Buckingham Palace official resigns after Black Charity CEO asked where she was ‘really’ from

CNN
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An honorary member of Buckingham Palace has resigned and apologized after a black charity said it was questioned if it was really British at a royal reception on Tuesday.

The guest, Ngozi Fulani, is the CEO of Sistah Space, an organization that provides specialized services to women of African and Caribbean heritage affected by abuse.

Fulani was attending a royal gala on domestic violence organized by the Queen on Tuesday night when she said a member of staff initiated a series of questions that the palace described as “unacceptable and deeply regrettable”.

Fulani said the person persistently asked about her heritage and would not accept that she was British.

Sistah Space shared a rough transcript of the conversation on Twitter on Wednesday. Fulani said that after identifying herself as British-born, the person asked her “where did you really come from”; “Where do your people come from” and “When did you first come here?”

When the Fulani replied that she was from the London borough of Hackney, a family member insisted: “No, what part of Africa are you from?” As quoted on the Sistah Space Twitter account.

Buckingham Palace, which did not name the family members involved in the incident, said earlier in the day that the person concerned had apologized and “stepped down from her honorary role with immediate effect”.

Sistah Space said it “serves no purpose to label and shame” the person in question on its Twitter account on Wednesday, adding, “It’s the system that needs to be reviewed.”

“Yes, the person was abusive, but there is no point in naming her and shaming her, it would make us just as bad. We’d prefer this to be dealt with gently,” said Sistah-Spies.

British media has identified the Buckingham Palace official as Lady Susan Hussey, who was the late Queen Elizabeth II’s lady-in-waiting for more than 60 years and is godmother to the Prince of Wales.

CNN has reached out to Ngozi Fulani and Buckingham Palace for further comment from the family member involved.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman acknowledged the incident and said the palace took the situation “very seriously”.

“Comments have been made that are unacceptable and deeply regrettable. We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani about this matter, and 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 deepest apologies for the hurt she has caused and step down from her honorary role with immediate effect.”

News of the reunion broke when the Prince and Princess of Wales traveled to the US ahead of the second iteration of the Earthshot Awards later this week.

A spokesperson for William said: “Racism has no place in our society, these comments are unacceptable. It is right that the person concerned has resigned.”

The incident is likely to renew fears that the palace is elitist and out of touch with reality when it comes to issues of race and identity.

The minors have, in recent years, faced allegations of racist behavior, including hiring practices decades ago Treat Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Former commander of the anti-terrorism police He said Tuesday That Meghan and Harry have faced “disgusting and very real” threats from right-wing extremists.

Meghan claimed in an interview with Oprah Winfrey last year that an unnamed family member had made remarks about their unborn child’s skin color while she was pregnant with Archie.

Prince William he said later The royal family was not “very much a racist family”.