Prince Harry says 'there is a huge level of unconscious bias' in Royal Family

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By Phoebe Egoroff

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Prince Harry has hit out at the "huge level of unconscious bias" in the Royal Family, in his and Meghan Markle's latest bombshell Netflix series.

The six-part docuseries - of which the first three episodes were released on Thursday (December 8) - revealed the early stages of the couple's romance, as well as the effect the negative tabloid gossip had on their relationship and why they were forced to quit Royal life and leave the United Kingdom.

In the second episode, Meghan discusses her first meeting with members of the Royal Family, including Catherine, Princess of Wales. "Even when Will and Kate came over and I met her for the first time. I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot. I'm a hugger I've always been a hugger. I didn't know that could be jarring for a lot of Brits," she said.

"I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality out on the outside, carried through on the inside. That there is a forward-facing way of being then you close the door and you go phew, great we can relax now. But that formality continues on both sides and that was surprising to me," she added.

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Meghan describes the "formality" of the Royal Family. Credit: Enrique Shore / Alamy

Later in the series, Prince Harry addressed the "level of unconscious bias" in the Royal Family - with the 38-year-old referring to an incident in 2017 when Princess Michael of Kent wore a Blackamoor-style brooch to an event attended by Meghan.

For those who don't know, Blackamoor ornaments and jewelry depict an African male as a servant. The brooch in question depicted the bust of an African man wearing a crown and jewels.

"In this family, sometimes you are part of the problem rather than part of the solution. There is a huge level of unconscious bias. The thing with unconscious bias, it is actually no one's fault. But once it has been pointed out, or identified within yourself you then need to make it right," Harry stated.

"It is education. It is awareness. It is a constant work in progress for everybody, including me."

As the second episode concluded, viewers were treated to a sweet recount of the couple's engagement, with the pair sharing never-before-seen images from the evening the Prince asked the now-41-year-old to marry him.

However, it eventually became clear that the British press would not be ceasing their negative gossip of Meghan, who was even referred to as "(almost) straight outta Compton," by one outlet and "dirt poor in the deep south" by another.

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Prince Harry hit out at the "unconscious bias" in the Royal Family. Credit: Chris Aubrey / Alamy

The newly engaged couple had believed, however, that the nastiness would eventually die down.

"I was believing what I was being told," Meghan stated, adding that she was constantly told by members of the Royal Family that: "It'll pass, it'll get better."

The mom-of-two then said that she was advised: "That's just what [the paparazzi] do in the beginning. Once you're married it'll get better. Once they get used to you it'll get better."

"No matter how hard I tried, no matter how good I was, no matter what I did, they were still going to find a way to destroy me," she revealed.

The next three episodes will be available on Netflix on December 15.

Featured image credit: Enrique Shore / Alamy