Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge are two royals who have been under intense scrutiny in days of late. After Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey on March 7th, where they inadvertently accused the royal family of racism and called out Kate for making Meghan cry, royal fans have been eagerly watching the couple to see what their next moves will be.
While Kate and Prince William have been mostly keeping their heads down as they focus on their duties as working royals, they recently shared a Mother’s Day tribute to Princess Diana that struck some fans as being particularly awkward and disingenuous.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s interview drew parallels to Princess Diana
Meghan and Prince Harry’s big interview with Oprah, which aired on March 7th in the United States, was a major moment for the royal family. Not only was it the first time that the couple spoke out to the public after their highly-publicized exit from England, but it marked a turning point in many fans’ opinions of Prince William and Kate — formerly, two of the most beloved members of the royal family.
In the interview, Meghan admitted that Kate made her cry in the weeks leading up to her wedding, after an incident involving flower girl dresses. While Meghan stated that she believes Kate is a “good person,” that admission, along with the insinuations that one of Prince Harry’s family members had negative things to say about their son, Archie Harrison, caused some serious damage to the royal family’s image.
Also in the interview, Prince Harry tugged on viewers’ heartstrings when he compared Meghan’s negative experience with the British press to the experience had by his mother, the late Princess Diana.
“My biggest concern was history repeating itself. And I’ve said that before, on numerous occasions, very publicly,” the former senior royal stated.
Prince William and Kate Middleton have been under fire in recent weeks
In the wake of the interview, media outlets have been attempting to get some sort of official word from Prince William and Kate, to determine their feelings about the whole affair. While Prince William has not spoken out directly regarding the parallels between Meghan’s treatment and Princess Diana’s own experience with the media, he did deny allegations of racism.
For many royal fans, that isn’t enough, and it seems likely that the couple will continue to draw criticism over the coming months — especially in light of some recent, very awkward, social media posts.
One social media user wrote on Twitter: “Prince William sticking up for the royal family over racism reminds me of people I met growing up in the Midwest. They, or a family member, would say something racially insensitive. When called out, they would keep saying that they’re not racist, it’s just what everyone says.”
Another took to Twitter to say: “full offense to prince william and the royal family, but when a POC is explaining an instance of racism that happened to them, your response should not be “but i’m/we’re not racist””
What tribute did Prince William and Kate Middleton pay to Princess Diana?
On March 14th, Prince William and Kate shared a special tribute in honor of Mother’s Day in England. The couple took snapshots of notes written by their children to the late Princess Diana, and the notes were then shared to their social media account.
One note, written by Prince George, read “Dear Granny Diana. Happy happy mothers day. I love you very much and think of you always, sending lots of love from George xxxxx.”
Another note, from Princess Charlotte, said “I am thinking of you on Mother’s Day. I love you very much. Papa is missing you. Lots of Love Charlotte xxxxxxxxx”
While the notes are undoubtedly adorable, some fans on social media were very skeptical of the intent behind sharing them to social media.
“We all mourn differently, but this seems really convenient. Where was this last year or this sentiment before pre-born baby Archie was subjected to colorism? The palace is wild. The PR stunts are bananas,” one Twitter user wrote.
Another critic stated that sharing the notes was “distasteful and quite twisted,” with one user slamming the Cambridge couple as “using your children to gain public sympathy. Classy.” One user posed the question: “I wonder what the media and the trolls would have said if it was Harry that did this. Isn’t it weird that they didn’t do this last year”
Prince William has spoken fondly of his mother in the past. “I would like to have had her advice. I would love her to have met Catherine and to have seen the children grow up,” said the future king to GQ in 2017. While royal fans aren’t doubting his devotion to his mother, they are finding the timing of this Princess Diana tribute to be convenient and perhaps an effort to regain love from the public.
It is hard to see what the future holds for the couple in terms of public perception — but for now, the court of public opinion is firmly against the pair.
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