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There is no question that the actions of the British royal family have contributed to the troubling situation unfolding in the UK right now. While they are not solely responsible, their racist treatment of Meghan Markle and enablement of a prejudiced media helped inflame underlying social tensions that have now boiled over into violence and unrest.
We all witnessed the ruthless way Meghan was hounded from the day she entered the royal family. As a woman of color, she faced obsessive scrutiny and hostility that Kate Middleton never had to endure, despite being in the same position. Commentators openly questioned her suitability based on her ethnicity. The royals and press even speculated about her children's skin tone, in a blatant display of racism.
Rather than defend her from this onslaught, the royals did little. Their silence gave a tacit endorsement to the biased coverage and cruel tropes used against Meghan. This sent a damaging message that people of color, or those who married into the monarchy, would not be fully accepted or respected. It told much of British society that racist attitudes towards someone like Meghan were acceptable within royal circles.
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This poisonous climate took its toll on her mental health, with Meghan even admitting she struggled with suicidal thoughts. Yet her very real struggles were dismissed or blamed on her by sections of the media. Such harsh treatment of a member of the monarchy along racial lines risks normalizing racism and intolerance on a much wider scale.
When Harry spoke out against the bigoted media attacks and warned of the racism inflicting lasting damage, the royals took no definitive action. Their failure to properly confront prejudice in their own institution undoubtedly emboldened racist elements in Britain. It showed that entrenched interests still wished to maintain the traditional upper-class, very white image of the monarchy, even at the expense of people of color.
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/p>The silence of the House of Windsor in the face of such a blatant racist onslaught spoke volumes. It told racist agitators their warped views had a place in mainstream British society. And it told people of color, regardless of status, they would always remain outsiders in their own country. This laid fertile ground for far-right extremism to take root and spread its message of intolerance.
Now, as far-right thugs rampage unchecked on the streets, demanding "Muslim patrols", the royal family must accept some responsibility. Their hollow words after the event cannot undo the racist signals continuously sent out during Meghan's time as a working royal. A decisive, early intervention could have quashed acceptance of racism within royal circles before it poisoned the public square.
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/p>The royal infrastructure, bolstered by decades of lavish privilege and status, gave its tacit blessing to the obsessive targeting of Meghan Markle. This legitimized a discriminatory agenda that has fostered division and unrest nationwide as economic woes bite. From Sunderland to London, far-right gangs are using volatile conditions to recruit and groom citizens already primed to direct their anger at scapegoats.
While refugees make up a tiny percentage here, islamophobic paranoia has taken root thanks to years of racist incitement. Worryingly, other countries now deem Britain too dangerous to visit due to these conditions - a severe indictment. As libraries burn and communities live in fear, the royals must understand their prestigious platform helped mainstream racism on such a scale.
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Going forward, outright condemnation is needed of all who target citizens due to attributes like skin color or faith. It remains to be seen if lessons will be learned from how this royal family treated Meghan and stoked societal fractures. But for now, average Britons despair at what their country is becoming while those who occupy gilded palaces search for belated answers, having sowed the xenophobic winds that are reaped as whirlwinds today across the UK.
Overall, it cannot reasonably be denied that the failings of the monarchy, from top to bottom, nurtured acceptance of intolerance that now threatens the stability of the nation. Real change must start from the royal summit by accepting culpability and using international respect to disentangle Britain from the grips of vicious racism and division. If not, the UK risks complete estrangement as a safe, inclusive society and destination in the eyes of the watching world.
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