Meghan: A Hollywood Princess(58)
But it was much harder than it sounded. In January 2017, for instance, with her Global Ambassador hat on, she flew to India on behalf of World Vision Canada. The five-day visit was intended to focus on child poverty and specifically on why teenage girls from “slum communities” dropped out of school. The answer partly lay in the fact that when girls at school begin menstruating there are no facilities in the local schools to help them cope with this perfectly natural change in their bodies. Ashamed, they stay away from school. It is a hidden issue, one that Meghan felt could be easily solved with the proper use of resources. She felt comfortable taking on these issues, telling an audience in Atlanta before she left that humanitarian work made her life feel more “balanced.” Her newfound international celebrity enabled her views to find a wider audience, and her essay on her visit to Delhi and Mumbai to discover why periods affected the potential of millions of teenage girls appeared in the March edition of Time magazine.
Her humanitarian work was a ticklish issue, though. While the palace may not have objected in principle to the causes she espoused, they were not undertaken under the umbrella of the royal family. In short, she was acting as a freelance operation within the corporate royal “firm.”
There was bound to be a conflict at some point. In her own mind Meghan had to square the intellectual and emotional circle. The Tig was designed to empower women and encourage gender equality. Yet she accepted that the mushrooming interest in her blog and Instagram had little to do with her work on Suits and more with the fact that she was dating a man who was in his position of authority and influence simply by dint of birth. The irony was not lost on Meghan. She is no fool, realizing that in the long run her association with Prince Harry would ultimately give her a megaphone with which to articulate the issues that she held dear. The price was giving up her baby. In early March 2017 she said a sad farewell to her thousands of Tig followers:
“After close to three beautiful years on this adventure with you, it’s time to say goodbye to The Tig,” she wrote. “What began as a passion project (my little engine that could) evolved into an amazing community of inspiration, support, fun and frivolity. Keep finding those Tig moments of discovery, keep laughing and taking risks, and keep being ‘the change you wish to see in the world.’”
Her Instagram, which had 1.9 million followers, went the same way. One fan, Jennifer Oakes, wrote: “Never mind the people who would see you remain single forever, with marriage comes sacrifice (both sides).”
Not everyone was so understanding. Shortly before she closed down her popular and influential website, her half sister Samantha launched another broadside: “There is so much more to focus on in the world than shoes and handbags,” she tweeted. “Meghan Markle needs to practice what she preaches or change her speeches.” Samantha’s belated criticism, just as the site was about to close, indicated how out of the family loop she was.
Within days of kissing a fond farewell to her online community, Meghan was given a classic lesson about life in the royal goldfish bowl. In early March, Harry and Meghan made their separate ways to Jamaica for the three-day wedding festivities of his close friend Tom “Skippy” Inskip and literary agent Laura Hughes-Young.
Harry met Meghan at the airport and drove her to the exclusive Round Hill Hotel at Montego Bay, where they were booked into a $7,000-a-night villa. They changed into their swimwear, Harry sporting a pair of green swim trunks, Meghan a dark blue bikini topped off with her trademark white fedora. They kissed and cuddled as they paddled in the warm Caribbean water. Suddenly Harry’s mood turned dark. It was nothing to do with Meghan. It was the presence of paparazzi, their long lenses focused on the couple. Even Meghan’s consoling arm around his shoulders did little to calm him down. Although the British media did not publish the offending pictures, several European magazines and websites had no such qualms.
The prince complained first to the Daily Mail online for using the pictures and then, when they did not delete them from their website, made a formal complaint to the Independent Press Standards Organisation. In May the committee found in the prince’s favor, stating: “The Committee found that the complainant had been photographed in circumstances in which he had a reasonable expectation of privacy. He had not consented to the images’ publication, and Mail Online had not sought to justify their publication in the public interest.” They ordered the online newspaper to prominently display the ruling for at least twenty-four hours.
Following his media spat, the next day Harry was one of fourteen ushers for the wedding in the Hopewell Baptist Church. He was in a jauntier mood, and Meghan, who wore a patterned floral $2,000 Erdem dress, was noticeably affectionate and loving throughout the ceremony.
Pastor Conrad Thomas, who conducted the service, said afterward: “Harry and Meghan held hands and I will never forget their radiant smiles. They looked so happy together. I told him ‘It’s your turn next, sir.’”
At the evening reception, guests including the Duchess of York and her daughter Princess Eugenie, feasted on jerk chicken and lobster washed down by rum cocktails and champagne. Unfortunately, Harry knocked over a tray of drinks as he did a “Michael Jackson moonwalk” on the dance floor.
“He was going backwards as ‘Billie Jean’ blared out when he banged into a waitress carrying a tray of drinks and sent them flying” said an onlooker. “Harry gasped, looked shocked and put his hands on the waitress’s shoulders and apologized.”