What exactly is "the Sussex Squad"?

[Prydddan]

I don't know whether this is too controversial a topic for such a thread to be allowed to stand. But I post in good faith on a topic I believe has a lot of social and political relevance.

Does the "Sussex Squad" actually exist? If so, how do you join? If not, do people ever identify as belonging to it?

If it exists, was it hijacked by SarahData and Bouzy or was it their creation? And, if so, to what extent?

Thanks in advance.

What I would say about Meghan is there has been so many lies that she has found herself caught up in that originate from Harry. From the racism/unconscious bias, the awarding of the titles, the promise of security. It can be easy to blame the women involved but there is a pattern of the women being vilified while the royal lineage protected.

I agree with you to a level vespa

I think of all the people that have allegedly failed her, the one closest to her has failed her the most.

Do I think she could have a right side to her though? Also yes.

She has enough punishment seeing out her days with that seething tube of resentment though.

Maybe they both enjoy the misery of victimhood. Who knows?

I have to rewatch the preacher but I thought it was Camilla laughing and Kate giving her side eye. I thought it was rude tbh. But then I’ve sat through long Greek Orthodox services where Most of us are getting fed up so can sympathise!

I think the idea that tiaras have a habitual wearer is a good one. Queen Camilla looks terrific in the bigger ones (they just look right on her hair) so perhaps we'll see more of them.

And I think Sophie needs a "new" fabulous one to mark her upgrade to Edinburgh

I can't remember what was being said at that point.

Anyone?

Is it possible he had just made a light comment and she was laughing in appreciation with him, not at him?

No, he went on and on and on and I think they got the giggles. He massively overran his time slot as well as having a very different style to the usual in that setting. I remember watching on TV and thinking WTF when is he ever going to stop

That preacher at the wedding could have been the best advert for that sort of thing if he had just stuck to his time limit. You’ve got two ninety somethings at the front who need to get somewhere comfy or to a loo. Just do your job in the time allotted! I think the giggles looked horribly contagious. Especially with Zara, exercising the freedom of no public role and a bladder being stepped on by a baby not hiding her feelings at all.

The massive formal events of that sort are usually rehearsed and timed to the minute. It must have been a bit of a headache for all those on parade if there was a significant over-run

Quite. It was insufferably rude of him to grandstand and exceed his allotted time the way he did.

I remember watching on TV and thinking WTF when is he ever going to stop

TV was on in the background here and every time I turned round he was still going.

It reminded me of the far too many 'three point' sermons I've endured. The ones where you think the preacher must be about done and then the dreaded words 'third point' pierce the coma you've fallen into.

I don't think it was insufferably rude, or not deliberately so. But I do think it was unfortunate. Perhaps he didn't realise how much goes in to an event of that scale and how sticking closely to the timings matters. I'm sure he would have been told, but he may not have grasped the full importance.

I think it is cultural. It is a generalisation, but whenever I have been to church with African friends the prayers and preaching last as long as people feel called to pray/preach. Responding to the Spirit is valued above timekeeping.

What was odd, in my view, is that he was invited to.preach despite Meghan having no connection to him.

If there was a genuine connection it would have made sense. However, if there was no connection, and the rest of the service was trad Anglican, it just didn't fit.

The thing is neither of them are even religious so what was the point of it?

I've wondered that as well, particularly with regard to them christening their children.

Thatsthewayitisnt · Today 14:13
The thing is neither of them are even religious so what was the point of it?

Virtue-signalling? And it wasn't really part of M's culture, was it? Had she been a church-goer in her youth or past? If someone knows better - please correct me.

At the time it seemed to me like a gesture towards her black American heritage, but (like others here!) I've since learned that Meghan's background didn't show involvement in that particular culture, so with hindsight it does seem a bit cringily hypocritical and meaningless. And yes - no problem with the preacher otherwise if he'd kept to time.

I understand it’s cultural for him and his own congregation, and that’s fine, although on this occasion there was no evidence that anyone apart from him was moved to respond to the spirit for quite such an extended period.
It isn’t cultural for M as far as I know, so it’s difficult to understand a) why he was invited, and b) why having been invited he didn’t respect the tradition he was invited into or follow the brief he undoubtedly received.

I agree,

The issue wasn't his preaching, it was the lack.of connection with Meghan.

So not authentic

Sorry if this has been mentioned (just rejoined the thread and not read everything) but I've just read elsewhere that Jonathan Perkins, Head of Race and Diversity at UCLA and a close contact of H & M, has been tweeting horrible things about Catherine since her cancer diagnosis. Apparently on Easter Sunday he tweeted 'Isn't Princess Catherine supposed to rise from the dead today?'

What has happened to the academic world that people of this calibre are in positions of power? That alone would have got him the sack once. What is going on in the world? I guess this is exactly what is meant by 'Sussex Squad', and when they're just individual dim oddballs, that's one thing, but when academics at top universities start spouting vicious and offensive rubbish - something's gone horrible wrong somewhere.

@CoffeeCantata He's the same bloke who, as a student, made up a story about campus police racially profiling him. Hard to believe they let him graduate, when he deliberately set out to get working class employees at the university sacked for something they didn't do. Even harder to believe UCLA employed him with that track record. And unbelievable that they will not take disciplinary measures against him for bringing the university into disrepute - which imo he is doing, even though he has the right under free speech to say what he wants.

Academia in US is a mess. It’s no longer about teaching students how to think, instead it’s about indoctrination.

UVA is / was a highly respected public University. It’s very difficult to gain admission if you are from out of state. The law school is highly ranked also. But they’ve had issues like this recently and I think are unsure how to handle it. Particularly because those telling the stories have obvious mental health issues.

Here is a description of similar incident that had heavy coverage.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Rape_on_Campus

By the way, one of the big issues here with UVA is that it was founded by Thomas Jefferson, the 3rd US President who owned over 600 enslaved people. I don’t know how we reconcile any of that, that a top institution began this way, but accusing a black student of lying about poor treatment by police would not be taken lightly.

Ugh, hate the word “owned”. Should have written enslaved over 600 people. This language matters to me.