LONDON (AP) – Racism. Bullying. Insensitivity.
Prince Harry and Meghan’s allegations of ill-treatment by the British royal house are so serious that some observers say Buckingham Palace’s silence on the issue has only added to the fury surrounding his TV interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Although the palace often tries to stay above the controversy by keeping quiet and getting out of the storm, the charges of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are so detrimental to the royal family that they will have to answer publicly, says royal biographer Angela Levin.
But that response will likely be delayed by Queen Elizabeth II’s struggle to balance her sometimes conflicting roles as monarch and grandmother, says Levin, author of “Harry, a Biography of a Prince.” Still, he says there is little doubt that the 94-year-old monarch will finally make his decision based on what is best for the 1,000-year-old institution he has run since 1952.
“The queen has a motto: Never complain, never explain,” Levin told The Associated Press. “And she’s been hooked on it for four decades. But I think in this climate and in 2021, everything is going everywhere. There are so many social networks that, in this case, you can’t say anything ”.
The Times of London reported on Tuesday that the palace declaration had been delayed because the queen wanted more time. The newspaper did not cite any sources of information.
The interview, which aired Sunday night in the United States and a day later in Britain, has shaken the royal family and divided people around the world. While many claim the allegations demonstrate the need for a change within a palace that has not kept pace with the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements, others have criticized Harry and Meghan for dropping the bomb while Harry’s 99-year-old grandfather, Prince Philip, remains hospitalized in London after a heart procedure.
During the two-hour interview, Meghan described feeling so isolated and miserable within the royal family that she had had suicidal thoughts, although when she called for mental health help from the palace’s human resources staff, they to say she was not a worker. He also said a family member had expressed “concerns” to Harry about the color of his unborn son’s skin.
Winfrey later said that Harry told the camera that the family member was not Queen Elizabeth II or Prince Philip, prompting a barrage of speculation about who he might be.
Harry also revealed the tensions the couple endured by breaking off relations with their father, Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, and his brother, Prince William, illuminating the depth of family divisions that they made the couple move away from royal duties and move to California last year.
So far there has been silence from the palace about the interview.
“I think one of the main concerns is that you don’t want to throw oil on the flames to make it even worse,” Levin said.
___
Follow all the stories from Prince Harry and Meghan’s interview at https://apnews.com/Prince Harry.