Meghan Markle (37) became the media's darling last year in the run-up to her marriage to Prince Harry (34). However, positive headlines became replaces by negative ones with increasing frequency after Meghan and Harry announced that they would be moving out of Kensington Palace. Rumours of a rift between the Cambridges and the Sussexes abounded, with some royal fans professing themselves to be either "team Kate" or "team Meghan". Some fans of the duchesses even attacked each other, with levels of cyber bullying reaching an unprecedented high last month. Amidst reports that Kensington Palace had to delete hundreds of insulting, or in some cases even aggressive, comments about either the duchesses every day, Hello! launched its very own initiative #HelloToKindness in an effort to promote more acceptance online and to diffuse mounting tensions.
George Clooney: "This online vilification must stop"
If online publications have even decided that this online vilification must stop, its not surprising that Meghan's close friends feel even more strongly. Handsome Hollywood hunk George Clooney, who attended Harry and Meghan's wedding with his wife Amal Clooney last May, spoke out in defence of his friend Meghan recently at an event in Los Angeles after being asked whether he had been asked to be Godfather to the new royal baby. "I do want to say, I just saw this piece. They're just chasing Meghan Markle everywhere, she's been pursued and vilified. She's a woman who is seven months pregnant and she is being pursued and vilified and chased in the same way that Diana was, and it's history repeating itself." He continued, "and we've seen how that ends. I can't tell you how frustrating it is to see that. You're taking a letter from a daughter to a father and broadcasting it everywhere. She's getting a raw deal there, it's irresponsible. I'm sort of surprised by that."
Some of Meghan's close friends also criticised the negative press about the Duchess of Sussex recently in an interview with People. One of her friends said, "Meg has always sat silently sat back and endured the lies and untruths. We worry about what this is doing to her and the baby. It's wrong to put anyone under this much emotional trauma, let alone when they're pregnant."
She continued, "Meg spends so much time taking care of everyone else - we want to stand up against the bullying down. Harry is an incredible husband and takes such good care of her. We feel so lucky that someone's come into her life who takes care of her the way she takes care of all of us. Now we want to stand up against the global bullying we are seeing and speak the truth about who our friend - a mother-to-be - really is."
The Cambridges Enjoyed a Starry Night Out
