A member of the royal household resigns over racist comments,
as Will and Kate attempt to repair The Firm's image in the U.S. Here's what went down.
Lady Susan Hussey, Prince William's godmother who served as Queen Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting
for more than 60 years, resigned from her honorary role as a lady of the royal household after making
racist comments to Ngozi Fulani, CEO and founder of the women's anti-violence charity Sistah Space.
"I didn't expect to be targeted."
The two met during a charity event at Buckingham Palace hosted by the Queen Consort. Fulani posted
a transcript of their conversation on Twitter on November 30th, writing,
Per the transcript, the 83-year-old Hussey asked Fulani, a British national,
what part of Africa she was from, and refused answers Fulani gave to the contrary.
"If I say to you that I'm born here and I'm British, how many times do I have to say that?"
Fulani told the Independent,
"The first thing she did, as well, is to take my hair and
move it out of the way. That's the first thing. No hello, no nothing."
According to the Guardian, Buckingham Palace released a statement on the matter, which read:
The statement closed by announcing Hussey's resignation, without naming her:
"I didn't expect to be questioned about my heritage, my nationality, or anything."
Many Twitter users were quick to support Fulani and draw connections to claims
Meghan Markle had made of racism in both Buckingham Palace and the British media,
a substantial reason she and Prince Harry resigned from their royal duties. Dr.
Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, lawyer and women's rights activist, posted,
Referring to statements Piers Morgan has made denying Markle's claims of
racism in the palace, one Twitter user posted:
On December 6th, the Sussexes will receive the "Ripple of Hope Award" from the Robert
F. Kennedy Foundation for their courage in standing up to structural racism — an
honor Morgan called "disgusting" on "Fox and Friends." Meanwhile, Ngozi Fulani,
in an interview with the Independent, said the Lady Hussey incident is, quote,
"bigger than one individual. It's institutional racism."
Others who attended the event and witnessed the conversation first hand recalled their
reactions. Mandu Reid, the leader of the Women's Equality Party, said the
questions asked of Fulani were "offensive, racist, and unwelcoming," per the BBC.
And Nazir Afzal, former chief of the Criminal Prosecution Service,
wrote on Twitter that Lady Susan Hussey had also approached him and asked his heritage,
though she, quote, "seemed to accept" his answer.
In an interview on Times Radio, Fulani spoke about the incident further,
saying she does not want Hussey to be the focus of the conversation. Fulani said,
Regarding the encounter, a spokesperson for Prince William, said that "racism has
no place in our society" and that "the comments were unacceptable,
and it is right that the individual has stepped aside," per the BBC.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are in Boston for The Earthshot Prize Awards
ceremony that will take place December 2. It has been speculated that William
and Catherine might use their US trip to repair the royal image, but,
now, the BBC reports that the Lady Hussey incident has "overshadowed" their visit.