Member of Household resigns

[myrtleWilson]

Awful story just broken on twitter about horrendous racist questioning from Lady Hussey to Ngozi Fulani from Sister Space at yesterdays VAWG event.

Lady Hussey has resigned.

[Edited by MNHQ to correct typo at OP's request]

mobile.twitter.com/Nadine_Writes/status/1597961031019827200

tweet from Nadine Writes (columnist for the Independent) who states Ms Fulani has revealed Buckingham Palace HAVEN’T contacted her over racially offensive remarks

I'm black, speak in a middle classed accent, many people have commented I don't sound 'black' so I get the 'where are you from", the subtext being, you sound English, but you can't be one of us, as you're black.

If you can't see asking someone for their heritage and not accepting they are British is rude, you need educating. Would you ask a white person who spoke in an English accent that question? No.

Let me tell you a story, At unviersity , a blonde, blue eyed girl from Kenya, family had been in Kenya for generations, I rudely as a drunk teenager once said she's not a real African- believe me I will never forget how upset this girl was , tears, screaming everything.

White Australians don't respond to that question, 'I'm Australian but my grandparents come from Liverpool'

White South Africans don't respond to that questions 'I'm South African but my grandparents come from Netherlands'

But non-white people can never really be proper British can we? We have to give a speech with I'm British BUT....

I know many black people because of this non-acceptance, DONT regard themselves as British, despite being British, having parents who were British, grandparents who were British ( pre -independence ) , Great great grandparents who were British.

I'm not native British, I'm black, my ancestors lived in the West Indies under British colonial rule since the 1700's, but I don't feel British to be honest. If I was at that event, I would have answered exactly as you suggest, not because its correct, but because I can't be fucking bothered trying to change people's mind who always see me as Johnny Foreigner and alien to this country.

Exactly, if I am asked “ where are you from” I say where I live. And that is the end of it, unless the other person says “ oh I used to live there, whereabouts are you” which starts a proper conversation, or I say “ but I grew up in Bolton” , which starts another proper conversation. A conversation, not an interrogation.

That Twitter feed is awful to read, I don’t think I would have been able to act with such grace and dignity if someone was cross examining me like that. Appallingly rude , arrogant and entitled ( ha ha , I wonder if that is the origin) behaviour .

Have you read the transcript? My nan's in her late 80s and she hasn't necessarily got her head around all the societal changes. But if she asked someone a question and the other person repeatedly made it clear that they didn't want to answer, my nan wouldn't continue persisting and complaining that it was "a challenge". That's just basic social skills which have existed for much longer than the last 10 years!

Lady Susan ought to be aware not to ask someone where they're "really" from, especially given her role. If she "can't" avoid being racist, she clearly needed to step down.

But even if she somehow didn't know that it's an inappropriate question, continuing to pester in that way after being politely shut down is extremely rude and disrespectful.

It was really very, very grim.

Appalling.

The whole thing is absolutely cringe worthy. Poor woman was probably really looking forward to the night and promoting her charity and then had to deal with this off putting casual racism. I imagine it put a real downer on the night.

The moving the hair thing would have really annoyed me to. How disrespectful!

White Australians don't respond to that question, 'I'm Australian but my grandparents come from Liverpool'

White South Africans don't respond to that questions 'I'm South African but my grandparents come from Netherlands'

But non-white people can never really be proper British can we? We have to give a speech with I'm British BUT....

Exactly this. This is what makes it so awful.

So, we must always remember that people's heritage is irrelevant. Where their parents came from? Doesn't matter. No one's business they are English now and that's all that matters.

Isn't there some kind of reverse racism going on here if we deny people their heritage? Don't ask! Must talk about all things English and British at all times.

That was Princess Michael of Kent. Not a working member of the royal family, she is the wife of the late queen’s cousin.

Probably as well she isn’t involved in official duties!

She was asked what her nationality is. She responded with British, because that's what she is. She asked her when she first came here, after she'd been told she was born here. She was asked where she really came from. This is racist fuckery, plain and simple. She would never have asked a white person where they really came from.

'White Australians don't respond to that question, 'I'm Australian but my grandparents come from Liverpool''

Yes they do! People often talk about their heritage.

Can't believe people are defending this! The poor woman should be able to go about her day without this sort of questioning.

Stop.

You can see full well that she was very dominant in aserting her view that the woman in question is not really who she says she is.

It certainly should give pause for thought regarding the two that left regardless of allegiance. Loyalty "no matter what" is weak, distructive, and often immoral too.

A good friend or a loyal subjective will speak up when needed.

So there!

You are being deliberately obtuse. Nobody here has said that people's heritage is irrelevant - can you please link to the poster that has said this?

I love talking about my heritage to people who are genuinely curious. As has been pointed out repeatedly, both on this thread and by Buckhingham Palace with their apology, this was a rude racist exchange. I'm saddened that you can't appreciate other people's points of view on this.

And if Ngoni wanted to share background on her heritage she would have done so - Lady Susan (apologies I got that wrong earlier!) had no right to harangue her.

I can think of one or two older relatives who couldn't exactly be depended upon to act in the correct way in this instance.

So there's no bloody way I would have them at an event as my representative, meeting people from different cultures and backgrounds.

The woman's views surely can't have come as a surprise to anyone at Buckingham Palace, she's been on the scene forever it seems.

They were desperate to throw cold water on this in order not to overshadow W&K's American jaunt. So desperate that they couldn't even put the statement on hold so there was time to action it.

That’s absolutely shocking. Vile woman.

Nope, that's bollocks. If you want to know what my heritage is, then ask me that question, don't ask me where I'm really from, especially when I've already told you that I'm British

Have you read the thread all the way through? Yet you have still learned nothing. Maybe someone with more patience than me will explain it all for you.

But she wasn't there for a National Heritage Day reception. She was there to represent her charity which had done such good work. There was absolutely no reason for to focus imperiously on her heritage. The line of questioning should have been, first and foremost, about her charity, and then if her heritage had later come up naturally in conversation it probably would have been fine.

As a white person living oop north with a very southern accent I'm regularly asked where I've come from originally.

The difference is that I generally don't then get interrogated about where my parents were from originally. It's just accepted that I'm British.

It's worrying that so many posters can't see why this line of questioning is troubling.

@BooksAreSaferThanPeople

Of course they can see it .
They've been mobilised to distract and downplay . I see it all the time on other threads

Also, I need to apologise - I misread Ngozi's name and therefore got it wrong on this thread.

It's disgusting beyond belief. And Lady S is " mortified". Tough. I'd like to think she'd learn from it but I doubt it.

I just knew there'd be people implying it wasn't true.