Royal Family Considering Hiring a Diversity Chief Amid Meghan Markle’s Racism Claims
The U.K. royals are doing a major image clean up since Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex did a pretty revealing interview with Oprah Winfrey. During the interview, a lot of disparaging comments were made about the royals, possibly the most damaging being that some members of the family were concerned about how dark Archie’s skin would be when he was born. Now, the royals are reportedly considering hiring a diversity chief to combat the situation.
What did Meghan Markle say in her interview?
Meghan made a lot of claims in her interview with Oprah. One of the most shocking was about the conversations that were being had around the time that she was pregnant with Archie.
“In those months when I was pregnant, all around this same time… we have in tandem the conversation of, he won’t be given security, he’s not gonna be given a title and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might when he’s born,” she said told Oprah.
The royals’ attitude toward her unborn son was shocking to Meghan as the royals are supposed to represent an area that is mostly made up of people of color.
“The Commonwealth is a huge part of the monarchy and I lived in Canada, which is a Commonwealth country, for seven years,” she said. “But it wasn’t until Harry and I were together that we started to travel through the Commonwealth… 60, 70 percent of which is people of color.
“I could never understand how it wouldn’t be seen as an added benefit and a reflection of the world today, at all times, but especially right now,” Meghan continued. “To go, how inclusive is that you can see someone who looks like you in this family, much less one who’s born into it.”
Royal family response to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s interview
After the interview aired, fans were waiting with baited breath to see how the royal family would respond to the allegations. Unfortunately, the statement they released didn’t answer many questions.
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan,” the statement released by Buckingham Palace on behalf of the queen read.
“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning,” the statement continued. “While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.”
Buckingham Palace diversity chief
Since releasing their statement, the palace has reportedly been considering hiring someone to lead their diversity efforts.
“Diversity is an issue which has been taken very seriously across the Royal Households,” a royal source said Sunday, according to CNN. “We have the policies, the procedures, and programmes in place but we haven’t seen the progress we would like in terms of representation and more needs to be done, we can always improve. The work to do this has been underway for some time now and comes with the full support of the family.”
What exact capacity this person will be working in is not yet known.
“Lots of measures are being considered,” the source continued. “Certainly the idea of someone to spearhead this work and look at diversity / inclusion across the three households is something that has to be considered. It is too early however for any firm plans to be announced. We are listening and learning, to get this right.”
