By now, we’ve all probably seen the monumental interview of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry that premiered last week. And wow is there a lot to unpack. Meghan and Harry sat down with Oprah to discuss the last three years of their lives spent together. Working as full-time royals, starting a family, and stepping back from their time at the “institution.” It was incredibly heartbreaking and oftentimes hard to watch as they recounted the pain they’ve suffered. But equally important because the truth needed to be exposed and the record set straight.
I could probably write an entire novel on it, but for the sake of brevity, here were some of my biggest takeaways and opinions.
Mental Health
First and foremost, the section that hurt my heart the most was Meghan and Harry recounting the absolute destruction of their mental health in the months leading up to the birth of their first son, Archie. Meghan discussed how “unsurvivable” life was at that point. Due to the UK media’s constant bashing of her and realizing the royal family and institution were not protecting her or her future son. She admitted she was suicidal. She just “didn’t see any solution.” She took the bravest step that anyone struggling with mental illness can take and sought out help, but was completely disregarded by the senior staff of the institution, the people she thought were there to help her. She explained that she was scared for her life, needed help, and wanted to be checked into a hospital, but they did nothing.
To take that unbelievably hard step and admit to not only yourself, but to someone else that you are struggling and need help and just be completely turned away and ignored is despicable. It broke my heart to see the pain that Meghan had carried with her and I’m so happy that she’s in a better mental state now. No one should be treated the way she was.
Race
The other subject that was most shocking was Meghan recounting the “concerns” and “discussions” that took place in regards to how dark Archies skin might be when he was born. This is an extremely upsetting and hard revelation for so many reasons. I am not the perfect person to discuss racial matters, as I too am still learning and educating myself every day. However, the fact that there were any concerns or discussions taking place in the first place is ridiculous and disrespectful to Meghan and Harry. Secondly, the fact that Archie, the first blood-related person of color to the royal family was stripped of his title and granted no security just shows all of their true colors. Oprah’s shock and initial “WHAT” comment paralleled almost exactly to my own. Just utter disgust and appalment.
Her Majesty, The Queen
On a lighter note, it really warmed my heart seeing the smiles on Meghan and Harry’s faces when discussing Queen Elizabeth. Harry expressed how much love and respect he holds for his grandmother and how grateful he is to have grown so close to her over the last year. Meghan explained that The Queen has always been so welcoming and warm of her entrance to the royal family. Once, The Queen and Meghan were sitting in a car together and The Queen did the most “grandmotherly” thing a grandmother could do and draped the blanket resting on her legs over Meghan too to make sure she would be warm. Too sweet.
Harry’s Family
Harry seemed to still hold a lot of love and respect for his family, despite everything they’ve been through. I have a lot of admiration for him for wanting to rebuild a relationship with them. Harry truly is just a good and honorable person through and through.
Life After Leaving The Royal Family
The most apparent thing to me through the whole interview was the absolute unconditional love that Meghan and Harry have for each other. They have truly loved each other for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, and in sickness and in health. They say they’re “not just surviving, but thriving” in their new life as “commoners,” and the smiles on their faces make that so clear. They’re dedicated to each other, their children, their dogs, and their service work.
In conclusion, the Monarchy of England and every person and aspect that it is composed of is broken. It should not be allowed to operate the way that it does. Meghan and Harry probably made the best decision of their lives by leaving, and it might have even saved their lives.