#harrywedsmeghan

By Ronald Austin Jr

PRINCE Harry met Meghan Markle, an African-American actress, in July 2016 on a blind date organised by a mutual friend. The unsuspecting future Duchess of Sussex, had no clue that her mild conversation with this nice young man was about to become the number one global romance that would catapult her to universal fame.

They met for a second date and this culminated in four months of dating. This relationship was revealed to the world on October 16, 2016 and the sentiment among some was extreme doubt, some people of this once socially ordered and structured world were of the view that the gate-keepers will never allow an African-American into the highest gate of them all, the Royal family.

Gate-keepers are persons who ferociously protect families, organisations, academic institutions or any group of much consequence. They are normally of the old order, most likely in the form of patriarchs or matriarchs. These are the people who scrutinise every microscopic details about who can get through the gates. Let us say natty dread is coming to dinner at the home of a middle class conservative family, the gate-keepers will be the ones who object and boycott this encounter. Some were adamant that Meghan would not get through these improbable gates. After all, the conspiracy theories of Princess Diana’s death are still fresh in the minds of many.

A cursory glance at history provides a firm basis for such skepticism. Rome; Pebleians (lower class) and Patricians (ruling class), India; Brahmins and Sudras, the numerous caste systems of Africa and even as far back as the Feudal system. The ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’, the masters and slaves, this is the world we know.

All these social systems that have existed have sent a message to the people of the world that even though we are born equal as humans, we are not on a level playing field when it comes to the social order and even though numerous revolutions and upheavals have destroyed and challenged these systems, they are still promoted and perpetuated in secret. So it is not a surprise that some were negative about the idea of Meghan Markle marrying a Prince from the Royal family of Great Britain. Some concluded that the guards will step in and stop this social improbability. When a parcel with suspicious white powder was sent to Kensington Place in February where they live and racist trolls started to appear, some concluded that this was the beginning of the campaign to derail this union, organised by the protectors of the social order.

So, some watched for months with admiration eclipsed by deep pessimism, waiting for the catastrophic moment to arrive where the gate-keepers would kick in a grand scheme of intricate design, it never happened, at least not yet. On Saturday, May 19, 1.9 billion people watched the royal wedding at the iconic St.George’s Chapel in the Windsor Castle. We keenly observed as the couple exchanged vows in the presence the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and yet some hearts were still filled with doubt. Global hearts that have faced oppression, hearts that did not believe such social mobility was possible. Was the negativity misplaced?

Do we now live in a post-racial world? Are we moving closer to a utopian society where love is love regardless of race, sex, class or the color of our skin? Maybe that is asking too much but make no mistake, this union represented some hope that in the age of social media, some barriers are slowly being chipped away and one day we will experience Marley-esque ‘Could you be love’ societies. In the interim, when we see such unions, it is fair to ask: ‘Where are the gate-keepers?’