Buckingham Palace announced on Wednesday that a member of its household had resigned after row over making “unacceptable and regrettable comments” during a reception thrown by the Queen Consort Camilla. The reception was thrown by Queen Consort to purportedly highlight the cause of domestic abuse and violence against women.
The royal aide in question remains unnamed at the time of filing this report. The reception had about 300 guests.
As we mark the UN’s #16Days for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, The Queen Consort welcomed guests – including survivors of abuse, charity representatives, politicians, and ambassadors for the cause – to Buckingham Palace in recognition of this important issue. pic.twitter.com/3qTXncxk7C
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) November 29, 2022
What is Buckingham Palace racism row all about?
Ngozi Fulani, the head of a domestic abuse charity, was questioned about where in Africa she was from during Camilla, the Queen Consort’s reception. Fulani is the founder of the London-based charity Sistah Space, which supports women of African and Caribbean heritage across the United Kingdom who have faced domestic and sexual abuse.
Fulani shared on Twitter the ordeal that she went through at Buckingham Palace. A royal aide reportedly asked her where she was from.
Faluni in her recounting of the incident said: “We are based in Hackney,” and the aide replied: “No, what part of Africa are you from?”
She said: “I don’t know, they didn’t leave any records”, and the royal aide asked further: “Well you must know where you’re from, I spent time in France. Where are you from?”
“No, but what nationality are you?”
“I am born here and am British.”
“No, but where do you really come from, where do your people come from?”
Fulani said on Twitter: “It was such a shock to me and the other two women that we were stunned (into a) temporary silence.”
Mixed feelings about yesterday’s visit to Buckingham Palace. 10 mins after arriving, a member of staff, Lady SH, approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge. The conversation below took place. The rest of the event is a blur.
Thanks @ManduReid & @SuzanneEJacob for support🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/OUbQKlabyq
— Sistah Space (@Sistah_Space) November 30, 2022
In its statement, Buckingham Palace said: “We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full details.”
“In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made. We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes,” it added.
About racial discourse in Royal Family
In an interview with Oprah Winfrey last year, actress Meghan Markle had alleged that a senior royal family member had concerns about the potential skin colour of her and Prince Harry’s first child. In November 2021, a book by American journalist Christopher Andersen claimed that the senior royal family member mentioned by Meghan was Prince Charles (now King) himself.
“I mean, what do you suppose their children’s complexion might be?,” Charles is cited to have asked Camilla.
The revelation was consequently denied by Buckingham Palace.
Racial discrimination continues to be a prevailing issue in the British polity. A research by The Guardian found last year that schools across the UK recorded more than 60,000 racist incidents between 2016-2021. According to a UK Ministry of Justice report published in January 2020, black teenagers and young adults were over four times more likely than their white counterparts to be arrested.
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