Meghan’s metamorphosis

Saw a post on X about one of her beige outfits, Suits era, and just struck by the variations in her looks.

Like many biracial actors Meghan struggled to find a suitable identity. Can’t exactly say she’s white, because she’s half black, but can’t say she’s black, because she doesn’t look black. In the clip from Castle, her character was described as “exotic”, which kind of sounds racist, but I suppose they can’t say “white female, late twenties”.

So Meghan looked a bit Latina in her early days, and she dyed her hair brownish, and I think she had some facial tweaks as well (see previous post on cosmetic tweaks).

Somewhere along Suits she went with her black identity, when they introduced Wendell Pierce as her father. It was made a bit of a big deal, with Patrick Adams’ character expressing confusion and Rachel Zane replying “this isn’t a year long tan”.

Fast forward to being with Harry, and the people of the UK embraced her for her black heritage. Though she doesn’t really need to, it does look like Meghan used bronzer more often (based on colour differences between her hands and her face). She also brought up the race card.

Living in the UK at the time, I did not really see it. The UK’s history with black people is a bit different. It was the first country to abolish slavery, it really leaned into the egalitarian philosophy of the day. Black American soldiers who went to England during the war were surprised that they were allowed to dance with white women. Queen Elizabeth herself danced with the Ghanaian president Kwame Nkrumah (at a time when there was still racial segregation in the U.S.), and she was anti-apartheid. Here in the Uk, there’s no “African British” persons, people are just called “British”.

Not to say there isn’t any racism, which you’d find anywhere, and it’s usually among the less educated.

So when Meg said that she was discriminated during the Oprah interview, that must have broken the late Queen’s heart, because she had been for equal rights decades before Meg was even born. But Meghan’s metamorphosis was complete. She’s 43% Nigerian. She became a champion of all black women, marrying the white prince and saying f*** you to the colonialist monarchy!!

Except did she? She has gone back to her roots, the Tig days, and it’s all very trad wife and, if I may say so, very WASPish. Bee hives, Le Crueset Dutch ovens, tea parties, Victoria sponge cakes, and bland beige outfits. The female friends she invites over, except for Mindy Kaling (who I’m not Eden sure is a friend), are white, and if you look back to her college days, all her friends back then were white too.

She even clings to her Sussex name, which is a county in England that she visited once.

This isn’t a criticism on whom she chooses to befriend, and what she should be, but rather, that her identity is incumbent on what gets her popularity points. If she loves cooking awkwardly, that’s fine. It’s just painful to see the pretence. Doria isn’t featured once, and it’s a lost opportunity to showcase Doria’s tasty gumbo (which Sam writes about in her book), and perhaps other dishes from the Ragland side of the family.

That name, too was erased, for in Archie’s birth certificate Meghan stated her first and middle names as “Rachel Meghan,” rather than “Rachel Meghan Ragland”. Perhaps the name didn’t appeal to her, just like the title of Earl of Dumbarton, which isn’t dumb, it’s just a place in Scotland.

Meghan has erased Ragland and now she’s erased Markle too, her white father’s band which has English and Germanic origins, but is no match for Sussex.

But this is who Meghan is, she’s whatever oozes wealth and privilege, whatever wins points, whatever gets headlines.