Many can agree that the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry — who is sixth in line to the English throne — and Meghan Markle— an American, biracial, divorcee actress — will have a significant cultural impact. How big or significant that impact will be is still up for discussion.
But according to Rev. Al Sharpton, their union alone was a sign that white supremacy is “on its last breath.”
“When you got little white girls in Wales saying, ‘I want to be like Meghan,’ there’s a shift worldwide that white male supremacy is on its last breath,” Sharpton said during his weekly National Action Network rally Saturday in Harlem.
The ceremony that united the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex, with its momentary displays of African-American culture, made it clear that the couple was focused on creating a more inclusive Royal Family.
“In a time of tribalism and separation, it was a clear move toward an integrated modern future from the oldest of houses,” the New York Times wrote. “Seated directly opposite Queen Elizabeth II was Ms. Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland, the descendant of slaves on plantations in the American South.”
And Sharpton believes that racists were surely uncomfortable with those visuals.
“They’re losing their minds because the world is passing away where they are the standard,” he said. “Where they decide what is beauty, where they decide what is of intellectual depth.”
And it’s not just Markle who is showing that white supremacy is on its way out, he added.
“When you have little white girls in Arkansas look up and say, ‘I want to be beautiful and smart like Michelle Obama. I want to dress like the Obama girls,’ that’s where that white supremacy is questioned.”
He continued: “White parents in their living room say, ‘We’ve got to do something.’ That’s what Trump played on. ‘We’re losing control of our own children.”