The fair-weather activist couple Meghan and Harry at the Observatory on the 102nd floor of the Freedom Tower in New York City. (Image: Lev Radin)
Dilemma
Harry and Meghan are trying to make their mark as fighters for a better world – and they have to make a lot of money. Difficult not to embarrass yourself.
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A new day, a new drama: In mid-January, Prince Harry threatened the British government to take legal action against the decision that he and his family should no longer receive police protection when visiting England. He would also pay for this operation himself, his private security team alone could not provide sufficient protection. “Prince Harry inherited a security risk at birth,” the letter says, “for life.”
Both the British state and the Royal Family had rejected the Sussexes’ request to continue financing their security a long time ago, since then Harry and Duchess Meghan have needed private security. According to media reports, their costs are estimated at three million dollars a year. Even with a combined fortune of an estimated $43 million (Meghan’s acting earnings, Diana and Queen Mom’s inheritance), there’s an end in sight at some point.
Since their resignation, the prince and duchess have had to make money, lots of money. But what do you do if you not only have high ideals (fight for more justice, environmental protection, better mental hygiene for everyone), but also immensely high living costs, a canceled career as an actress and training as a helicopter pilot?
The couple’s answer to this is to turn their own ideals into lucrative projects. After all, they are world famous, aristocratic, well connected, attractive and on the run from their toxic families of origin – why should only the tabloids feed on their stories?
wellness poetry
This potential has also been recognized by various streaming services and platforms that signed contracts with Archewell Studios, the couple’s newly founded production company, last year: According to media reports, Netflix paid 100 million dollars for a collaboration, Spotify allegedly paid 24 million dollars. And Apple+ co-produced The Me You Can’t See documentary series with Oprah Winfrey, in which Prince Harry spoke at length about his depression. The reviews were mixed, the ratings a flop: So far, a single episode of the Archewell podcast has been running on Spotify, and the Netflix content is planned for 2022 at the earliest.
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At the same time, Prince Harry has accepted a job as Chief Impact Officer at US startup Better Up, which offers online therapy and coaching. There he explained in the most beautiful wellness poetry that many people had given up their jobs during the pandemic because they were finally taking their mental health seriously and embracing their inner needs.
This may have been the motive for his own resignation, but it is hardly the reason why many people no longer return to the catering industry, retail trade or care: Precarious pay, high work pressure, lack of recognition and a lack of social responsibility are more likely to play a role here protection plays a role.
TV therapy with the super rich
In “The Me You Can’t See” Prince Harry tries to use his own drama as a blueprint for other people’s problems: “It’s not a sign of weakness to ask for help, but of strength,” he summarizes there Oprah’s therapy chair. But the fact that most people do not have the money for more free time and self-care and that they have to wait months anyway for therapy places is not addressed.
Oprah and Harry also ignore the clear connection between mental illness and socioeconomic status. TV therapy with the super-rich only works if you turn a blind eye to social injustice. “It’s great that you’re leaving your soul-corroding job behind you in the crisis” quickly becomes the new “Let them eat cake”.
Another text-image scissors: Flying in a private jet to polo tournaments or environmental events – that doesn’t look good on self-proclaimed environmentalists, even if Prince Harry always emphasizes that he also flies lines very often. The fact that the richest one percent of the world’s population emits thirty times as much CO2 as is compatible with the 1.5 degree target – these figures from the aid organization Oxfam do not seem to be a convincing argument for staying at home to save fuel and instead fighting off headaches. to turn on zoom.
And so the woken ideals reach their limits: as justified as the concerns of the Sussexes may be (who is for environmental destruction and against better medical care?), it is impossible for the super-rich leisure aristocracy to even begin to solve these problems. And as long as the class question remains politely silent, any fight against discrimination quickly turns into fair-weather activism.
$14 million mansion
If Harry and Meghan thought their concerns through, it would put an end to aristocratic titles, the $14 million mansion in a gated community in Montecito, Gulfstream flights and luxury hotels. “There is no real life in the wrong one,” Adorno once said, and that also applies to the tragedy of Prince Harry. His historical legacy is too huge to leave the financial one behind as well: an unexcited life in the four-room old building with a regular job would be difficult for him and his family, even if he wanted to.
–Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s $14 million Montecito mansion. According to the latest reports, they plan to sell it. As they say, it shouldn’t be good enough for them. (Image: Pacific Press / LightRocket via Getty Images)
In addition to this sender problem, there is also the fact that “universal values” and “awakening audio and TV formats” (Archewell Studios’ self-description) very quickly become very boring. The associated Archewell Foundation is also kept in the same new-age swagger: “Our main goal is to uplift and unite communities, one act of compassion at a time. We believe that compassion is the defining cultural force of the 21st century.”
The Foundation’s balance sheet is correspondingly poor: In 2020, the income amounted to less than 50,000 dollars. The fact that the foundation, like the rest of the Sussexes’ companies, is registered in the tax haven of Delaware does not help the couple’s public-interest-oriented image.
Not serious and ambitions of the Obamas
The TV interview with Meghan and Oprah, which was seen by over 50 million people worldwide and in which mainly dirty laundry was washed, is completely different: are the royals racists? Did Meghan act like a diva when choosing her wedding tiara? Is Duchess Kate mean because there was a spat on the bridesmaids’ dresses? It’s the sparkly filth that draws people in to the royals — not their charity and world-better ambitions.
–Meghan and Harry in conversation with Oprah. (Image: Reuters)
Meghan and Harry cannot escape this contradiction: They may be famous, but they are not pop stars who, because of their talent, are forgiven for being unworldly, crazy and demanding. They have political ambitions but lack the credibility, seriousness and experience of the Obamas.
Since Prince Harry was released from the royal family, it has become clear that Buckingham Palace is not only a symbol of royal power, but also a safe space for the Windsors: they simply have nowhere else to go.
