Couple’s interview reveals mismanagement in the Royal Family
By Jerrison Oracion, Senior Columnist
As always, tabloid misinformation can lead to bigger consequences.
The Royal Family has been involved in a lot of controversies over the past few centuries. Recently, strict protocols guiding what happens behind the scenes led to members in the family stepping away from their royal duties. After Prince Harry and Suits star Meghan Markle were married in 2018, there was promise that change was coming to the Royal Family and their marriage would hopefully lead to more inclusive behaviour.
Three years later, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex left the Royal Family after claiming to be mistreated by the staff, other family members, and the British tabloid newspapers covering them as well. They told their side of the story on what happened with the Royal Family in a two-hour interview with Oprah Winfrey. Roughly 17-million viewers tuned in that day with an additional 12-million viewers in the UK the following day. It was like an episode of Oprah’s Next Chapter with a disclaimer that Meghan and Harry were not paid for the interview and were free to express themselves.
There were a lot of revelations after Meghan addressed the tabloid reported controversy that she made the Duchess of Cambridge cry during consultations. Markle claims that it was the opposite, and it might have been leaked during one of the frequent media parties at Buckingham Palace. As always, tabloid misinformation can lead to bigger consequences, and if the Royal Family is not being transparent about what happens at work that can add even more confusion and lies.
Meghan Markle still gets along with Queen Elizabeth and confirmed that she is not racist. The biggest moment in the interview was when Meghan talked about a meeting that she and the Duke had where staff talked openly about the skin colour of their soon to be son Archie. The staff talking about Archie’s skin colour could be a sign of racist and outdated policies or ideas whose end is long overdue. Winfrey responded to that with “What?” and it got more interesting when she found out that Archie will not have protection when going around since he will not have a royal title.
Current and former world leaders have security guards protecting them and I think everyone in the Royal Family (including former members) should have protection as well since they may be important in the future. Also, they did a bad job handling mental health and like Princess Diana, Meghan claims she was depressed enough to consider suicide even though she looked happy. She asked the head of staff to get her institutional help, but they did not accept her request. These events led to Harry realizing how black people were treated in the Royal Family and he supported Meghan the entire time.
Originally, they were going to reduce their royal duties and work in Canada; instead, archaic rules and the coronavirus pandemic made them flee to the United States and pay for their own security. Since leaving the Royal Family, Harry has not talked to his brother, the Duke of Cambridge, William—or his father Prince Charles. I think the interview showed that if royal protocols were updated, then Meghan and Harry would still have been in the Royal Family.
Mental health and racism issues happens not only in the Royal Family but also in the government and the entertainment industry. This shows that the system must be fixed, and everyone should have access to support services to resolve their problems. The interview will not only create change in the Royal Family but also possibly in the Commonwealth and around the world.
