Racism thru the lens of Megxit:

a.k.a The Ultimate “Get Out”

By Kim Harris, M.Ed.

Distinctive Voice Consulting

On May 19, 2018 I awakened at 3:00 a.m. to watch a modern day Cinderella story. Not just any Cinderella story but a real Cinderella story: on this date a divorced, African-American woman was marrying into the British royal family. Never in my lifetime did I ever imagine an American woman, a divorced, Black-American woman, would have the opportunity to marry into such an institution of privilege. I, and I imagine many women of color, was happy to see that a Black woman could be a real life modern day princess. At that moment I thought that the Royal family was moving in a direction of representing the diversity of the world we live in. I imagined that they had done the work to be inclusive along with the welcoming of a person of color into their family tree. I imagined that they wanted to have their family look like what families the world over look like.

 

Since Meghan and Harry's wedding I’ve heard of the differential treatment that Meghan has received as compared to her sister-in-law Kate by the British royal family and the press. Such differences as the royal family providing a press team for Kate to help her with negative press coverage, being informed by the royal family that Meghan and Harry’s son Archie would not be granted a royal title (no reason given), and the British media publishing a story that compared Prince Harry and Meghan's baby Archie, to an animal. I had no idea that Meghan and Harry were isolated and left to handle these incidences and more on their own. So when talk of stepping back from the royal family became public, I was aghast. Who would give up such a fairy-tale life style? One never knows the depth of someone’s pain behind the public mask. When the Sussexes announced they were moving to Canada, almost like the real life version of the movie “Get Out”, a 2017 horror film written and directed by Jordan Peele, my heart broke. They had bowed down to racism on one hand, on the other hand they determined that no amount of money and privilege is worth the disrespect and most importantly, one’s mental health.

 

From Meghan and Harry’s riveting March 7, 2021 interview with Oprah, I learned that the lack of support from the royal family in the wake of tabloid racism directed at Meghan, forced the couple’s hand and feet to walk away from it all. In spite of the family’s advice to put your chin up and keep a stiff upper lip, the Sussexes decided to get out. Meghan shockingly revealed in the Oprah Winfrey interview she was isolated and that the isolation and intense pressure coupled with the lack of family support made her suicidal. Harry made a stunning comparison that Meghan was being hounded by the press similar to his mother, but with an added racial component, and that he was watching history repeat itself. To interrupt the tragic outcome of what happened to his mother, the couple made a bold decision to step back and away from royal duties as a life-saving decision.

 

In many of my organizational diversity, equity and inclusion consultations I’ve made the statement that there’s so much more to diversity and inclusion than hiring someone from a diverse background. I’ve advised that an organization must do the work to understand what a multicultural environment is: it requires much work from policies and practices, to having diverse employees, and everything in between. My assumption that the royal family had done its work to be prepared to retain a person of color in their family was wrong. Diversity is so much more than appearances. It’s the internal work that we need to do, it’s changing the systems in our organizations that privilege some and hold back others. It’s making sure that Kate and Meghan are not only welcomed but receive the same resources to be successful. It’s giving Meghan and Harry’s son Archie a title like you did for Prince William and Princess Kate’s son Prince George.

 

I am proud of Meghan Markle on two fronts. Not only did she break down barriers in the royal family, but she was strong enough to walk away from the privilege and wealth of an institution that did not stand up for her. She was brave enough to speak up and make a new way for her family. In her honor, I leave you the following poem.

 

 

Royal

By Chicago poet Leslé Honoré

No matter how gentle the Black

How light the skin

How gorgeous the face

How talented the soul

How pure the intentions

They will not protect us

No matter how innocent the life

How secure the birthright

Titles will be stripped

And babies tossed to wolves

Because of a fear of Black skin

They will let a woman drown

In their lies

They will let the darkness

Swallow her

See her reach out for help

And not only turn their backs

But crush her fingers beneath their feet

With hopes she will plummet off the cliff

The why is obvious

The why is consistent

The why is always the same

Black

They want her suffering

Because Blackness

Because she was breathing

While Black

Because her Light

Outshines the white

With her Blackness

They will turn their backs

On their own

Stop taking calls from their

Sons

Because of Blackness

And what else should we expect

From the birth place

Of white supremacy

The birth place of slavery

The birth place of the patriarchy

The soul of colonialism

And

What else should we expect

From a lineage of resilience

Of beauty

Of strength

Of everlasting hope

Her bounce back

Her reboot

Her survival

Catch this #BlackGirlMagic

Catch this brilliance

Catch this happy

Catch this radiance

That not even 1200 years of hate

Can kill

Catch this liberation

Catch this revolution

This World Woman

This Global Majority

Catch all of this

Unbreakable

Blackness

She doesn’t need your titles

She has always been a Queen