her shenanigans with the HRH, the Queen made removal of that style automatic, but didn’t change the rules around RPOs.
Further, the palace was alarmed at the ensuing harassment and tried to give her back her RPOs and she refused to have them back. She thought they spied on her and was ironclad resolute about getting rid of them.
Your comment is repeating the many lies that grew up around Diana because the public couldn’t accept her reckless decisions especially wheer there was a convenient scapegoat in the royals to blame.
Littlemissnaughty – I agree with you completely and am saddened but not surprised at the way folks are trying to hand wave racism. Get used to attacks from white supremacists?! Bloody unlikely.
Oof. All this for mere figureheads who when/if they have kids, their kids will never be King/Queen. And still!! Get a life people. Where do racists find the time?!
“Where do racists find the time?” <- so much this.
I have often wondered that myself. It must be very exhausting to have your daily life as well as your side life of hatred. It’s got to be a lot of work.
Not Much Haters by HRH The Henrys events turn out.
Only a few who cant handle a worthy, educated working professional, outshining an entitled underwhelm – home grown seven years marryin – with only babies to show in an important senior royal role.
The Firm/BP even seem to later add middleton (after BAFTA red carpet) to appear/cohost with The Countess Wessex at Commonwealth fashion reception held at BP.
@RoyalSparkle,
I heard about the joint engagement with Sophie and Kate for the fashion thing in mid-January while on Twitter. The Firm/BP didn’t add Kate to co-host at the last minute.
Oh man. People need to stop. That is awful.
Re: Meghan, I think it’s a little bit of what you said Kaiser, and I think it’s a little bit of what we have seen here over the past year – there’s a weird sense of jealousy, like Meghan “stole” Harry from…..someone. Cressida? Chelsey? Me? (lol) It’s like people have a hard time accepting that Harry is engaged and getting married. I guess with William because he and Kate dated for so long it wasn’t as much of a thing. but when I see so much animosity towards Meghan that’s what it feels like – a high school girl pissed that her crush asked someone else out.
Agree. This sickens me, but it wasn’t unexpected and I think Harry, with his public statement, tried to get out in front of it from the beginning but to no avail. Just the viciousness the DM allows to foment is appalling, but magnify that by the multiple blogs and Tumblr sites doing the same and we can see how the potential for threats and criminal acts from people who are clearly unstable and/or motivated by hate escalates (some of those deplorables have even commented here on CB) to the level that this couples’ security could never be too intense or overt.
I think it is more that Meghan is American and a divorced actress. Add in that she is biracial, it all adds up to a toxic stew. That the British taxpayers have to support all of these moochers creates a lot of resentment already, add in Meghan who isn’t seen as “one of us” to a lot of British, this is what you get.
There are many, many crazies out there. As we find out every week in the states.
The aggrieved girlfriend brigade started up as soon as they started dating. It makes me think of Great Expectations and the jilted bride scenario.
I’m American but live in England. Seems to me that there are a very real group of Brits that aren’t happy about MM because she IS American, first and foremost, and also because she isn’t Anglo. I’ve lived here for years, and have encounters with British folks every single day, multiple times. The majority of British folks I’ve met in East Anglia don’t seem to like us very much at all. Inside London it’s a different story, there are so many people from everywhere there that I’ve never felt unliked based on my Americanism.
I don’t pity MM at all, she makes her own choices. But I am sorry that she’s going to have to deal with disdain based on her heritage and country of origin.
@aenflex people from East Anglia don’t even like people from the next county along. They are not racist they just don’t like anyone. I can confirm this as I live there but dont have the accent and am continually questionned about what I am doing there and where I am from.
I am not worried about her. I mean, there is certainly a fair amount of nutsos out there, but I think she will be protected properly, and I would like to think that those rightwing idiots will get used to her over time. Simply because I want them to, because I am shipping these two lovebirds. We need _something_ nice and fluffy in our lives. The universe simply cannot take all from us, it needs to leave us a little bit of joy. Thank you.
There’s no evidence of a grand conspiracy against Meghan, despite what her stans want to believe. As for the powder, sounds like a garden variety nutjob at work.
Yes because it isn’t like the letter with the powder in it was addressed to Meghan (it was) smh
To downplay the type of crap she’s experiencing that others don’t have to deal with simply because you don’t like her is childish.
Downplaying obvious racism…nice job! Also didn’t realize calling out racists and their never ending bullsh*t made someone a stan smh. You learn something new (and idiotic) everyday.
“Garden variety nutjobs” have been shown to be capable of murder.
“Garden variety nutjobs” is a very poor euphemism for “racists making threats.”
This isn’t about a grand conspiracy; this is about people feeling emboldened enough to do something threatening. Thankfully it turned out to be a harmless powder this time, but – would you like to get an envelope filled with white powder? Even if it turned out to be harmless? The intent was clear: To be menacing.
@WOW: Thinking it’s horrible that someone would send Meghan threatening, racist mail does not make anyone a “stan.” Just a decent person.
Give it a rest.
#obvious
There’s plenty of evidence of racist attacks leveled against her, though, and anyone with a sense of decency should be concerned about that.
I guess I don’t know the difference between a garden variety nut job and a non garden variety one.
+1
It’s treated as a racist hate crime by the police….it came with racially malicious content. But no big deal….just a little racism.
Yes the royal family get threats, I mean a group threatened a 4 year old. But to act like she isn’t being targeted specifically because of something she can’t change, her race, is dumb. It further perpetuate the idea that it doesn’t matter…it does.
Time to head back to this side of the pond he’s not worth the racist BS and death threats. There are plenty rich cute guys out there with less press attached to them.
I agree.
No. We don’t let racists determine the trajectory of our lives.
EXACTLY. This is precisely what the nutjobs at DM and tumblr are relying on…..the idea that if they leave enough derogatory, threatening, menacing comments, she’ll leave the relationship out of fear.
She has to stand her ground and if the relationship does not survive, it should only be because they’ve decided as a couple to move on, not because some small minded bigots are making her life hell.
Great point. That’s exactly what they want- to control through fear.
+1 Hobbit. I hope they marry and have good long happy lives together. I wouldn’t let racists and/or nut jobs stop me either.
1. No one should cave to racists.
2. It would not stop idiots from being awful.
3. There are tons of racists in North America too.
Exactly! She might not have death threats, but black and biracial people and other POC deal with racism on the daily here in America in some form. It wouldn’t matter where Meghan lived.
Precisely. With all due respect to Americans, I feel as if I see just as many (if not more) nasty comments about Meghan on DM from America than the UK; which is extremely surprising and disappointing as you would intuitively imagine that most Americans would support their own in this scenario. Instead it feels like theres a sizable faction whose sense of racial resentment trumps their sense of national pride.
I’ve even seen quite a number of american commenters apologise to Brits for Meghan. Lol. The irony.
I agree with you and will add that all racists allow racial resentment to trump national pride because America is, despite their absurd fantasies, a multi-racial, multi-cultural community.
2016 upended some big rocks in the garden and now all the ugly creepy-crawlies are exposed.
Right now the US has an unabashed white supremacist president who is fomenting increased racial hatred and hate crimes have increased as a result. Until the tiki torch parades start in the UK, Meghan is much better off staying where she is.
No, the whole point of the scare is to scare her away. And you think she won’t get targeted in America? She got attacks while on Suits by fans because they discovered her character was black. Fuck that….stay where she is.
You can tell from the miserable looking Ingrid Seward that her ilk do not like the idea of Harry marrying Meghan, she offends their sensibilities.
I have always felt that most of the main royals are ok, it’s always those on the peripheral who want to be more royal than the royal family.
Since Brexit it’s been like this towards anyone non-white, tbh and with a relatively worldly outlook. Not surprised.
My bff just moved to Leicester with her husband and child and was glared at and called “disgusting” by a black woman on the city bus. She is Asian. My friend was so shaken she got off at the wrong stop. I know little of England although I will be spending the summer there. Are things this bad there??
I wonder about this too,I thought(naively?)that the U.K. was less racist than the
United States. I also agree wither poster who said they believe most royals are okay with Meghan it’s the people on the outer circle/aristos who wish their position was higher-who have the bigger problem.I know Phillip has said his bulk of stupid over the years,but I think Harry’s family are alright.I honestly thought the fact that she’s divorced would be the bigger issue for the sycophants.I want to see a beautiful wedding just for fun but seriously think Meghan should reconsider-these people are beneath her.
Leicester has a fairly large Asian population and not that many black people (at least in comparison)…..so it feels unlikely that a black woman would try to bully her on the basis of race……my suspicion is that the insult was off the back of something else and your friend didn’t realise.
Having said that, Leicester is slightly rougher than london and people are a little more aggressive as well, so who knows?
Bellagio
Yes there are a lot of SE Asians, Indians, Pakistani, Bangledeshi etc but not a lot of Chinese, Koreans or Japanese. Could that be it? My friend is still a bit shaken as she isn’t used to this and has only been in the UK for about 6 weeks. I told her it was an isolated incident. Her husband’s new administrative assistant is a woc and has been quite lovely but still…we were both shocked.
Enough already, I am so sorry that that happened to your friend & her family. Sadly, racism walks around everywhere in many colours & forms.
Tonya
Thank you – you are kind. I’ve spent time in London and had no issues so it will be interesting to compare Leicester, Belgium and Scotland this summer. Oddly enough I experienced the least amount of racism in Nanjing, China.
*shrug*
@ Enough Already
I’m sorry too that your friend went through that, it’s not very nice.
It’s hard to say too much about the incident without knowing the details of their exchange before the insults were dished out.
But to be honest, my personal view is that the UK is significantly less racist in general than America (and a lot of other places). I have a number of Chinese and Japanese friends and the consensus from them as well is the same. I don’t know of any particular cultural tensions between this group and any others, so my suspicion again is that this was an isolated incident and your friend doesn’t really have too much to worry about.
The UK is not more racist than the US but Nigel Farage and Brexit have encouraged a resurgence of racial hatred. I still believe the majority of British people are very decent but many are developing a phobia about foreigners and people who are non white. A mixed race person in the RF makes them feel that there is no longer any part of British society that can be kept pure white any more.
I think it becomes worse the further North you go. London and the big U.K cities are very multicultural, but there are so many pockets of hate/intolerance scattered throughout the country.
In my experience, UK and europeans are vocally in your face racist (yell racial slurs while your walking) while americans practice a more passive aggressive racism( accuse you of stealing their alcohol at a party) .
Racists gonna racist. Thank you for turning me on to the DM Reporter. It’s amazing!
As a Brit, there’s nothing I detest more than the DM or any of the tabloids really but especially the DM. That is all.
was the package addressed to megan? I image threatening letters to the royal family is not uncommon, so this might not be about her.
I can’t say how everyone feels about her, but i personally think Harry could have done better. Seems like most people just approve of her either because she’s American or biracial. Neither of those things are really things that qualify someone to be a great spouse. Like if I had a son, I would be proud that he found a great wife, not because he married a biracial american. Strip that away from megan, she’s just a c-list actress divorcee, who is neither super beautiful (she’s beautiful in normal people standards, but not actress standards) nor super great at acting (i thought she was kind of bad in suits, if anything she was one of the reasons why i stopped watching).
It was specifically addressed to her, with racist content https://twitter.com/George_Osborne/status/966657460638568449
Let us know who would be “better” than an accomplished professional with the appropriate work ethic whom he loves. I guess a white girl with rich parents?
Yes that’s who they think would be better-you know someone who’s never worked,lived off her family,no personality,no obvious interests or achievements or money or accomplishments of her own….Oh wait…Didn’t William marry someone like that 🤔
Before you continue @littlemissnaughty, I’m not white.
I hate that either we’re discriminated against for being a minority or our ethnicity is used a qualifying trait. I want everyone to know, we do not want to be liked just because we’re biracial, black, asian, etc etc. I hate hearing “oh isn’t that great they made the main love interest a black girl” or “oh this movie is so diverse, they have so many minorities” How about they were just the best people that went for the audition?
But i digress. I just think Harry can do better. There are many other actresses that are just as professional with amazing work ethic, but are better actress. But the heart wants what it wants, so they are getting married. It’s their life. I’m just here to say, you can do better but whatever you want, dude.
@Jamie to be fair, a much better actress probably wouldn’t want to give up her career to marry Harry or any royalty for that matter.
@Jamie, that goes for everyone. Everyone can find someone who’s “better” in one way or another. The question is, does that person go for them? Do they love each other? You’re acting like this was an audition. If it had been, who would even want that job? No really, the guy would have to be crazy amazing because look what family she’s marrying into. He’s not THAT great.
ETA: Btw, you were going on and on about her being biracial and how that apparently makes her special. It makes her a target for a lot of people.
Jamie – please keep your “we” to yourself. You don’t speak of me or any other person of color. The fact is that we are shaped by our cultural and racial identities – and many people of color understand the importance of having our identities represented in mainstream culture.
Jamie didn’t say that. She said Meghan was not a great, accomplished woman any family would be proud to have as a member. And she isn’t. She WAS a c-list actress with some charitable instincts. She is NOT an Angelina Jolie, not by a long shot. She definitely has hustle, she worked hard to get exposure and she did, and got her prince too. So good for her, but her nationality, race and marital status are hardly reasons to admire her.
So I agree that being biracial or an actress or American or divorced are not things to admire or not. They just are. I think a lot of people like her because of these things. and that seems a rather thin basis upon which to admire anyone.
Now I do think she has worked harder in her life than all the young royals put together, but I doubt that will last. She won’t be allowed to outwork Kate and Wills.
@Jamie By he can do better, do you mean you? Asking for a friend.
@veronica Meghan is a great accomplished woman and if she is as terrible an actress as it’s claimed then it’s credit to her that she was able to get herself into a successful show. I wish people would stop diminishing her work.
Oh well, i guess haters gonna hate
A guy who is cute but not as fine as his brother was in his prime, balding, who has no job, lives on tax dollars can do better? Strip away the title and the tax funds he doesn’t have much to offer either. Just saying they’re pretty evenly matched it you want to talk about their bad qualities.
@Petty Riperton exactly he is jobless and living in Grandma’s house, just on a better budget than most.
This exactly!
I dunno, he did 200+ royal engagement last year. He also created the invictus games for injured and sick veterans. That’s a lot more public service than most of us do. Pretty sure that’s a full time job.
Oh dear, why are we attacking people for their looks? They can’t change anything about their looks!!! Why is prince Harry’s looks or baldness being used against him?
Yes Jamie, the package was addressed to Meghan. It contained racist content. Do you think that it is ok to send racist content to another person & something that looks like anthrax???
I have never said it was okay to address that to her. I merely asked if it was cause i didn’t feel like looking it up. And yes that is completely messed up for someone to do that and they should find out who sent it and arrest them.
You are gross.
for what? having an opinion?
@Jamie, how about ‘gross’ for being insensitive to the topic?
What Olenna said.
Meghan is an intelligent woman, with a good work ethic, who has always seemed to have been kind and doesn’t have any real”dirt” on her especially with the industry she was in. If I had a son, I would wish that for him, but others want something else..
I guess Harry should remain single since Mother Theresa is dead.
angelina jolie is alive
@Jamie-She’s too is a divorcee (twice now) so she wouldn’t live up to your own criteria.
I never said being a divorcee is a bad thing. I said she is one, which she is unless i’m mistaken. I said she was a c list actress divorcee, none of those are bad things and all of them are true things.
@ Jamie-It was you who said she’s “just a blah blah blah” and that doesn’t imply that it’s something to be desired. It implies that it’s not so lets not be disingenuous here…
How do you know most people approve of her because she’s biracial and American? That’s a sweeping generalization.
And he’s definitely marrying up as far as looks go.
I said “seems like most people” that implies that is the impression I am given. It doesn’t necessary mean that is true.
Kind of like if i just met a person and i tell my friends, She seems like a nice lady. That doesn’t mean she is a nice lady, she could be a mass murderer for all i know, but the impression i got was that she is pretty nice.
Jamie plz Harry shows his face for 30 minutes to an hour at those engagements that isn’t real jobs just photo ops to convince the public their tax dollars are well spent.
Sorry Jamie but as an Angelina fan I doubt she would want your golden boy.
Truth is both could do better, both have good and bad qualities but they chose each other. So deal with it.
I can’t even put on pants to go to whole foods 2 blocks away, going to 200+ different places internationally would be super exhausting even if you only show for 30 minutes. There’s all the car rides, plane rides, hotel bed. I rather work my 40 hour a week job than travel all over the world to be at a different event for 30 minutes almost everyday. Once or 10 times a year might be fun and I can treat it as a side vacation but every week? that’s exhausting.
Traveling is the least he can do for lifestyle he gets to enjoy the money he gets to spend, palace he gets to live in and the top notch security he has.
Deleted because already covered
I cant diminish what the Royals do coz i worked as a waitress and smiling at random strangers is exhausting af. I only worked 4-5 hr days and made decent money but boy i got sick of life and people jesus.
She has been approachable, charming, and shown a willingness to get started. She’s started her prep work with visits and interviews. I think Harry chose a good woman.
This is taking me down memory lane. LAK, do you remember the early kate days when I was fangirling over her and you came in and explained to me why I might be a bit mistaken on that Front? Ah, the good old days!
I’ve spent the past year defending her because of the clearly racist trolls who thought their hissy fits would make two people fall out of love. But I’m not going to withhold criticism if she ends up as lazy and spendthrift as her sister-in-law.
I still have a huge soft spot for Fergie, because her circumstances plus her poor self-image led to a spectacular down fall. Wife of the younger son is always going to be an enormous tabloid target. I hope Harry does a much better job of supporting and helping Meghan than Andrew did with Fergie.
As of now, I think Meghan’s doing a good job. She’s done multiple engagements, she’s already been proven to be working behind the scenes. All four have a meeting next week for the Foundation to set out ideas and work for the next few years.
I hope she turns out to be a useful, dedicated member of the Firm. It gives her a platform to continue work she had already started. In these positions they have the ability to do a lot of good; let’s see if these two take advantage of that.
Bluhare: Good times😊 the wierd thing is that i am open to changing my mind, and you did change my mind on many things, but in the main, Kate has proven true to the initial assessment that she was a workshy ornament. Hilary Mantel might have been making a larger intellectual point about royal wives, but her assessment of Kate’s royal life and persona were spot on. I’ll add that there isn’t much more behind the scenes.
With MM, the thing that i’ve found entertaining is the Harry fans asking the universe for a unicorn for him and the universe delivered and they promptly lost their minds.
I like that she’s following through on hitting the ground running though i am surprised by the PR mistakes she has made, but that is small change in a largely pleasant picture.
I am annoyed that any criticism of her is being lumped under the umbrella of racism because that stops legitimate discussion whilst also acknowledging that there is alot of racist commentary about her.
Still, it’s early days. We had a decade to look at Kate. I reckon MM deserves some time before we start being disappointed by her.
That’s what I love about you, LAK. You’re OK looking at things and working out your own opinion and modifying it as you go along. Those were fun days back then; I so enjoyed all the back and forth we had while modifying each other’s opinions!
And for what it’s worth, Hilary Mantel was so on the money I wish I’d have bet on her.
@LAK jumping in to say you’re one of the main reasons I bother with the royal posts. Your comments are consistently level-headed and supported by facts. I agree with what you said here. The discussion on Meghan needs to change if it’s going to last and be constructive. Right now it’s a bit frustrating to read comments about her on any site. And it is way to early to call how she’ll be as a royal. I’m surprised when people try.
As for Kate, if she continues as she’s been going for the last few weeks old opinions about her may need to be reevaluated too. Things might be getting interesting around here.
I think she is a great asset to the Royal Family. She is charming and knows how to work.
Take note W&K.
Yeah she is and i think she’s doing well so far.I don’t mind criticisms and don’t think every criticisms is about race however,it’s too early.She should be given time to get accustomed to everything.i cant imagine how difficult it is especially when she isn’t just marrying a normal British guy but one from British society. People gave and are still giving a lot more leeway to Kate even though Kate is British yet the American is the one that is going through a lot of shit,the one that isn’t allowed to make a mistake,the one everything she does is “too much” or the one people are expecting to be perfect for the go and have placed a lot of expectations on her.Like tone it down until she’s actually a royal and settled
Not a sugar, do you think there is any chance in the world that Meghan will be allowed to outwork Kate? And Harry is hardly a ball of fire, himself. Will she be allowed to outwork him? All 130 engagments he did last year?
I don’t know, I’m asking seriously. I don’t think Meghan will be allowed to do more than Kate, Wills or Harry.
Harry did 209 last year not 130.
Meghan will already outwork Kate Middleton if she shows up engaged, prepared, and giving good speeches. Her professionalism alone can be seen as a sign of “outworking” Kate. Anne outworks Charles on paper in number of engagements (not behind the scenes with extra projects, but in number of engagements), and she’s soon to be 13th in the line of succession.
I expect her to take on significant work with Sentebale and Invictus, as well as to possible start her own outside charity. Queen Silvia of Sweden did it, which Princess Madeleine is now taking over.
I have stopped commenting on Meghan stories because whenever I said something I have been personally attacked for being jealous, racist, etc and I really don’t have time for it. Never mind that the family is the (unelected) royal family of my country and so I have a stake in them and for me they are not mere celebrities to gush about but people I support with my tax dollars and whose extreme privileges I help sustain.
But I still enjoy reading the threads, especially for the comments of the likes of LAK and Bluhare.
I am looking forward to a day when we can all be blind to race, but I don’t think I will live long enough to see it. I still have hope though, seeing the kids today, their activism, their tolerance, things will get better.
Thank you PiMo! That’s nice to hear. LAK is sort of a legend. I follow her around. 🙂
Tax dollars??
After reading this entire thread of comments and replies you come off as incredibly passive agressive and not very good at hiding it. And your being non-white doesn’t magically make your comments innocuous or innocent. You made obvious digs about Meghan’s divorce, her looks and her career and then try to frame in it the guise of “I’m just saying”. Harry could do better? Everyone can find someone better hun. Meghan is by any standards – and accomplished woman. ESPECIALLY for a WOC in acting. And since you felt the need to bring up that you’re not white- neither am I. I’m a black woman. And I call BS on your comments.
i have never tried hiding it. I’m annoyed that people on this thread can’t allow someone to have their own opinions. She is an actress and as such, she is judged on how good of an actress she is. I don’t think she is a good actress, so i don’t deem her good enough for harry who i respect for creating the invictus games. Same as I judge my doctor on how good of a doctor she. I wouldn’t instantly love my doctor just because she’s asian, i love her cause she is a caring and skillful doctor.
Anyways, you guys should calm down. This is all my opinion, which i feel like i’m entitled to. You can love her and i can not love her. None of what we say will affect anything. I’m not sitting here cursing their marriage. I hope they have a happy and long marriage as i do for all people getting married.
“She is an actress and as such, she is judged on how good of an actress she is. I don’t think she is a good actress, so i don’t deem her good enough for harry ..” You act like they’re doing a movie together and she’s not a good enough actress for the role. This is why people are commenting under your original comment and responses. You’re entitled to your opinion, but it makes no sense! All that matters at the end of the day is Meghan being a good partner and spouse to Harry and eventually being being a good mother. Also being able to do her job effectively. Her acting skills have nothing to do with that.
@Val and Melly
Sadly, not everyone who comments here has the intellectual capacity and appropriate level of awareness to discuss some of the more grievous social ills like colorism, racism or bigotry. In this case, shallowness and envy have displaced any intelligent thought the OP might have dredged up to at least stay on topic or stop backpeddling while digging a bigger and bigger hole full of nonsense.
I agree, being a so-so actress doesn’t mean she can’t be a good partner to Harry. In fact, in some ways I think it will be helpful as she knows how to act how she doesn’t feel for those off days.
But I really think we should allow people their opinions. I don’t agree with Jaime either, but I’m not going to say she lacks intellectual capacity or awareness. I know you didn’t mention her by name, but she’s the main person commenting here. And she’s sticking around to explain herself which is more than a lot do.
Yes, we are all entitled to our opinions and the level at which others interpret them is usually subjective.
Yes, it is, Olenna. I agree. But we don’t have to be demeaning do we?
So royal wives are required to be physically chaste, supremely beautiful, and the top of the heap in a profession of your choosing?
Letizia was divorced. Maxima has a questionable father, so questionable he wasn’t allowed at the wedding. Even uber Catholic Mathilde lived with her boyfriend for three years before she started dating Philippe. None of them are physically stunners. So all of these royal men “could have done better”?
Are all of these woman also not good enough? Because really, they’re three of the best-performing, most professional royal spouses out there.
Also, Mette-Marit was a single mother of one when she hooked up with Håkon. Sophia posed naked and participated in a seedy reality show. Andrew was allegedly involved in a huge scandal also involving sex. The King of Sweden was involved in a sex scandal too. The Duchess of Cambridge flashed numerous times while on state occasions on behalf of TQ. And now some English-speaking commentators have a problem with Meghan who’s lived her life and did honest work, and eventually got engaged to Harry. She’s the best so far among the whole BRF lot except for TQ. SMH.
Soulspa, you took some of my points. 🙂
I will add…
The Countess of Wessex had a topless photo that was sold to the press before her wedding… tapes leaked after the wedding ‘shared’ her opinions of her ‘new family members’ & politicians (& a wife of a politician) …
I personally think SHE could have done better. Married someone richer and hotter from a less bizarre family with less pressure to perform a certain role for the public. But alas, the heart wants what it wants.
Yes, she traded down She’s an independent, self reliant women. She made her own way, career, fortune and she’s tossing it away for an uneducated, unemployed man who use to snort alcohol up his nose.
Considering that many of the commenters on here have admitted to being sceptical of Meghan at first, but only became fans after reading the racist comments on the DM, I do somehow understand why Jamie might think part of whatever she thinks that she knows.
@Anna “but only became fans after reading the racist comments on the DM” had to go through and reread all the comments in this thread. Can you please direct me to these commentators that led you to this conclusion?
@Jamie seems like you are in denial……Meghan is highly accomplished. She would have been a successful woman even without the acting.
You either haven’t read much about her or more likely you are not happy about the fact that many black and mixed raced people are pleased to see that Harry as a member of the RF has broken down some social barriers.
“She wasn’t specifically attacked over her race even though the police said she was specifically attacked for her race. So Harry can do better & she sucks as an actress”
Did I summarize right?
These people are vile (and it’s apparently been confirmed the letter sent to them had a racist message)
But now I’m excited for this – Harry and Meghan and William and Kate are taking part in a royal foundation forum about some of their charities and it seems like all four will speak
https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/966664681489346560
So many people are racists, it’s scary to live in such a world and Daily Mail readers are so racists, sexists and misogynistic
I hope the authorities will find the culprit(s). Even if the substance wasn’t toxic, the investigation will take a lot of public resources.
Re: vile media i.e. DF – I remember a discussion here on this topic some time ago and I can’t understand the reasons for their agenda against the BRF. Some comments are moderated (in general), other not. Just for the traffic revenue? Was it the same during Diana’s royal and post-royal life?
White power was also sent to the Houses of Parliment around about the same time so it’s not like it was just sent to her. Police are still trying to figure out if the two incidents are linked.
Whatever, white powder shouldn’t be sent to no one. The fact that some was sent to other people does not make Meghan’s (the letter contained racist words) any less significant…
I’m not saying it’s any less significant what I’m saying is she isn’t the only one being targeted.
Lincoln, J.F.K, MLK were all murdered by white men. Which one was killed because of his colour??? Ummmm🤔
You’re missing the point. Articles like this make it seem like only Meghan was targeted and the other incident is less significant because it doesn’t involve a high profile soon-to-be royal person. The reality is both incidents are terrible because it’s putting the lives of the people opening the letters at risk.
whatever, you’re dancing around the point that it was sent to Meghan with a racist message. It wasn’t sent to the Queen, Prince Charles, or anyone else as a general threat against an institution. It was sent to Meghan.
Yes, Whatever, I think both occurances are horrible & wrong. However, this article & blog were talking about Meghan. Her letter contained a white substance & a racist message. Wrong is wrong…of course Meghan isn’t the only person who is being ‘targeted’ but this thread is discussing her. Your comment was dismissive …
I think because both incidences happened so close together the other one should have been briefly mentioned for greater context, especially if it turns out that both incidences are linked and the packages were sent by the same person/group. Anthrax scares involving two high profile institutions are always going to get in the news – maybe that is what the perpetrator(s) wanted? and now we know that the package sent to the Houses of Parliament was addressed to a female Member of Parliament one has to wonder if there is a sinister reason why two females were targeted.
I think you have a point, whatever.
ETA: Met Police have confirmed they’re investigating it as a hate crime, so I assume that means they’re not thinking there’s linkage.
@bluhare: Euronews (youtube channel probably available outside Europe too, I don’t now about geo restrictions) reported something on counter-terrorism measures in relation to the incident affecting Meghan.
Yes, @Whatever the tone of your comment is very dismissive, just like many comments on Dm, and the people saying, ” Well its not like she has to open her own letters”.
I think the point that it could have been connected to the Parliament mailing was a good one. But it now it’s been shown to be a hate crime. I don’t think I can get Euronews SoulSPA, but I have read some more today, and it’s really upsetting that one woman who’s trying to do her best (I think! It looks that way to me.) is subject to this.
lol..smh. Original recipe British dog whistling is undefeated. I still don’t understand this union on her end.
White powder was also sent to Lara Trump and one of Obama’s buildings, something like that as well. Same nut I think.
Did anyone ask Princess Michael of Kent?
I just spit out my coffee lol!!
Congratulations to Kate on today’s winning of the internet!
Lol!!
Bwahahaha!!!
She must be in the dog house by now.
One of the most annoying aspect of white supremacy despite the racism is the feign innocence, the “Are you sure it’s about race? Every royal has been treated like that by the press? Aren’t you a little bit sensitive?”, etc. Racism and gaslighting are the main ingredients of white supremacy.
THIS ^^ The gaslighting and constant feigning of innocent naïveté is ridiculous.
Louder, please, for the people in that back!
Slow clap.
Kate, I applaud you…👏👏👏
Girl yes! Thank you! It’s upsetting seeing comments like that.
Exactly.
Thank you! 100% right.
Some of these comments reminded me of the “all crimes are hate crimes” comments. Ugh.
Thank you!
I call these people white supremacy’s little helpers.
Exactly. Thank you for saying it. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Oh Kaiser, you sweet summer child, stay off of tumblr.
For every sane, normal person who likes Meghan there are two crazies that loathe her (or maybe one crazy with two accounts) it is scary how much some people hate her for stealing THEIR ginger prince and being blackety black black black but that’s not why they hate her!!, they’ll scream, they hate her because she’s holding him hostage! Blink twice, Harry, blink twice.
*in Kat Williams’ voice* Crispety crunchy black!
All of this hate is exhausting. Why can’t everyone just be happy for two people in love?
This is ugly and sad. I truly don’t understand racist people. I bet they hate she is a BLACK* AMERICAN ACTRESS.
*I know she is biracial but racist people will only consider her black.
Not surprising the amount of hate directed at her is crazy. Look at the dailymail and places like royal dish and Tumblr. Crazies all over place. If meghan was a blonde, white woman with uk connections some people wouldn’t be losing their sh!t. But since she’s biracial and American she’s branded a golddigger, social climber etc.
It’s too bad this stuff happens, but not surprising in the age of Trump.
The only thing i don’t like about Megan…when she wears her hair up–the strings hanging down ala Michael Jackson.
You may not realise it but we are discussing a hate crime and you are talking about disliking the strands of her hair.
Right. I’m still trying to wrap my head around people saying Harry could do better simply because she isn’t that great of an actress. As if men look at how good women are at their jobs when deciding who to marry. I cannot.
If we’re applying that logic, William could have done better because Kate didn’t even have a job. But I suppose she excelled at not having a job and not doing much for 10 years, since she aced that, I guess she’s good enough for William.
What this is, is nitpicking. Truth be told Harry and Meghan actually seem pretty evenly matched. Both seem to enjoy philanthropy, service, and volunteer work. They apparently ran in similar circles and had at least a few mutual friends or acquaintances.
I think both found exactly what they were looking for so it’s very insulting to carry on with the he / she could do better. Who we end up with is a choice, and they chose each other just like William and Kate chose each other. Time to move on.
I think he’s lucky to get her, she’s beautiful and seems like a nice person.
I’m guessing every member of the RF has received threats at some time or another. Especially the queen. MM might want to rethink what she’s getting herself into. I don’t think anyone really cares about her race or lack of acting ability. It’s more a feeling of the public being sold a cheap bill of goods and they aren’t buying it. She doesn’t come off well. Personally I don’t really care but I don’t see her as a great humanitarian or philanthropist. I haven’t seen where she’s earned that reputation. It’s silly.
What I don’t understand @Claire, why does the public feel they’ve been sold anything? Its not the public that Meghan is marrying, its Harry! Its nobody’s business who Harry chooses for a wife but actually, the public constantly and uninvited, makes conscious choices to insinuate themselves in Harry’s business!! So who is selling anyone what cheap bill of goods? I don’t think Harry is trying to, or even remotely interested in, selling anyone anything!! I think Harry would gladly marry the woman of his choice (whomever that might be) and would be thrilled if people didn’t act like “oh they know Harry personally and therefore have to have a say in his business”!!
Perhaps the public feel entitled because they feel they pay for the RF and they should have a say? The RF represents the people? I don’t know really. Just guessing.
@Claire and @Veronica, I hear you. I still don’t get why the public should feel entitled!! And I certainly don’t get why Meghan (or any woman) should be referred to as “cheap bill of goods”, like who are we to put any worth on someone’s person? And again, the argument that the public sustains the BRF is still lost to me, but thats a different argument altogether!! However, I don’t get the attacks (by the public or by anyone) on Meghan about her work ethic, her race, her career, her philanthropy, I just don’t get how strangers that don’t know any of these people get the nerve to assume that because they contribute 32p worth of taxes annually the royals, now they can have a say in who Harry marries or doesn’t!! I just don’t get it. Why is Meghan called “cheap bill of goods”, “Z list actress”, “not pretty by any standards” , “not humanitarian”, etc? This is what I need explained please!!!
Masamf: we contribute more than 32p in taxes. The royal PR works hard to maintain the fiction that the sum given to the royals is less than a pound whilst gaslighting that same public into looking the other way because tourism.
Eg The same week of the Grenfell tower fire that saw a lack of govt funds to help the victims was the same week that the govt miraculously found £360M to refurbish Buckingham Palace. And no mention of the annual grant given to HM since 1952 to maintain / repair / refurbish Buckingham Palace or mention that at some point govt created a separate charity to maintain the buildings without rescinding the grant to the royals. That charity is funded from public donations and entrance fees to the Palaces. So What happened to the money HM has been receiving all these years? We got a peak in 2013 – 2014 when it transpired via public accounts that the £6M earmarked in those years for Buckingham Palace had been diverted to WK’s refurbishment of their homes.
HM and Charles have gone to great lengths to keep their financial affairs hidden, but from the publicly available estimates of funding, the family is currently at £340M annually which is the exact same whole in the NHS budget if we are to believe the UKIP-ers.
And that’s the tip of the iceberg regarding taxpayers subsiding the royals.
The system is not MM’s fault, but she’s added discontent to the ongoing argument regarding the financing. That is a conversation that would be ongoing whomever Harry married.
@Lak, I’m going by whats been published, so 32p it is. Now anyone can argue as to how much the public contributes, it doesn’t matter either way because, at the end of the day, the people that claim to contribute more than 32p/annually do not have any verifiable data to support their claims; however as i said, what the public contributes is not my argument right now. I just can’t wrap my head around the hate for Meghan because she is the one Harry chose (and Harry the one she chose) among many out there. Its hard to believe that whomever Harry married would still get the same abuse and vitriol because there have been many here (and on other sites) that have expressed their discontent and disgust about Harry marrying Meghan who is a) a “Z-list actress”, b) “an American”, c) a person who will taint the BRF blood, d) “not philanthropic” enough to the “public’s” standards, E) an attention seeker and a social climber etc (reference to Claire’s posts above). Harry has dated quite a few girls that again people have expressed approval of and wished Harry would come to his senses and drop Meghan and hook back up with Chelsy Davey or with Cressida Bonas. That’s where my confusion is, why is Chelsy and Cressida considered better that Meghan?
ETA, LAK, I like your posts, they remind me of a cyber friend on another site that posted very informative posts that I enjoyed to read quite a lot.
Masamf: saying that number is not verifiable shows how much you do not pay attention to details of the information.
The 32p (or whatever that sum is) is very glaringly miscalculated. They arrive at this figure by dividing the total fund by the total population of the UK.
Taking the entire population of the UK is incorrect because that includes babies, toddlers, children, the sick, the dying, the mentally unwell, the physically unwell, the unable to work, pensioners etc. Ie people who for various reasons can’t pay tax and or people who for various reasons avoid paying tax.
If you limit denominator to taxpayers because they are the ones contributing to the fund, the figure rises to £8 -£10 per person. And yes, the treasury releases figures on the %population that are taxpayers.
Further, the £340M i have mentioned is easy to detect because there are public enquiries via parliamentary committees. Despite best efforts of HM and Charles, the sums are mentioned, if not discussed, in different govt depts’ budgets which are public. However, the general public doesn’t pay attention to these public enquiries especially after being gaslighted very effectively that the only money they receive is from that one very publicly highlighted fund and anyway tourism is generated even though every measure of this shows the opposite. The parliament website publishes these enquiries.
The republican organisation republic.org.uk keeps track of the many funding streams that are discussed at the public enquiries, and if they had the power of the establishment and were able to desseminate their findings as publicly as the establishment trumpets that one (deliberately miscalculated) fund, there would be riots in the streets because people would realise that shortfalls or cuts in public budgets are partly because they are funding the royals and it’s not limited to the one gaslighting fund.
As to your question about Harry’s previous girlfriends, yes they were abused. Chelsy was nicknamed Miss Piggy and abused throughout her relationship with Harry. Cressida was abused less. Given the level of abuse of Chelsy, i’m frequently amused by the turnaround once they broke up and suddenly she’s referred to as beloved and with fond nostalgia.
It is surprising that engagement hasn’t stopped MM abuse because that usually stops it, but as someone said upthread, she’s the first black person that has joined the family that people are aware of, and that has released the cracken of racist abuse.
+1 MASAMF. Low blow by Claire to call her a cheap bill of goods.
Claire
Referring to her as a cheap bill of goods means you really do care. But why? What is their relationship doing to affect you? I’ll wait…
@Claire
You sound passive-aggressive towards Meghan eventhough you claim not to care about her.
Why the need to attack her humanitarian work? Unless you are a better humanitarian you are in no position to judge someone for making a difference.
Also, you are dismissing the racist attacks against her by claiming “I don’t think anyone really cares about her race or lack of acting ability”, excuse me? WHAT? The attacks on her are mostly because she is bi-racial!
“She doesn’t come off well”
By whom? People like you or the crazy white supremacists who live and breath hatred?
NEWSFLASH: The world is much more than the US and UK, there are other continents on this earth with LOTS of people of color. And trust, we are paying attention and no one can fool us.
Meghan is going through what many POC go through on daily when dealing with crazy racist people, she knows exactly what she got herself into. She will do well. Barack and Michelle showed us how to deal with racism. They did it with such a grace, I’m sure Meghan will do,too.
Back off! Not all negative comments towards her are about race. Such a lazy excuse!! Not everyone gets off on her, for various reasons. Does it really matter?
And no! I don’t consider her a great humanitarian or philanthropist. That gets thrown around far too much. She’s done some but not a lot. Sounds like you don’t like white people. By the way did I say I was white and from the US?
I don’t understand why you say the public feels “they have been sold a cheap bill of goods..”
Meghan isn’t a philanthropist. I really don’t know how that narrative was created.
And she’s not a glamorous actress, Kate is not the keen duchess. Its KP p.r.
It was a narrative created long before she met prince harry but her…wait for it….doing humanitarian work.
@Claire…you really sound like the people who keep hoping that there is still time for Harry to dump her, well I have got news for you a mixed race woman IS going to join the RF.
White powder has now been sent to several prominent people around the world, including White House people. So obviously something bigger is going on here.
It’s just a reminder to the rich people that the poor are fed up with their BS.
How can you have so much money and yet people are sleeping in the cold, on the streets? Ask the homeless how they got homeless and solve their problems.
So Cal, I think sending anthrax to prince Harry and Meghan, people who can’t change any homelessness situation any more than prince William can is useless. Any terrorism committed just “to remind the rich that the poor are fed up” is just not acceptable. Contact May in some way or form (please no terrorist attacks on anyone), she is the PM and can therefore “fix” this problem.
A racially motivated attack was about the homeless? That’s your spin? K…