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Leave Lilibet Alone
Once again racism rears its ugly head when it comes to Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, and their kids
What’s in a name? Apparently a lot when it comes to royal babies. After Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, announced they were pregnant with a girl during that infamous Oprah interview, speculation began over both the name and the due date.
Earlier this week, royal watchers received their answer. Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor was born on Friday, June 4 at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, weighing in at 7 pounds and 11 ounces, according to an announcement on Harry and Meghan’s Archewell website. A fine name if you ask me, especially considering how the first name is a direct homage to Queen Elizabeth II, Harry’s grandmother. As the story goes, the queen reportedly had difficulty pronouncing her own name as a child, and thus the moniker “Lilibet” was given by her father, King George V, according to the BBC. And the second name is in honor of Harry’s late mother Diana, Princess of Wales, who was killed in a car crash in 1997.
A touching tribute, indeed, and one that has been received with mixed reactions. While Buckingham Palace issued a statement saying the queen is “delighted” by the news of her 11th great-grandchild, others are claiming the name Lilibet is “disrespectful” because it’s a “private nickname,” says royal biographer Angela Levin. There’s also confusion as to whether the queen gave her blessing for the name to be used and yet others who believe this supposed olive branch is not enough to undo the damage Harry and Meghan allegedly caused during their tell-all interview earlier this year. Furthermore, people are insinuating that the royal couple is somehow attempting to profit off the institution they’ve worked so hard to distance themselves from.
Give me a break. I’m not a royal expert, but I find it quite hard to believe anything gets past the queen without her knowing. So it’s fair to say Harry and/or Meghan probably gave her a heads up about the name…
