How Prince Harry Really Feels About Online Trolls
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the U.K. last year for a sunnier (and much quieter) life in Santa Barbara, California. Meghan and Harry, who are expecting a baby girl this summer, seem content raising Archie out of the spotlight. Even early on in their relationship — before they were even engaged — the U.K. press and internet "trolls" treated Meghan so unfairly that Harry had to make a statement concerning her safety, noting that "Meghan has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment" by the media, such as "the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments."
In February, Harry chatted with James Corden His life in California seems much more calm, as he told Corden: "Depending on how the day's been and how busy it's been, we do Archie's tea, give him a bath, read him a book, put him down, go downstairs, Meg might cook a meal, might order a takeaway, go upstairs sit in bed, turn the TV on, watch some 'Jeopardy!,' maybe watch a little bit of Netflix."
It's clear that one of the main reasons Harry "stepped back" from the monarchy was to escape the constant criticism of the media, telling Corden that the press was "toxic" and "destroying my mental health." And now, Harry is speaking out about online trolls. Scroll down for details.
Prince Harry dealt with 'vile, toxic abuse'
Prince Harry opened up about the difficulties of royal life on Dax Shepard's "Armchair Expert" podcast, where he said it was like "living in a zoo." At first, he did what he had to do. "It's the job, right? Grin and bear it." But then, "in my early twenties ... I was thinking, 'I don't want this job. Look what it did to my mum. How am I ever going to ... have a wife and family when ... it's going to happen again?'" (Princess Diana died in a car accident in part due to paparazzi chasing her.)
Harry revealed he dealt with "vile, toxic abuse" online and asked himself: "What made you want to come at me like that, when clearly we've never met?" Harry noted some wondered, "If he is privileged how could he be suffering?" Harry seemed so eager to be "normal" that he actually once met Meghan in a grocery store. "The first time Meghan and I met up for her to come and stay with me, we met up in a supermarket ... I had a baseball cap on, looking down at the floor, trying to stay incognito," he said.
Overall, Harry tries to maintain a positive outlook regarding trolls. "The best way I look at it is like, 'Take a moment, be aware of what this is doing to me and how it's making me feel, but then look at them and go: 'How's your day going?'"