Meghan Markle doesn't appear to be the only person to have been a victim of prejudice
within the palace. Not only did the Duchess of Sussex receive quite a bit of negative
press once her relationship with Prince Harry went public, but it only seemed to increase
once the two were married. Meghan also felt a disconnect within the royal family and detailed
some of her experiences living under the monarchy's rule during her interview with Oprah Winfrey.
One of the most notable moments of the interview was when the couple accused an unnamed member
of the royal family of raising questions about the skin tone of the Sussexes' future children.
"And also, concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born."
Meghan went on to explain,
"That was relayed to me from Harry. Those were conversations that family had with him."
Meghan also told Oprah that she wouldn't reveal the name of the royal family member responsible
for the comments. Friend of Markle, royal expert and co-author of "Finding Freedom"
Omid Scobie, personally noticed something similar during an interaction he had with
the royal family, and he spoke out about these experiences in an interview with British show
"This Morning." During the interview, the royal editor was asked about Meghan and Harry's
claim that racism lives within the palace walls, and he explained,
"We knew they had contended with issues surrounding race within the institution."
"I myself have experienced some prejudice from one or two royal aides in the past."
Discussing the claims of racism within the palace, Scobie continued,
"And so it didn't surprise me, but I think for it to mention a family member, that was
kind of the moment that even myself, my jaw was on the floor – just like Oprah, it was
the same reaction."
Scobie went on to explain his own experience, saying,
"I'm mixed race, there aren't many mixed race royal correspondents out there [...] I would
not name that person. Someone very senior within the palace who found it really peculiar
that I spoke as well as I do, and that was pretty much how they said it to me."
"That was a very loaded comment."
And it would seem that Scobie is not alone in his experiences, as in June, the royal
family found themselves the subject of more racism claims, this time stemming from years
past. As reported by The Guardian, rediscovered royal documents found in the National Archives
revealed that many people of color were banned from working in the royal household up until
the late 1960s, with the queen's courtiers allegedly being responsible for the ban. This
finally changed when, per The Guardian,
"In the 1960s government ministers sought to introduce laws that would make it illegal
to refuse to employ an individual on the grounds of their race or ethnicity."
The royal family has been rocked by racism claims that date back decades, but as Insider
points out, the majority of these issues have not been acknowledged by the palace. In fact,
royal expert Kristen Meinzer told Insider,
"[The monarchy] was instrumental in supporting the slave trade. [...] The Church of England,
which the Queen is the head of, actively perpetrated slavery and profited from it. It's not enough
for the son of the monarch to apologize. The monarch should."
Despite what has transpired in recent months, the palace has remained fairly tight-lipped
when it comes to the claims of racism and prejudice brought against the royal family.
Queen Elizabeth did release a statement following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's racism claims
made during their interview with Oprah Winfrey, however, and promised that these issues would
be handled in private. The statement from Buckingham Palace explained,
"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few
years have been for Harry and Meghan. The issues raised, particularly that of race,
are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will
be addressed by the family privately."
In addition, reporters caught up with Prince William just days after the interview aired,
and asked him about the claims made by Harry and Meghan. When a reporter asked William
if the royal family was a "racist family," William responded, per BBC News,
"We're very much not a racist family."
No other family member has spoken out about any of the other claims, including the ones
made by Omid Scobie.
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