Prince William’s representative has spoken out against the alleged racist comments directed towards a guest at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
Ngozi Fulani, founder of the charity Sistah Space which supports African and caribbean heritage women affected by abuse, has claimed she was left feeling violated by a royal aide when attending a reception this week.
The meeting was hosted by Camilla, the Queen Consort, for violence against women and girls.
Fulani, who is Black, alleged that the aide – who she named only as Lady SH – moved her hair to reveal her name badge, before questioning the guest over where “her people” came from 10 minutes after she arrived at the event.
Fulani recounted on her social media account that she repeatedly said she was a British national, while the royal aide allegedly said: “I can see I am going to have a challenge getting you to say where you’re from.”
Lady Susan Hussey, godmother to Prince William and a close confidante to the late Queen, resigned hours later.
A Kensington Palace spokesperson later told the press that it was a “matter for Buckingham Palace” but that they were still willing to address it “head on”.
The spokesperson said: “I was really disappointed to hear about the guest’s experience at Buckingham Palace last night.
“Obviously I wasn’t there, but racism has no place in our society. The comments were unacceptable, and it is right that the individual has stepped aside with immediate effect.”
The representative said the Prince of Wales was on a plane when they were speaking to the press, but he is aware of the comments made and believes it was the right course of action to take. He will not be commenting further, according to the spokesperson.
Buckingham Palace said: “We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full facts.
“In this instance unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made. We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and we are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes.
“In the meantime, the individual concerned would like to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect.
“All members of the household are being reminded of the diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times.”
Two other women, the leader of the Women’s Equality Party Mandu Reid and another black female charity representative, allegedly witnessed the event.
Reid later told Sky News: “It was really uncomfortable. If Ngozi was a white woman there is no way that line of questioning would have taken place. It’s not what you expect.”
She said that the royals need to “step up” and acknowledge that “institutional racism is part of the culture”.
The allegation comes after Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, claimed last year in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that an unnamed member of the royal household had raised concerns about what colour skin her son would have.
Help and support:
- Tell MAMA supports victims of anti-Muslim hate.
- Young Minds offers information on racism and mental health for younger people.
- SARI (Stand Against Racism and Inequality) provides help to victims of hate.
- Stop Hate UK works to challenge all forms of hate.
