Just call me Harry. (Everything Harry & Meghan)

[Parsley Sage]

The Queen's Equerry is from Ghana

Nana Kofi Twumasi-Ankrah - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

H&M had a number of female staff.

Meghan Markle loses a NINTH member of staff as top aide quits

Natalie Campbell - who helped Meghan on her Together cookbook after they met at a kitchen supporting those affected by the Grenfell fire in west London - has quit after five months in the job.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[MacMadame]

I assume she would have had a personal assistant. Don’t most actors/actresses have those?

The bigger ones often do. I had kind of assumed she had one as well. I must have left it off my list.

The way I look at it is, if someone has problems with staff everywhere they go, then the problem is them. If someone has problems with staff only in one situation, then it's something about that situation, which could include the other people.

Of course there's racism in the UK, as British FSUers can no doubt attest. This does not mean that it is the same as US-style racism, or that it was prevalent among royal staff members.

I think it's pretty clear that racism runs rampant among the BRF at least among the older generations. There have been numerous reports that hint at that or even confirm it. Therefore, I'd be surprised if none of their support staff held similar opinions. (And, again, there have been reports indicating they do.)

As was discussed earlier in the thread, H&M would have signed a release before doing the interview. They probably have little, if any, control over when the interview airs.

Or even what is in it. Of course, they know what they were asked and what they said. But not how it was edited or what other supplemental material was included.

 

[canbelto]

Philip is one of the more overt racists of the BRF:

The priceless racism of the Duke of Edinburgh

Prince Philip has done the world an extraordinary service by exposing the racist hypocrisy of “Western civilisation”.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[overedge]

It's not just Prince Philip.

Emma Weymouth talks fashion, fame and family feuds

She’s the billionaire’s daughter who will one day become Britain’s first black marchioness. But life hasn’t always been easy for Emma Weymouth. She talks to Charlotte Edwardes about racism, surviving family feuds and sleeping with the lions at Longleat

www.standard.co.uk

 

[MsZem]

I think it's pretty clear that racism runs rampant among the BRF at least among the older generations. There have been numerous reports that hint at that or even confirm it. Therefore, I'd be surprised if none of their support staff held similar opinions. (And, again, there have been reports indicating they do.)

I did use "prevalent" for a reason. I'm sure there were, and are, prejudiced people working for the BRF. I would be surprised if none of them held any racist views, or acted in racist ways - at the very least, I would expect microagressions, which often have more to do with ignorance than outright bigotry. This does not mean that there was widespread racism.

canbelto was making a very specific allegation which I do not wish to repeat even with asterisks. I've already written that I suspect there were many reasons why things did not go well for the Sussexes, some to do with them and some not.

 

[Judy]

The bigger ones often do. I had kind of assumed she had one as well. I must have left it off my list.

The way I look at it is, if someone has problems with staff everywhere they go, then the problem is them. If someone has problems with staff only in one situation, then it's something about that situation, which could include the other people.


I think it's pretty clear that racism runs rampant among the BRF at least among the older generations. There have been numerous reports that hint at that or even confirm it. Therefore, I'd be surprised if none of their support staff held similar opinions. (And, again, there have been reports indicating they do.)


Or even what is in it. Of course, they know what they were asked and what they said. But not how it was edited or what other supplemental material was included.

Most if not all of her coworkers were at the wedding. i doubt she had an assistant - an agent yes. obviously I am not a hollywood star but this was filming in Toronto. An agent I think handles most stuff but yah we aren’t exactly paparazzi material here. Americans usually choose Canada because it’s cheaper to film over here (Cdn $ vs American) and we can certainly accommodate locations etc.

 

[becca]

But the point is coworkers aren’t assistants lots of people are nice to people who are their bosses and direct coworkers but not necessarily to people who work below them. There was a lot
of turnover with the Suzzex’s staff.

Did she have a history of personal staff before this?

Are the people who let’s say were cleaning her house saying she is the nicest person ever?

 

[canbelto]

I did use "prevalent" for a reason. I'm sure there were, and are, prejudiced people working for the BRF. I would be surprised if none of them held any racist views, or acted in racist ways - at the very least, I would expect microagressions, which often have more to do with ignorance than outright bigotry. This does not mean that there was widespread racism.

canbelto was making a very specific allegation which I do not wish to repeat even with asterisks. I've already written that I suspect there were many reasons why things did not go well for the Sussexes, some to do with them and some not.

If you think racism is prevalent in the BRF why wouldn't that color the way they viewed orders from Meghan? I'm really curious. Why wouldn't they view Meghan as an "uppity n___r"?

 

[MsZem]

If you think racism is prevalent in the BRF why wouldn't that color the way they viewed orders from Meghan?

This was the relevant part of my previous post:

Of course there's racism in the UK, as British FSUers can no doubt attest. This does not mean that it is the same as US-style racism, or that it was prevalent among royal staff members.

 

[Judy]

But the point is coworkers aren’t assistants lots of people are nice to people who are their bosses and direct coworkers but not necessarily to people who work below them. There was a lot
of turnover with the Suzzex’s staff.

Did she have a history of personal staff before this?

No absolutely not. It was her first big part.

 

[becca]

No absolutely not. It was her first big part.

Exactly. Here is my thing to I think we can all have our moments. Where we are not our nicest.

 

[Judy]

Exactly. Here is my thing to I think we can all have our moments. Where we are not our nicest.

Everyone has not great moments. But we don’t have facts from her job there either. Basing opinions on media/social media is not all fact at all. The british media ... I mean they took photos of Diana dying in that horrific car crash. There were dead bodies in that car.

 

[starrynight]

Well this big interview with Oprah is hardly an uplifting event. It’s just unleashed full scale attack squads all over the media.

Im just about sick of people injecting negativity into this world. And if all this negativity is been generated via a couple of rich people settling the grievances of the 0.001% and ‘enduring’ a life of fantastic wealth and privilege, then spare me.

 

[starrynight]

Why wouldn't they view Meghan as an "uppity n___r"?

I think we should keep terrible racial slurs out of this. I still haven’t really wrapped my head around how people can’t look past her race and see her as a person.

 

[overedge]

But the point is coworkers aren’t assistants lots of people are nice to people who are their bosses and direct coworkers but not necessarily to people who work below them. There was a lot
of turnover with the Suzzex’s staff.

Did she have a history of personal staff before this?

Are the people who let’s say were cleaning her house saying she is the nicest person ever?

Anyone who is cleaning her house now, and who cleaned her house in the past, is going to lose their job, and probably a lot of chances at future employment, if they speak out.

 

[puglover]

Sadly, I thought the lessons we had all learned as we now live in 2021 is that allegations of inappropriate behaviour of any kind should be taken seriously. Because some people have had positive interactions with another - it does not mean that is how they behave in all cases. All we can really speak to is our own experience and we should not discount another's complaints, especially without all the facts.

As far as racism in the BRF, would Harry not have been aware of it? In the beginning, he was criticized by the Markle family for claiming she now had the love and support of his family somehow implying it had been missing in her life - or words to that affect. I can't find the quote right now with all the other stuff. Harry has seemed totally gobsmacked by the racism and hatred directed at Meghan. I still go back to Prince Charles walking Meghan down the aisle and Bishop Michael Curry giving his long and powerful address quoting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Are we to believe the BRF had no say in the wedding? Wasn't an exception even made to include Meghan in the family Christmas celebration at Sandringham - a first for that family?

 

[overedge]

Harry and his brother thought it was OK to go to a "natives and colonials" fancy dress party.
(and yes I know they apologized later on)

The party that caused a king-size hangover

How Nazi gear, a popular society choice, put Harry in the doghouse.

www.theguardian.com

The BRF and the aristocracy probably know that racism is not OK, but they don't seem to be very good at identifying it within their own world.

 

[Judy]

Well this big interview with Oprah is hardly an uplifting event. It’s just unleashed full scale attack squads all over the media.

Im just about sick of people injecting negativity into this world. And if all this negativity is been generated via a couple of rich people settling the grievances of the 0.001% and ‘enduring’ a life of fantastic wealth and privilege, then spare me.

I avoid the nastiness of social media. It just isn’t healthy, I am not just talking about H&M at all. It’s freaking everywhere. In every city and country. Yeah no I don’t allow it into my life. Everyone is having a tough time. Hard to believe it’s been basically a year since Covid it feels much, much longer .

 

[canbelto]

I think we should keep terrible racial slurs out of this. I still haven’t really wrapped my head around how people can’t look past her race and see her as a person.

In the U.S. jogging while black can be deadly. Going into a Starbucks while black can get you arrested. Many people post all sorts of racist slurs on their social media accounts and are shocked when those comments are reported. I can't tell you how many "Michelle Obama is a chimp" memes I saw. So it's a little naive of you to think that no one looked at Meghan and thought that she was an "uppity n__r." That's just a fact of life. Certainly Kensington Royal's IG account goes into overdrive deleting racist comments every post.

 

[AxelAnnie]

I think we should keep terrible racial slurs out of this. I still haven’t really wrapped my head around how people can’t look past her race and see her as a person.

I just have to mention that I didn't even know she was bi-racial until someone brought it up. And there is no reason for racial slurs everywhere.

 

[overedge]

I just have to mention that I didn't even know she was bi-racial until someone brought it up. And there is no reason for racial slurs everywhere.

You might not know. It might be the first thing that other people see.

 

[canbelto]

You might not know. It might be the first thing that other people see.

On one fashion blog the blog owner had to shut down endless complaints that her hair looked "kinky" and thus "not royal."

 

[overedge]

On one fashion blog the blog owner had to shut down endless complaints that her hair looked "kinky" and thus "not royal."

And I bet there was not a word about some of the Princess Royal's terrible hair dye jobs.

 

[canbelto]

And I bet there was not a word about some of the Princess Royal's terrible hair dye jobs.

This is the thing. Royal watchers tend to attract an extremely conservative, traditional group. To this day some royal watchers are upset that Kate wears jeans.

 

[becca]

I have no doubt racism exists and there has been some racism towards Meghan.

But every accusations isnt automatically due to racism.

And what I don’t like is how she treats family. Her father did a lot for paid for first wedding paid for fancy schools paid Should he have had paparazzi take photos of himself and then also talked in frustration maybe not.
But how is her giving this interview really any different.

We will have to see what interview says but if she doesn’t want her family speaking to media about her why does she think it’s cool for her to do the sam to the royal family. The apple doesn’t far fall from the tree.

 

[taf2002]

For those saying that H&M doing the Oprah interview is airing family dirty laundry, why aren't you saying the same about The Firm announcing that they are looking into Meghan's alleged bullying? Isn't that airing dirty laundry? Esp since her "crimes" are 2 yrs old. They could have quietly investigated without making it public.

BTW @canbelto, please quit using the term "uppity n****". We get it but it's very offensive.

 

[becca]

For those saying that H&M doing the Oprah interview is airing family dirty laundry, why aren't you saying the same about The Firm announcing that they are looking into Meghan's alleged bullying? Isn't that airing dirty laundry? Esp since her "crimes" are 2 yrs old. They could have quietly investigated without making it public.

BTW @canbelto, please quit using the term "uppity n****". We get it but it's very offensive.

One could point out that it’s the palace defending themselves. If Meghan had remained quit bygone be bygones but by deciding to do this interview they felt it was needed to present an other side.

I mean if Meghan is going to bring up things that happened two yearago they have the right to point out these things or they suppose to allow her to paint the narrative that she is the victim.
It’s absolutely fair for them to say you know what there is another side to this including her being rude to staff.

 

[puglover]

Meghan's family (except for her mother) are all accused of being vile liars and now Harry's family seems to be thrown in there as well. I really hope this is not how this plays out - for any of them.

 

[canbelto]

Meghan's family (except for her mother) are all accused of being vile liars and now Harry's family seems to be thrown in there as well. I really hope this is not how this plays out - for any of them.

Meghan's family is trash. Especially Samantha Markle.

 

[ballettmaus]

Do we know if it was just one text message at 5 a.m. or if it occured repeatedly? If it did occur repeatedly, did Meghan know if the staff had their cell phone by their bedside (and would be woken by the message?) If she knew and sent those texts anyway then I don't think it has anything to do with cultural difference. I'd consider that rude and respectless.
Even if she didn't know, I think it's a sign of respect if one refrains from sending the text message if they don't know if they'll wake the other person and then ask, regardless of what the relationship to that person is.

I'm also not quite sure why the discussion centers around the text messages when there seem to be have been other issues as well. I'm not under the impression that the bullying is only because of text messages.
If memory serves, Meghan also did not have a stylist. I don't think there's anything wrong with that but I wouldn't be surprised if that were an issue of contention when you're a member of the BRF.

One of the nice things with many of the European royals is that they seem to be friendly with one another. That's another support system that UK royals don't appear to have.

Speaking of friendliness among the European Royals: one difference between Germany and the US is how quickly you make acquatainces. I had an easy time making friends in school in the US (where I went to school for only a year) while it was much harder for me in my native Germany. The same was true for my time in France, much harder. So, I find it entirely possible that the people Meghan met in the UK were more reserved and that that might have led to misunderstandings.

Generally, I wish they could all sit down together and talk things through. Things seemed to be going so well at the beginning and then it took a 180 turn and I find it especially sad because William and Harry were so close before. After what they had gone through they would have deserved to remain close throughout adulthood. I hope they'll be able to sort things out over time!

I'll say it just this once more: I think it was a mistake for the BRF to announce this investigation. I don't think they are going to win this war. As Meghan's co-star points out in his thread ... They're taking on a woman who is the wife of a current heir (however far down) and mother to two other heirs.

I'm not sure what Meghan's co-star is trying to say or imply. If the BRF did announce the investigation then it would be sanctioned by the Queen, wouldn't it? And I think she easily wins a war based on status within the family. Likewise, if William leaked the investigation as I think was implied.

Harry and his brother thought it was OK to go to a "natives and colonials" fancy dress party.
(and yes I know they apologized later on)

The party that caused a king-size hangover

How Nazi gear, a popular society choice, put Harry in the doghouse.

www.theguardian.com

From what I've seen and heard, I'd say many Brits have a rather lax view on things like that. That doesn't make it right and I think it needs to change! I'm just saying that this is likely the way they were raised. And Harry still fell in love with and married Meghan, so I don't think it necessarily says anythng about how racist they are. But I do believe that an attitude like that (thinking attending such a party is ok) makes one less sensitive to and/or less aware of the issues of (systemic) racism and it's also possible that it causes involuntary (I'm not sure if this is exactly the right word) racism.