72 UK lawmakers slam ‘colonial’ coverage of Meghan

Seventy-two women in Britain’s parliament condemned the “outdated, colonial undertones” of newspaper coverage of Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, in an open letter released on Tuesday that echoed attacks made by Prince Harry against UK tabloids this month.
Led by the lawmaker Holly Lynch, the members of parliament wrote to Meghan that they stood in solidarity with her against “the often distasteful and misleading nature” of some articles about the duchess and her family.
“On occasions, stories and headlines have represented an invasion of your privacy and have sought to cast aspersions about your character,” the lawmakers said in the letter, which was posted on Twitter by Lynch. “Even more concerning still, we are calling out what can only be described as outdated, colonial undertones to some of these stories.”
The MPs who signed the letter dated Tuesday came from across UK’s fractured political parties. They included members of the opposition Labour Party, like Lynch, the governing Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. They said they understood the “abuse and intimidation” often directed toward high-profile women, and would “use the means at our disposal to ensure that our press accept your right to privacy and show respect, and that their stories reflect the truth”.
For years, the tabloids’ aggressive coverage of Meghan has drawn criticism from her supporters. When rumours of the prince’s relationship with Meghan, who is biracial, spread across UK in 2016, Harry denounced the “racial undertones” of the coverage.
That year, columnist Rachel Johnson, PM Boris Johnson’s sister, wrote in Mail on Sunday that Meghan would contribute “some rich and exotic DNA” to the royal family. Daily Mail did a story on her upbringing in Los Angeles: “Harry’s Girl Is (Almost) Straight Outta Compton. The letter did not single out any articles or news organisations, but appeared to endorse Harry and Meghan’s assertion that the duchess’s privacy has been violated by tabloid coverage.
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References

1. ^{^} Duchess of Sussex (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)
2. ^{^} Prince Harry (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)
3. ^{^} UK tabloids (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

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