Prince William and Kate Middleton landed on US soil for the first time since 2014 on Wednesday, 30 November. However, they were received with mixed feelings at their first public engagements.
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A trip overshadowed by controversy
The Prince and Princess of Wales have flown across the Atlantic for the Prince's Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, which is being held on Friday. Five winners will be awarded £1 million to fund planet-saving projects at the event.
The first stop on their tour was the Boston City Hall for a launch event for The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony. Boston's chief of environment, energy and open space, Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, addressed the dignitaries assembled there:
On this day, I invite us all to consider the legacy of colonialism and racism. […] its deep connection to the degradation of the land and our planet.
The comments may have left Prince William squirming a little. Not only because he was accused of blaming the people of Africa for the impact of population growth on the environment but also by the events that were unfolding back home. Indeed, Prince William's Godmother resigned from her honorary role as Lady of the Household after repeatedly and aggressively questioning Ngozi Fulani on her background and heritage.
Unpopular with the public
The Prince and Princess didn't have much luck when they attended a basketball game on Wednesday night.
When their faces were shown on the jumbotron, they were greeted with a sea of boos and chants of 'USA'.
They got booed pic.twitter.com/kYGTamJqB2
— Klaire Kane 🎙 (@KlaireKane) December 1, 2022
Sky News royal correspondent, Laura Bundock, believed that this trip to the US could have been an excellent opportunity for Prince William and Kate Middleton to rebuild royal relations with the American public. However, this latest racism row will do little to heal the Royal Family's damaged reputation.
Washington Post's royal columnist wrote:
This will be seen by many people as substantiating things that Meghan and Harry have said both in terms of perhaps the comments that were made to them and the palace’s hesitation to act on things that were said to them.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's docuseries trailer
If the racism scandal wasn't enough to cast a considerable shadow over the Prince and Princess of Wales's US visit, then the release of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's long-awaited trailer for their reveal-all docuseries has just dropped on the streaming giant Netflix.
The fallout from the Sussexes Oprah interview was immense, and the reputation of the Royal Family took a huge hit. Something that they are struggling to recover from in the eyes of the American public.
Read more: Prince Harry and Meghan: This is how the public is reacting to their new Netflix trailer
In the trailer, viewers can hear Harry's voice say:
No one knows what’s happening behind closed doors.
It might not be a coincidence that when Prince Harry speaks these words, a photo of what looks to be Meghan Markle in tears on a bed changes to an image of his brother Prince William and sister-in-law, Kate Middleton. This leads viewers to believe that some light might be shed on the fallout between the Sussexes and the now-Waleses.
Then Meghan can be heard saying at the end:
When the stakes are this high, doesn’t it make more sense to hear our story from us?
Sources used:
Sky News: William and Kate met by chants of 'USA, USA' and pockets of booing as race row clouds visit
News.com.au: William and Kate booed by Boston Celtics basketball fans during US trip
Newsweek: Prince William, Kate Middleton Booed at Celtics Game on Day of Race Storm
