Harry, Meghan and Oprah: A royal mess
After years of wrangling, the U.K. finally left the European Union via Brexit. But impossible as it seems, that wasn’t Britain’s biggest departure.
Instead, that title belongs to “Megxit” -- the separation of Prince
Harry and Duchess Meghan Markle from their senior roles as royals, and subsequent move overseas. It has created quite the row, not just for what they are doing, but how they’re doing it. After their bombshell interview with Oprah, the world is abuzz about revelations involving race, suicide and secret weddings.
This situation extends far beyond the royal family, with implications that affect even those with no interest in the British monarchy.
Perhaps the biggest revelation was Meghan’s mindset that she no longer wanted to live. “I just didn’t want to be alive anymore. And that was a very clear, and real, and frightening constant thought,” she said.
As one of the ten most famous people on the planet, Meghan doesn’t need attention. But if she did, she sure as hell wouldn’t want to achieve it through admission of suicidal thoughts. Hands down, to admit what she was feeling took guts. And because she was open about it, she may have just saved a life or two.
The other earthquake was allegations that the royal family espoused racism. According to Meghan, “In those months when I was pregnant … we have in tandem the conversation that he (baby Archie) won’t be given security, he’s not going to be given a title, and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born” -- all issues ostensibly related to skin color.
Is it possible, even likely, that those conversations occurred? Yes, but what we don’t know is context. Context is everything, and we have none of it. The most important question is why give the interview at all? What did they hope to gain? Harry and Meghan forgot the adage about not airing your dirty laundry, failing to remember that, especially for royals, you keep your private family affairs…private. For people who claim to value privacy, they certainly do a stellar job of throwing damn near everything into the public eye.
There’s nothing wrong with airing grievances to your inner circle, but it should be done behind closed doors. Have a “come to Jesus” meeting, figure out your common ground, and emerge unified. That’s Public Relations 101. But in engaging in such interviews, and running the bus over the very people who made them who they are, they’re doing the opposite.
Meghan and Harry revealed that they secretly married three days before the wedding which the world witnessed. By doing what they wanted, when they wanted, and now recklessly announcing it, the prince and princess created yet another unnecessary firestorm. Questions are now swirling, from the validity of the secret marriage (lack of witnesses, improper setting) to the role of the archbishop (and he ain’t saying much). Adding fuel to the fire are reports of the couple’s friends contradicting them, stating that it wasn’t a wedding, but merely a private exchange of vows.
By getting caught in this contradictory situation, the floodgates are wide open for questioning the validity of everything else that the couple said. The most important asset anyone possesses is credibility. Shatter that, and it’s a long, bumpy road back to respectability.
One of the most underrated romance stories is when King Edward VIII abdicated to marry his true love, the American Wallis Simpson. The number of people who would walk away from the throne, and everything it encompasses, could be counted on one hand, yet Edward followed his heart to be with “the woman I love.”
Likewise, if Harry and Meghan think that jettisoning their royal titles and inheritances is best for their family, fine. People may not understand that decision, but most will respect it. But you can’t have your cake and eat it, too. Translation: You have to be all in, or all out, as there is no straddling the line as a senior British royal.
Harry and Meghan would be wise to remember that it’s not what you do, but how you do it. Hopefully, they will make amends with the family that will always define them -- the royal Family. The world is a better place with the British monarchy in it, even if, sadly, Harry and Meghan aren’t a part of it.
Above all, it would be a royal shame if the rift gets to the point where all the king’s horses and all the king’s men can’t put the family relationship back together again.