Piers Morgan: ‘Cancel the cancel culture’
Piers Morgan has launched an impassioned attack on cancel culture and a defence of free speech in recounting his departure from Good Morning Britain for what he said was not believing the Duchess of Sussex.
As the end of a five-page diarised article in the Mail on Sunday, in which he said his doubting of Meghan was condemned as "a racist hate crime", the controversial media figure said it is time to "cancel the cancel culture before it kills our culture".
While also rounding on the Duke of Sussex for his part in a "disgraceful betrayal" of the Queen, Morgan said the intense fallout from his voicing disbelief of Meghan in her interview with Oprah Winfrey was "outrageous".
Highlighting that there are differences between "someone's truth" and "actual truth", Morgan said he could not be labelled racist simply because he did not believe parts of Meghan's interview.
He also noted that her credibility had subsequently been eroded by news that she and Harryhadnotbeenmarriedin private three days before their official wedding, as she had told the US chat show host.
Morgan also insisted he was not making light of Meghan attesting to have had suicidal thoughts while in the royal family, but doubted her claim that she was told by court officials not to seek help.
He said it is outrageous that Sharon Osbourne has now quit US show The Talk as she was "driven out for the crime of defending me" against her colleague who said Morgan was racist "simply because I disbelieve Meghan Markle". But he said what had happened to him and Osbourne in the past fortnight "isn't really about Ms Markle".
"She (Meghan) is just one of many whiny, privileged, hypocritical celebrities who now cynically exploit victimhood to suppress free speech, value their own version of the truth above the actual truth, and seek to cancel anyone that deviates from their woke world view or who dares to challenge the veracity of their inflammatory statements," Morgan wrote.
"No, it's about a far bigger issue than one delusional duchess, and that's everyone's right to be free to express our honestly held opinions, forcefully and passionately if we feel like it."
Morgan said he is "not a victim and I haven't been cancelled", and the past two weeks had in fact been one of the most exciting and affirming periods of his life, but added "if our rights to free speech are denied, then democracy as we know it will die".
The 55-year-old said the community backlash towards him and his family - he said his three sons have been trolled on social media - has been stunning, with people demanding he be fired and saying he is racist and "mocking mental illness" .
He said that, although he has never said anything racist and has only cheered the presence of a bi-racial woman in the royal family, he has been left to conclude that "questioning Meghan's fork-tongued 'truth' is now a racist hate crime". Morgan said the former actress had endured "no worse media treatment" than other royal brides "such as Diana, Fergie, Kate, Camilla".