Hillary Clinton backs Meghan Markle as pressure grows on Palace to respond

Hillary Clinton has shared her support for Meghan Markle as Buckingham Palace faces growing pressure to respond to allegations of racism made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

The former US secretary of state spoke about Meghan’s experiences, calling it “heartbreaking”.

During a Washington Post Live event on Monday, Ms Clinton said: “It was heartbreaking to see the two of them sitting there having to describe how difficult it was to be accepted, to be integrated, not just into the royal family as they described, but more painfully into the larger societies whose narrative is driven by tabloids that are living in the past.

" I've had my time in the box with the British tabloids, as anybody who is in the public eye has had. And their cruelty in going after Meghan was just outrageous and the fact she did not get more support, that the reaction was, 'Let's just paper it over and pretend that it didn't happen or it will go away, just keep your head down,'" Clinton said.

"Well, you know, this young woman was not about to keep her head down. You know, this is 2021 and she wanted to live her life, she wanted to be fully engaged and she had every right to hope for that".

It comes after Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, who are expecting their second child — a daughter — this summer, sat down with Oprah Winfrey in an interview which aired in the UK on Monday evening.

In the interview, the couple unveiled a number of shocking revelations, including claims that a member of the royal family had concerns about how dark their son’s skin would be before he was born, as well as the Duchess saying she had suffered suicidal thoughts during her first pregnancy.

The Queen, Prince Charles and Prince William were reportedly “locked in crisis talks” after the premiere of the two-hour special with palace insiders describing a mood of “intense personal shock and sadness” that the prince had pressed the ‘nuclear button on his own family’, a source told the Daily Mail.

A statement is believed to be prepared by Buckingham Palace, however, the Queen was keen not to rush it out without careful consideration overnight, The Times reports.

The interview, which amassed over 17.1 million views, has divided the world as many shared their opinions on it.

The racism allegations have been a large part of the discussion surrounding the interview with many calling for the royal family to respond.

On Tuesday, shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth said Buckingham Palace needs to address the claims made by the couple.

“I think people would expect the Palace to respond”, he said.

In the US, The White House backed the couple’s decision to speak out. A spokesman said it took ‘courage’ for Meghan to open up about her struggles with her mental health.

Diane Abbott said she hoped the “moving” interview would be a signal to black and mixed-race women that they need not suffer in silence.

“For a lot of black and mixed-race women, when they can look at what we’re now hearing, what’s happening to Meghan, they can realise: if this can happen to her and if it could be so crushing and humiliating to her, I can face up to how that sort of thing makes me feel,” she told the Guardian.

The shadow education secretary, Kate Green, told Sky News the couple’s claims were “really distressing, shocking” and called on the palace to investigate any allegations of racism.

Labour leader, Keir Starmer, said the race and mental health issues raised by Meghan were “bigger than the royal family” and should not be put to one side. The children’s minister, Vicky Ford, stressed there was “no place for racism in our society”.

In Australia, the tell-all interview also reignited discussions around the country’s independence.

The former prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, said it was time for Australians to consider breaking away from the commonwealth.

“Our head of state should be an Australian citizen, should be one of us, not the Queen or King of the United Kingdom,” Turnbull told ABC TV on Tuesday.

“We should be so proud of our country and our fellow countrymen and women that we should say only an Australian should be eligible to be our head of state. Only an Australian is eligible to be our prime minister, so why should it be any different?”

While many shared support for the pair, others criticised the interview and Prince Harry’s claims that the UK press is bigoted.

The Society of Editors executive director, Ian Murray, said: “The UK media is not bigoted and will not be swayed from its vital role holding the rich and powerful to account”.

He added it was “not acceptable” for the couple to make such claims without supporting evidence.

Asked about his response to the interview, and whether Buckingham Palace should investigate the allegations, Boris Johnson declined to comment and instead declared his support for The Queen.

"I’ve always had the highest admiration for The Queen and the unifying role that she plays in our country and across the commonwealth," he said.

On Tuesday, Piers Morgan stormed off the set of Good Morning Britain in a huff after co-star Alex Beresford defended Meghan Markle’s decision to “cut him off”.

The astonishing scene happened less than ten minutes into Tuesday morning’s show, as the panel discussed Oprah’s bombshell interview with Meghan and Prince Harry.

The weatherman told Mr Morgan: “I understand you don’t like Meghan Markle, you’ve made it so clear a number of times on this programme. I understand you had a personal relationship with Meghan Markle - or had one - and she cut you off”.

Morgan interjects bluntly: “Ok, I’m done with this.” The GMB host gets up and storms out of the studio removing his microphone, adding “Sorry I can’t do this”.

Morgan later returned to interview Meghan’s father Thomas Markle, who said he was “disappointed” in the interview.

On Monday evening, just hours before the interview aired in the UK, a photo of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex showing their growing family was released.

The black and white image taken and shared by photographer Misan Harriman shows a smiling, pregnant Meghan stood by a tree cuddling Archie as Harry stands behind her.

“What wonderful news to celebrate on International Women’s Day!,” Mr Harriman wrote.

“Congratulations my friends, and welcome to the #girldad club H”.

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