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The backlash to Meghan Markle’s every move exposes a dark double standard

Hint: It's every bit as pathetic as you might expect.

By Zara Shabir August 29, 2019

Attribution: [Image description: The Duchess of Cambridge is wearing a green dress and smiling. The Duchess of Sussex is to her left, wearing a white shirt and sunglasses and smiling.] Via Karwai Tang/Getty Images.

Cast your minds back to the 10th of February 2019.

Prince William, president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and his wife, Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, attended the BAFTA Film Awards in London and mingled with celebrities and stars.

All eyes were on Kate and what she would wear.

So, when she turned up in a white Alexander McQueen one-shoulder gown and sparkly pumps, the media and royal fans loved it. She was described by fashion and royal commentators as ‘ethereal’, ‘stunning’ and ‘a modern princess’. The headlines were persistent with these compliments, and the media attention and opinions were all good and fine, despite how dreary it is that we get so overexcited over a woman’s physical appearance.

What isn’t okay is that the very same people, royal fans and media outlets, adoring and swooning over Kate’s ‘princess’ look, criticized and condemned her sister-in-law, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex only weeks prior for…

Wearing a one-shoulder dress to a celebrity event.

Two images side by side. The image on the left is of the Duchess of Cambridge, a white, brown-haired lady in a white one-shoulder dress on a red carpet. The image on the right is the Duchess of Sussex. a darker-skinned woman with black hair tied back and in a black one-shoulder gown on a stage. — [Image description: Two images side by side. The image on the left is of the Duchess of Cambridge in a white one-shoulder dress on a red carpet. The image on the right is the Duchess of Sussex in a black one-shoulder gown on a stage.] Via Jeff Spicer/Anthony Harvey/BAFTA/Shutter/REX/Getty.

And how was Meghan described in the press for the black Givenchy one-shoulder gown she donned to the British Fashion Awards?

Vulgar, trashy and disrespectful.

She was accused by royal commentators of breaking royal protocol and told that she needed to stop dressing like a ‘Hollywood star‘ and instead like a royal, because royals apparently never wear one-shoulder dresses.

Except that Princess Diana, the Queen, the Countess of Wessex, and Princess Margaret have all worn them before.

Four images of British royal women in one-shoulder ensembles. From left to right: Queen Elizabeth, a white woman, wearing a silver tiara, a white wrap, and a one-shoulder gown; Diana, Princess of Wales, a white woman with short blonde hair in a white one-shoulder gown; a black and white portrait of Princess Margaret, a white woman with dark hair in a one-shoulder gown; Sophie, Countess of Wessex, a white woman with blonde hair smiling at the camera in a pink one-shoulder gown. — [Image description: Four images of British royal women in one-shoulder ensembles. From left to right: Queen Elizabeth, wearing a silver tiara, a white wrap, and a one-shoulder gown; Diana, Princess of Wales, in a white one-shoulder gown; a black and white portrait of Princess Margaret, in a one-shoulder gown; Sophie, Countess of Wessex, smiling at the camera in a pink one-shoulder gown.] Via Chris Jackson/Tim Graham/Getty Images.

So, these people are really going to call a mixed-race royal ‘trashy’ and ‘vulgar’ while deeming white royals ‘beautiful’ and ‘ethereal’ for wearing the exact same thing, and still be adamant that their criticism is not racially motivated?

But the hypocrisy doesn’t end there.

Meghan is constantly compared to her sister-in-law, Kate, and always seems to be in the wrong – even when she does things that Kate, their late mother-in-law Diana, and other royal women have already done and been praised and complimented for.

For example, while on tour in Australia, Meghan wore a maxi dress with a thigh-high slit and was slammed for being disrespectful and body-shamed for her “thin legs” by the same people who applaud Kate when she wears dresses with thigh-high slits and is complimented on her toned legs.

Images of the Duchesses of Sussex and Cambridge in maxi dresses. On the left, Meghan Markle, a mixed-race woman, is in sunglasses with her dark hair up and is wearing a maxi dress with a thigh-high slit on the left. On the right is Catherine Middleton, a white woman with brown hair, carrying flowers and wearing a navy and white polka dot maxi dress with a thigh-high slit in the center. — [Image description: Images of the Duchesses of Sussex and Cambridge in maxi dresses. On the left, Meghan Markle is in sunglasses with her dark hair up and is wearing a maxi dress with a thigh-high slit on the left. On the right is Kate Middleton carrying flowers and wearing a navy and white polka dot maxi dress with a thigh-high slit in the center.] Via Chris Jackson/Getty Images.

Meghan’s color palette for her clothes sticks to more dark and neutral colors, favoring black and navy in particular.

For this, she is shredded apart daily, as ‘royals do not wear black‘ unless for a funeral or during mourning. But some of her late mother-in-law’s most iconic outfits are black, and other royals, such as the Countess of Wessex and the Duchess of Cambridge, have worn black and were always complimented and praised for their ensembles.

Four images of British royal woman in black ensembles. From left to right: Princess Diana, a white woman with short blonde hair, is wearing a black cocktail dress with a pearl choker necklace; Sophie, Countess of Wessex, a white woman with blonde hair, is wearing a black midi dress with a large black fascinator; Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, a white woman with brown hair, is wearing a black coat, tights, and boots; Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, a white woman with silvery hair, is wearing a black suit jacket and skirt. — [Image description: Four images of British royal woman in black ensembles. From left to right: Princess Diana, wearing a black cocktail dress with a pearl choker necklace; Sophie, Countess of Wessex, wearing a black midi dress with a large black fascinator; Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, wearing a black coat, tights, and boots; Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, wearing a black suit jacket and skirt.] Via Simon Kreitum/Chris Jackson/Paul Ellis/PA/Getty/Reuters.

So why the hypocrisy?

Simple: the media and royal fans are frightened of Meghan and everything she stands for.

Meghan is different from other royal women because she is everything that they aren’t: mixed-race, liberal, divorcée actresses. Meghan’s arrival has messed with the royal fandom’s perception of the status quo, leading them to believe they’ve now lost control. The only way these people can claim dominance over the situation is by discriminating against those they are intimidated by, belittling and criticizing them for everything they do, particularly their appearance and behavior.

Royal rules and protocol offer certain guidelines, but new, publicly-developed rules seem to appear every day when the Duchess of Sussex is out and about. Even wearing an outfit remotely similar to that of one of her in-law’s attracts criticism for not being ‘unique,’ while everyone turns a blind eye towards other royals wearing and doing the very same things.

While the media won’t stop analyzing what women in the royal family are wearing, it is very clear that the racial discrimination towards Meghan Markle won’t go away any time soon.

Ultimately, it strikes me as odd that while the world’s oldest and most traditional royal institution can move forward from their discriminatory past, mainstream media and so-called royal fans cannot.