Prince Harry Wants to End "Absolute Intrusion and Hate" Towards Meghan Markle and Himself
On his final day in court yesterday, Prince Harry revealed one of the main reasons he decided to bring a lawsuit against the Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN). In his testimony, Harry said he wanted to end the "absolute intrusion and hate that was coming towards me and my wife and see if there was any way to find a different course of action, rather than relying on the institution's way." ("Institution" here refers to the British royal family.)
Prince Harry's focus on the "intrusion" of the British media on his and Meghan Markle's life popped up throughout his witness statement. He writes that they "reluctantly" decided to step back in their roles as senior members of the royal family, "due to the constant intrusion, inciting of hatred and harassment by the tabloid press into every aspect of our private lives, which had a devastating impact on our mental health and wellbeing."
Later in the statement, the Duke of Sussex writes, "There also seems to be a real blurring of the lines in terms of what is in the public interest and what is of interest to the public. The tabloids concentrated on salacious stories about my relationships and so on to satisfy the latter while appearing to completely ignore the former, as a means of justifying their intrusion."
Prince Harry and Meghan have spoken repeatedly in the last few years about the harmful impact of the tabloid media on their mental health, and how it has spurred them to activism. In January of this year, Prince Harry said that "changing the media landscape in the UK" is his "life’s work." Just last month when Meghan accepted a Women of Vision Award from the Ms. Foundation, she said that the "narrative on repeat that surrounded me allowed me to recognize that part of my greater value and purpose in life was to advocate for those who felt unheard, to stand up to injustice, and to be not afraid of saying what you know is true, and what is just, and what is right."
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