Queen Elizabeth II is on course to appoint a so-called “diversity czar” and make other “inclusive” changes to “modernize” the palace on the heels of Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle launching vague accusations of racism against the royal family.
Palace insiders told the Daily Mail that a “diversity czar” will be appointed to the palace and, additionally, the “monarchy will engage in an upcoming ‘listen and learn’ exercise in which the royals will ‘seek independent views’ on how it can improve diversity efforts encompassing minorities and the LGBT community,” Page Six reported.
“This is an issue which has been taken very seriously across the Households,” a palace source told the Daily Mail on Sunday. “We have the policies, procedures and programs in place but we haven’t seen the progress we would like and accept more needs to be done. We can always improve.”
“We are not afraid to look at new ways of approaching it,” the source added. “The work to do this has been under way for some time now and comes with the full support of the family.”
Markle’s interview with husband Duke of Sussex Prince Harry made waves earlier this month mostly over claims Markle made about alleged racism from within the royal family concerning her son’s skin tone, though she failed to name who made the comments.
“They were concerned that if he were too brown that that would be a problem?” host Oprah Winfrey asked. Markle responded, “I wasn’t able to follow up. If that’s the assumption you’re making…that would be a safe one.”
In response to Markle and Prince Harry’s claims of racism, Buckingham Palace released an official statement on behalf of the Queen.
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan,” the statement said. “The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.”
During the same interview, Markle noted that she never thought about what it would be like to become a royal and claimed she knew very little about the family. A report from Page Six cited a now-scrubbed years-old blog from Markle that seems to run in contrast with the claims. The Daily Wire reported:
Markle notably claimed that she never thought about what it might be like to marry a prince. She said she knew very little about the Royal family and her now-husband Duke of Sussex Prince Harry, and she didn’t even “Google” him before the pair went out. Markle did acknowledge to Winfrey during the sit-down interview that she knew of the Royal family.
Markel, however, reportedly penned a blog in 2014 musing about becoming a princess, specifically mentioning the wedding of her now-husband’s brother and wife, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge William and Kate. The blog has since been wiped.
Related: Meghan Markle 2014 Blog ‘Debunks’ Claims Made During Oprah Interview: Report