Meghan Markle has been accused of plagiarism once again—this time for allegedly copying Cindy Crawford. The controversy arose when Crawford was quoted saying, "If people would treat themselves with the same kind of love they give to their friends, that would be such a great gift we could give ourselves." Shortly after, Meghan made a strikingly similar statement: "We just need to be kinder to ourselves. If we treated ourselves the way we treat our best friends, can you imagine how much better off we would be?"
Critics are quick to point out the similarities, accusing Meghan of swapping a few words around, assuming no one would notice. According to some, she doesn’t even care if people do notice—an attitude they attribute to narcissism.
Recently, Cindy Crawford appeared at a star-studded party hosted by Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful in Los Angeles. Notably, Meghan Markle, who is a close friend of Enninful, was absent. This has only fueled the ongoing narrative that Meghan has a habit of "borrowing" ideas from others.
Meghan's alleged lack of originality may stem from her career as an actress, where some actors are more comfortable sticking to scripts. In Meghan’s case, her critics argue that she often presents other people’s work as her own, simply reordering words to create a near-duplicate of the original. While it may not be exact plagiarism, the resemblance is close enough to raise suspicions.
It’s not difficult to give credit where it’s due, especially when simple techniques like footnotes and citations exist. These tools are commonly used to credit photos, graphics, and videos. But Meghan’s actions suggest she doesn’t believe this is necessary, which is why many are now calling her out.
This isn’t the first time Meghan has been accused of copying from others. Prominent figures like Steve Jobs, Eleanor Roosevelt, and even a line from *Grey’s Anatomy* have all been linked to instances where Meghan’s words bear striking similarities to their original sources. One infamous example dates back to 1995, when Meghan reportedly filed for copyright on the phrase, “A face without freckles is a night without stars.”
It turns out the phrase was adapted by her father, Thomas Markle Sr., from a song lyric he likely remembered from childhood. The song, “A Sky with No Blue” by Paula Joy Welter, contains the line, “A girl without freckles is like a night without stars.” Her father had reportedly altered the phrase to fit Meghan, who had many freckles as a child.
Another case of alleged plagiarism came in 2015, during an International Women’s Day event where Meghan, then a global ambassador for World Vision Canada, spoke about gender equality. It was only recently that some online users noticed that Meghan’s widely-applauded speech at the time bore remarkable similarities to a 1951 speech by former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
In Roosevelt’s speech for the Voice of America broadcast, she said, “It’s not enough to just talk about peace, because one must believe in it. It’s not enough to believe in it, because one must work at it.” Meghan’s version echoed those words almost verbatim: “It isn’t enough to simply talk about equality. One must believe in it, and it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it. Let us work at it, starting now.”
After the similarities between Meghan’s speech and Roosevelt’s were exposed, the Duchess of Sussex faced a fresh wave of criticism online. One Twitter user, Mary McKelvin, tweeted, "I guess that hashtag Meghan Markle doesn’t have an original thought in her head. Plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery, but Eleanor Roosevelt was one of the hardest-working First Ladies America ever had. You’ll never rise to her stature, Meghan."
The accusations keep piling up, and while Meghan’s supporters may dismiss them as mere coincidences, others are less forgiving, seeing a pattern of unoriginality that’s hard to ignore.
