A furious debate erupted on GB News as two commentators clashed heads on suggested racism within the royal family.
The row was sparked following the release of Omid Scobie’s new royal biography Endgame, in which several new claims have been made against the royal family.
In his book, Omid Scobie suggests “two members of the royal household” expressed concern about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s son Archie’s skin colour while Meghan was pregnant.
The accusation was first brought to light in 2021, when Meghan told Oprah Winfrey in the couple’s bombshell interview that “one” member of the royal family had sparked the conversation about their unborn child.
Takyi said she believes the royal family ‘are not racist’
GB News
Discussing the claims on Britain’s Newsroom, Showbiz reporter Stephanie Takyi and anti-racism campaigner Imarn Ayton debated if the British monarchy is racist.
Takyi shared her thoughts on the allegation and said she believes the royal family “are not racist”.
In contradiction, Ayton argued that “if you want to talk about racism within the royal family, you need to think about context.”
In defence of the royal family, Stephanie said: “In order to be racist, you need to have specific examples where someone has really attacked the colour of someone’s skin or made a very defamatory comment about someone’s race. And I don’t think that’s the case here.
Takyi continued: “What’s happened with the Oprah interview, we’ve had these unknown named royals who’ve made specific comments about Archie’s skin colour. To be honest, that’s more a kind of thing anyone would be a bit curious, what colour will the children be when they’re about to be born.
“So I think until we name who these royals are and what these specific incidents are, we cannot say they are racist.”
In response, Ayton hit back: “I appreciate that you said that people need to give specific examples in terms of racism. Well, I’ll be honest, with all due respect, I think you’re actually referring to overt racism where specific examples are needed.
“So our frame of reference in this country is overt racism, obviously, deliberate forms of racial prejudice. And so this is why it’s quite easy to lead with the rationale, which is I need to have a very clear cut, amazing, obvious example of racism.
“So I think what you’re actually referring to, Stephanie, is overt racism.
“I think in this particular context we’re actually talking about two things, covert racism and internalised racism. So now covert racism, as you know, you’ve heard the micro-aggressions. And the reason why is because you just get these kind of subtle behaviours in regards to racial prejudice. So I don’t think you need anything obvious and clear cut because covert racism is very subtle.
“Stephanie, I’m going to talk to you on a real basis right now. Black woman to black woman. Tell me if I’m wrong. Honest to God, tell me if I’m wrong.”
Imarn Ayton said the accusation is ‘overt racism’
GB News
Takyi then responded: “I totally understand what you’re saying Imarn in the sense of colourism, that’s even an issue that plagues among black people. That’s even within our own family. So I refuse to label that as racism because that’s the mindset that has developed so many years and generations about how light a child’s going to be, how dark a child’s going to be.
“In terms of the royals, ignorance has been bliss, so we can’t say that the royals haven’t gone through a lot of changes over the last few years where they’re addressing when it comes to race relations. But my problem is, calling people racist very loosely is a problem, because then when we do have real incidents of racism out there, people won’t take it seriously.
“When we try to bring it down to these kind of minute situations, it’s not fair. We don’t know who the royals are and it’s not fair to be branding racism when we need to really define what is a racist.”
Ayton then fumed at Takyi: “You need to open your mind. It’s not about obvious racial prejudice. It’s now about subtle forms of racial prejudice. And black people internalise that racial prejudice.
“You’re wearing a weave, Stephanie, you are wearing a weave. There was something in your mind that said I’m going to put on white people’s hair. Right? I’ve been there with my blonde wig during Black Lives Matter.”
Takyi argued in response: “This is what my problem is, because my problem is that I’m talking about overt racism. Overt racism is when I can have facts. How can you judge someone about internal racism?
“What is your facts on someone’s thoughts or feelings? Then we can all be accused of racism. Not just white people, black people too. We need to have real evidence before we’re going to start branding people racist. It’s not fair.
“I’m a black woman. Trust me. I’ve been through racism. I’ve been through racist experiences. But if I’m going to call someone a racist, I better have the facts. I better have facts of what they’ve said to me and when.”
