Post by Admin on Mar 29, 2021 3:01:35 GMT
Queen Elizabeth would reject Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's offer to advice the British Royal Family on how to become a more diverse workplace, according to a royal commentator.
The comments came amid news that the royal family is planning to hire a 'diversity czar'.
According to Katie Nicholl, a royal correspondent for Vanity Fair, the US-based royal couple "want to be involved with discussions" about reforming the Palace workplace.
Speaking to Entertainment tonight, she said, "Harry and Meghan would very much want to be involved with discussions about how the Palace might become a more diverse workplace.
Katie Nichol added, "But the feeling I get is that this is all being handled in-house.
Christy Pichichero, author and professor of history, George Mason University
In the wake of Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry’s “bombshell” Oprah Winfrey interview earlier this month, there were reports last week that Buckingham Palace is conducting a much-needed diversity review and is even considering hiring a “diversity czar,” a diversity consultant or a chief diversity officer for the palace.
As a historian of race and a diversity professional, I am glad to see that the royal family is finally taking the allegations by Meghan and Harry of racism and exclusionary treatment seriously. But it does come after the palace's initial brief and tepid response March 9 that said, “While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously,” and Prince William's March 11 declaration that the royals are “very much not a racist family.” (Given the diverse British citizenry and the global scope of the Commonwealth, one would hope not.)
First, positing that “recollections may vary” calls into question the veracity — and thus legitimacy — of the experiences Harry and Meghan conveyed. It leaves open and even invites the questions of whether Harry and Meghan were exaggerating in their claims, what their real motivations were and even whether they are trying to take down the institution. Ultimately, by suggesting that others remembered the events they recounted differently, it had the effect of undermining their public legitimacy.
But more perniciously, that sort of statement also calls into question Meghan's and Harry's own memories and even their capacities to perceive. It invites, if not demands, that they, too, wonder if they misunderstood the comment about the skin tone of their son, remembered things wrong or exaggerated the sense of race-based exclusion, negligence and mistreatment in their own minds. Challenging the truth of their recollections could have the effect of undermining their self-confidence and self-regard.
Consolidating one’s power by causing individuals to question their own judgments, perceptions of reality and memories has a name: gaslighting. It is a form of psychological manipulation by which abusers build their authority — and ability to continue abusing — by breaking down their victim's or victims' sense of self and their confidence in their grip on reality.
Discriminatory gaslighting happens when dominant social groups or individuals exclude or discriminate against minoritized groups and people and then deny their discriminatory behavior by calling into question the legitimacy of the victims’ perceptions or allegations. It is, in our society, tragically easy to write off an accusation of exclusion or discrimination by saying the victim misunderstood a decision, misjudged a gesture or behavior or misinterpreted someone’s words ("recollections may vary").
Hiring an expert in diversity and inclusion and revising policies is a critical step toward structural change, of course, but procedural changes from the top down are not enough. Cultural change is also necessary — and that will take a deep commitment to reckoning with the past, as well as cultivating new ways of thinking and behaving for all members of the royal household.
The process of cultural change is tricky, in large part because racism and other forms of bigotry most often work unconsciously. Every human — including royals — has implicit biases that inform their perceptions and decision-making about people, places, events and things. These biases are a part of cognitive functioning and are shaped by the prejudices of the world around us. It is only through continual training and intentional action that one can combat these tendencies and heal from evolving in a world of intersectional prejudice.
The comments came amid news that the royal family is planning to hire a 'diversity czar'.
According to Katie Nicholl, a royal correspondent for Vanity Fair, the US-based royal couple "want to be involved with discussions" about reforming the Palace workplace.
Speaking to Entertainment tonight, she said, "Harry and Meghan would very much want to be involved with discussions about how the Palace might become a more diverse workplace.
Katie Nichol added, "But the feeling I get is that this is all being handled in-house.
Christy Pichichero, author and professor of history, George Mason University
In the wake of Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry’s “bombshell” Oprah Winfrey interview earlier this month, there were reports last week that Buckingham Palace is conducting a much-needed diversity review and is even considering hiring a “diversity czar,” a diversity consultant or a chief diversity officer for the palace.
As a historian of race and a diversity professional, I am glad to see that the royal family is finally taking the allegations by Meghan and Harry of racism and exclusionary treatment seriously. But it does come after the palace's initial brief and tepid response March 9 that said, “While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously,” and Prince William's March 11 declaration that the royals are “very much not a racist family.” (Given the diverse British citizenry and the global scope of the Commonwealth, one would hope not.)
First, positing that “recollections may vary” calls into question the veracity — and thus legitimacy — of the experiences Harry and Meghan conveyed. It leaves open and even invites the questions of whether Harry and Meghan were exaggerating in their claims, what their real motivations were and even whether they are trying to take down the institution. Ultimately, by suggesting that others remembered the events they recounted differently, it had the effect of undermining their public legitimacy.
But more perniciously, that sort of statement also calls into question Meghan's and Harry's own memories and even their capacities to perceive. It invites, if not demands, that they, too, wonder if they misunderstood the comment about the skin tone of their son, remembered things wrong or exaggerated the sense of race-based exclusion, negligence and mistreatment in their own minds. Challenging the truth of their recollections could have the effect of undermining their self-confidence and self-regard.
Consolidating one’s power by causing individuals to question their own judgments, perceptions of reality and memories has a name: gaslighting. It is a form of psychological manipulation by which abusers build their authority — and ability to continue abusing — by breaking down their victim's or victims' sense of self and their confidence in their grip on reality.
Discriminatory gaslighting happens when dominant social groups or individuals exclude or discriminate against minoritized groups and people and then deny their discriminatory behavior by calling into question the legitimacy of the victims’ perceptions or allegations. It is, in our society, tragically easy to write off an accusation of exclusion or discrimination by saying the victim misunderstood a decision, misjudged a gesture or behavior or misinterpreted someone’s words ("recollections may vary").
Hiring an expert in diversity and inclusion and revising policies is a critical step toward structural change, of course, but procedural changes from the top down are not enough. Cultural change is also necessary — and that will take a deep commitment to reckoning with the past, as well as cultivating new ways of thinking and behaving for all members of the royal household.
The process of cultural change is tricky, in large part because racism and other forms of bigotry most often work unconsciously. Every human — including royals — has implicit biases that inform their perceptions and decision-making about people, places, events and things. These biases are a part of cognitive functioning and are shaped by the prejudices of the world around us. It is only through continual training and intentional action that one can combat these tendencies and heal from evolving in a world of intersectional prejudice.