Thanksgiving is a time for happy families to come together — and for unhappy families to be unhappy in their own obvious ways.
In the case of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, that involved spending the holiday separately — with the Duchess holding her own event sans Harry.
The event came after the couple made their first appearance together professionally in months in a video earlier this month and amid reports their professional relationship through their Archewell Foundation and media ventures is “in a very bad state,” the New York Post reported.
Duchess Meghan appeared at a Thanksgiving event last week for the Southern California Welcome Project on behalf of the Archewell Foundation.
In a statement, she said the dinner — for Afghan women who have resettled in America — was a “heartfelt” event that “included a shared meal that encouraged open conversation centered on gratitude and resilience.”
“This initiative, led by the partner organization Mina’s List, has spent the past year building community through storytelling and creating a safe space for women who have resettled in the U.S. from Afghanistan,” she said.
Duchess Meghan and The Archewell Foundation hosted a dinner for the Southern California Welcome Project….The Duchess expressed her deep appreciation to the attendees for sharing their personal stories and cultural experiences, underscoring her excitement for future gatherings. pic.twitter.com/GDUkF591gJ
— ꪖꪀᧁꫀꪶ (@Sussex__Archive) November 22, 2024
Maybe it was just that it was supposed to be a “safe space for women,” but the male half of the Sussexes, Prince Harry, did not attend.
The move comes after their first professional appearance together since August — in a video for the United Nations Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Bogotá, Colombia, that looked every bit like a hostage video in which the hostages were clothed by Kent and Haste Savile Row.
Hoje, Harry e Meghan apareceram em uma mensagem de vídeo Conferência Ministerial Global sobre o Fim da Violência contra Crianças na Colômbia.
No vídeo, os Sussexes falaram sobre a violência digital contra crianças e sobre o lançamento da Rede de Pais, projeto da Fundação… pic.twitter.com/Mfod1goc7Z
— Meghan Markle Brasil (@marklecombr) November 7, 2024
“We are at a crossroads,” Harry said in the video.
“[T]he urgency to reassess and redefine our approach to protecting children has become increasingly evident. While the necessity has always been apparent, it is now time to translate that awareness into meaningful action.”
“While the online world can help develop strategies to protect children from violence, it also introduces new risks, such as from individuals who exploit gaps in our outdated legal systems, which often don’t account for today’s digital realities,” he added.
Meanwhile, Meghan said that “at the Archewell Foundation, we engage with young people, families, and experts worldwide, learning how every aspect of a child’s life — from their livelihood to their physical and mental well-being — now operates within an online economy that has the power to shape and misshape our connections.”
While “we are at a crossroads” was likely intended to refer to the battle against the digital exploitation of children and increasing safety, one could also infer a double meaning in terms of the working relationship of the Sussexes.
Royal biographer Angela Levin — one of the many biographers and insiders dedicated to chronicling the lives of the Windsors, and so remarkably well that you almost wish they’d dedicate their lives to figuring out what the hell is going on in Congress or something useful — said the couple is “navigating their next steps” as Harry might face trouble staying in sunny California (or anywhere else across this fruited plain or its possessions).
“He’s got trouble with his visa,” Levin said in an October appearance on British TV, the Post reported. “They’re allowed to look again at what the problem is, and he might still not be able to stay there. Maybe that’s why they’re buying somewhere else.”
“They say they’re going to work separately, then they say they’re buying a house in Portugal — you don’t do that if you don’t want to separate for most of the time, so I wonder if it’s in a very bad state. But I’m sure they’re trying to work out something,” she said.
She added that Harry “doesn’t know where he is at the moment” when it comes to navigating those next steps, which tracks with numerous other reports regarding the wayward royals.
Meanwhile, Meghan is apparently devastated that one of her former backers — publishing mogul Tina Brown — has apparently had enough of her, saying the Duchess is “flawless about getting it all wrong.”
Brown, former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair, founding editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast and holder of too many other titles to even mention, told Hollywood podcast “The Ankler” in October that Meghan has “the worst judgment of anyone in the entire world.” (Brown, it should be noted, once went into business with Harvey Weinstein. Let that sink in.)
“In England, they’re going to constantly make a career out of trashing Harry,” she said. “But actually, the thing about Harry is he’s very good at being Prince Harry.”
The problem: “I think he’s pretty much in the thrall of Meghan. The trouble with Meghan is that she has the worst judgment of anyone in the entire world. She’s flawless about getting it all wrong. She really is.”
“She’s a perfectionist about getting it all wrong. Her issue is that she doesn’t listen. She has all these people, asks them their opinion, and then doesn’t follow it. She does what she wants to do … [and] all of her ideas are total crap, unfortunately.”
This has apparently left Meghan in a bad way, Levin said.
“Apparently, Meghan is actually inconsolable with tears, crying nonstop, because she really liked Tina Brown and now she’s dropped her,” Levin said.
“Can you imagine hearing that about yourself? Especially when you think you’re incredibly important and everything you do is global.”
As for her next steps, Meghan is reportedly preparing her own tell-all memoir to go with Harry’s, although it’s mostly a potential “revenge” tactic should she be cut loose.
If it’s any indication, nobody has anything to worry about. Even her husband doesn’t want to spend an official Thanksgiving dinner for their charity with her. Who the heck would want to spend an entire book with this angry Wallis Simpson reboot?
As for Harry, don’t feel too sorry for him, even with Tina Brown’s words. The Sussexes are proof that if youth is too often wasted on the young, so too is wealth often wasted on the wealthy.
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