Meghan and Harry's greatest privilege in not being members of the House of Windsor
We look at the recent and very active public agenda of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and what is the biggest advantage (at great risk) they have in not being senior members of the British crown.
Dan Macsai, TIME Executive Editor and TIME100 Editorial Director, shared why Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were invited to host a special curation entitled Engineering A Better World, where they will discuss, alongside experts, how to create communities online that are more compassionate, safer and more reliable.
"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, both TIME100 alumni, are among the world's most influential voices. We look forward to working with them to raise essential voices and highlight real solutions to some of the most pressing problems of our time." Macsai expressed.
Being among the most influential voices in the world is why the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were chosen to be part of the TIME effort and also when it comes to speaking and participating in the most outstanding forums. That, having a voice! Is one of their greatest privileges, now that they are officially former royals.
Giving your opinion openly, proposing without reservation your vision of what needs to be done to improve the world, sharing the debate with great minds and leaders in all areas is the right and privilege that Meghan and Harry earned by abandoning their position, changing the status quo of the British crown and moving to another country.
Lady Di's son pursued his own American dream, leaving behind the title and treatment of His Royal Highness Prince Henry Charles Albert David, Duke of Sussex, Earl of Dumbarton, Baron Kilkeel, Knight of the Victorian Royal Order, he achieved something that not even Queen Elizabeth II can do.
Harry today is free to express his judgment on any subject: "It is vital to" reject "hate speech, misinformation and negativity online." It was the message he sent to the Americans ahead of the November presidential election, something that may have caused a diplomatic conflict for the government headed by his grandmother.
The Duke of Sussex cannot forget, as surely almost no one does, that, as the phrase in the chic flick Ever After goes, which is a powerful truth: "You were born to privilege, and with that you come specific obligations". Harry will never cease to be seen as a member and possible heir to the British crown, so he must watch what he says.
Part or not of the House of Windsor, the prince still cannot ignore that the sovereignty of a nation must be respected without regard, if neither he nor Elizabeth II and no one in the royal family can vote in the elections of his country (something that cost revolutions) is precisely because it is considered something "highly unconstitutional."
Now that Harry will speak in the framework of TIME100, he will have to remember that one of his specific obligations is to ensure that he does not violate either the substance or the form of the autonomy of the American people, who have received him with open arms and from whom his president (not with such good intention) wished him "luck".
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will host a specially curated edition of #TIME100Talks on the state of our shared digital experience https://t.co/uwtSvhayND
— #TeamTIME (@TeamTime) October 16, 2020
In this sense, Meghan has greater autonomy, she is a North American citizen, so she can invite her compatriots to vote, although as another "of the most influential voices", she must always try to have equanimity on her side, avoid at all costs hurt susceptibilities (although it is something common for Trump, before almost anything).
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have before them one of their most difficult tasks, reinventing themselves, harnessing that media power to, as they are doing (that cannot be denied by anyone), change history and lay the foundations of modernity in a new normal to embrace privileges, observing one of the essential values: respect.
