Almost every little girl dreams of being a princess when she grows up. She has princess toys, the tiaras, and the glass slippers like Cinderella. It is fun to play dress up! Unfortunately, in Oprah’s tell-all interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, we learn about an experience that was anything but fairy-tale. Prince Harry, now 6th in line to the British throne, married actress Meghan Markle in 2018. The media spiraled out of control after this interview with Oprah and ridiculed Meghan for her race, status as a divorcé, and for other aspects of her life.
A small backstory for those who do not know, the British monarchy, referred to by the royals themselves as the Firm, has a history with withholding marriages and acceptance in the past. Anything that could endanger the monarchy was pushed away. King Edward VIII, the Queen’s uncle, abdicated the throne to marry an American socialite and divorcé due to the Firm’s lack of support and acceptance. That story is not as well known then that of Princess Diana’s story. The beloved Princess was married to Charles, the Prince of Wales, and the two had an incredibly tumultuous relationship, (everyone MUST watch The Crown on Netflix, it spills all the details). The media swarmed the Princess and one fateful night she was killed in a car accident in Paris, France after being chased by paparazzi. I provide that backstory because these events sprouted the fears of Prince Harry, more specifically that history would repeat itself in terms of his mother and his wife. Oprah begins the interview with a statement that she is not paying the couple to participate, Meghan explains that there was no way the Palace could expect them to remain silent about the treatment they received.
The explanation of the racial bias within the Royal Family began very early on in this interview. The most shocking comment of all was Meghan explaining that members of the Firm were concerned about how dark her son, Master Archie, would be when he was born. Prince Harry has more recently stated that this comment was neither made by the Duke of Edinburgh, his grandfather, or Her Majesty the Queen, his grandmother. That leaves the rest of the immediate family to be speculated against, just who was concerned about Archie’s skin color? And why?
The media did not help matters and the competition between Meghan and Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, spiraled out of control as well. This was not a competition between the two women themselves, this was a competition born and bred out of the media. The two duchesses were constantly being compared to each other and the central theme was the great disappointment that was Meghan Markle. The tabloids were racist and discriminatory to her, creating a lie that Meghan made Kate cry. With this being untrue, you can imagine the fluster to take one side over the other that that created. Meghan spoke clearly and concisely in the interview stating that she did not want, nor was a part of, the competition the media created between herself and Kate. Oprah nodded as Meghan explained that if you love her, you don’t need to hate Kate, and vice versa.
This is about the time when Harry joined his wife and first and foremost announced they were pregnant with a baby girl! I must tell you all how excited I am for this!! This moment was a nice pause from the horrifying stories the audience were hearing, but unfortunately the story did not end there. Meghan, clutching her husband, told Oprah that she had experienced suicidal thoughts. She believed that everyone would have been better off without her. Harry’s face was solemn while focused on supporting his wife. He stated that the couple did everything they could to acquire help for Meghan. Although Meghan and Harry were reaching out to the right people in the Firm, they thought, they were not receiving any help, referral, or support. This is no different from when Princess Diana needed support, as well as even Princess Margaret, the Queen’s late sister. Then the news broke that they would be taking a step back from their positions as working members of the Royal Family. Most of the public misunderstood this. The couple did not step back as Royal Family members, they stepped back from their working role. This meant that they would no longer be visiting countries in the commonwealth on behalf of the Queen or representing the Queen in her charities or organizations. When this happened, however, the media turned on them further and as did members of the firm.
The media came up with the term “Megxit” to spread the lie that Meghan forced Harry to leave their working titles. In addition to that, the firm stated that Archie would not be receiving security benefits. This was mind blowing and Oprah was shocked. Every member of the Royal Family receives security for their safety. While the couple and their son were living in Canada, they had their security removed. Harry explained to Oprah that he never in a million years thought that his security, that of a Prince, would be taken. Harry also explained that he was being monetarily cut off from his family, as his father stopped taking his calls and his brother and him were taking space for themselves as of now. Although Harry seemed very hopeful that relationships will be salvaged, every devastating detail was dropped at this point in the interview, and it was truly saddening to watch.
Meghan and Harry finished their interview with their description of their new foundation, Archwell. I have to say, I researched the foundation, and it looks amazing. It focuses on non-profit work that uses compassion to drive systematic change. This is the note the couple leaves the Oprah interview on, explaining how they are back on their feet and doing well, ready to meet their newest member, the little baby girl. This leaves the audience wondering, who was the family member that could be the root of all the hate and mistreatment. I certainly have my guess. Of course, it was incredible that the couple came out and spoke about their experience, taking on one of the oldest monarchy institutions in the world. But that is just it, this is the British monarchy. Will anything change from this public explanation from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, or will the Royal Family continue to hide relationships and aspects of themselves that they do not want the public to know?