Buckingham Palace Aide resigns

varian

The lady who tried to interrogate the charity worker in what would seem to most of us as harassing and pretty racist way is an 83 year old member of the priveledged aristocracy whose attitudes not moved with the times. I would describe her as "unreconstructed".

I am quite sure that she was probably unaware of having caused any offence. It is possibly time she was pensioned off from whatever role she might have in the royal household.

👏🏻👏🏻

Aveline

There were two victims there. As previously stated the old lady has resigned in humiliation from which she'll probably never recover.
Ngozi Fulani (not an easy name to pick up in a noisy reception) is now very high profile, indeed, she's headlining the BBC news. If that's not a rise in profile I don't know what is.
I, personally would not do as Lady Susan Hussey did, but I have a very different background and life experience. People do.

From what I have read, this is not a case of a difficult to pronounce name ( SH moved Ngozi Fulani's hair to read her name tag, rather rude in itself), it was her persistent and repeated questioning as to NF's racial origins. If the guest had a Gaelic or Irish name for example, it would be polite to ask how it is to be pronounced, but this was not the issue. As for the snarky comments about 'rise in profile', some on here are unbelievable.

25Avalon

It’s entirely possible Lady SH didn’t realise her conversation could be construed as racist. I can imagine her being equally rude to members of the working classes. Whatever there is no place in modern society for her condescending and overbearing treatment of a black British lady who was very restrained and polite. She had to go.

Is it all right for her to be condescending and overbearing to members of classes lower than hers, though? If, as is highly possible, she treats everyone who doesn't have a title in the same high-handed way, surely she is more a general pain-in-the-arse than specifically a racist, and Ms Fulani has suffered no more than any other non-aristocrat who encountered her?

Ngozi Fulani (not an easy name to pick up in a noisy reception)

Says it all really.

From what I've read she wasn't asked her name, just her origins.

Of course, there is precedent within the Palace, Prince Philip wasn’t exactly renowned for being “politically correct” was he?

JenniferEccles

Thank goodness I’m not the only one.
We frequently ask waiters in restaurants here where they are from, whether it’s Italy, Spain, Croatia etc, as we have holidayed in those countries and are genuinely interested.

We have also spoken to some who are here from various Caribbean islands, who likewise are more than happy to talk about their country of origin.

I too often ask people where they're from, as like you am genuinely interested - if they say for example they're from Istanbul I say oh that's one of my favourite world cities and been there many times, blah blah, without boring them too much!

If someone replied they are from Shepherd's Bush my reply would be along the lines of how I used to live near there, certainly wouldn't drill down as to where they were born or about their family origins.

It's just rude and intrusive and age is no excuse.

Susan husseys...I mean

Susan hisses daughter Katherine has actually been named as one of Camellias new lady in waiting .....bit embarrassing for her I guess

I can’t remember who, but somebody up-thread said it’s time to introduce a bit of diversity into the Palace

The Queen's equerry and close aide is black; I presume he still has a job.
I hope he's not the only one of the staff from an ethnic minority.

Aveline

I'm with you JenniferEccles. A deaf old lady struggling to keep her end up socially in a noisy environment and getting it wrong. She'll be devastated at how her long term involvement with the Royal family is ended.
Meanwhile, a fine profile boost for her 'victim'.

and a fine bit of victim blaming from you! Your excuses are a bit pathetic I am afraid, listen to the transcript, or read it, and it will be obvious that this is not some pathetic deaf old lady, but an ingrained racist who just couldn't pick up the social signals which should have been apparent after a lifetime of royal service. Maybe the 'victim' as you call her, should have asked Mrs Hussey where she was from and just what her function was?

And, if she was showing worrying signs of deafness or any other problem with her faculties, she shouldn't have been there as part of the official Royal group.

JenniferEccles Ngozi Fulani is British and I assume does not have a non-British accent unlike your waiters in restaurants here. There are so many questions that SH could have asked but she chose to persist in one particular line of questioning. And she may be old, but why presume she is deaf?
And if NF had brought the matter to the attention of the Palace, who’s to say anything would have happened?
I can’t remember who, but somebody up-thread said it’s time to introduce a bit of diversity into the Palace. Couldn’t agree more, it would be a perfect time for Camilla to choose support staff who weren’t all white and upper class.

Anyway, whatever the case, what Lady Susan did was not polite by anyone's standards and she really ought to have known better. It's hard to believe she didn't know better

Yes, she should have known better.

I think she has previous.

There's a distinction to be made between asking someone where they're from because you are intrigued by their non-local accent (I've been asked it myself many times whilst in southern England) and wanting to know someone's ethnic origin, which latter we are asked on official forms all the the time.

Funnily enough though, I think if you were to be straightforward about that at a Palace reception, it would not be regarded as an innocent question. I wonder if Ms Fulani would have minded saying she is Blsck British with Caribbean and African forebears? She might well.

Which makes me wonder if there is usually a "Prefer not to say" option on all those official forms where it is asked for data analysis purposes.

Anyway, whatever the case, what Lady Susan did was not polite by anyone's standards and she really ought to have known better. It's hard to believe she didn't know better.

The lady who tried to interrogate the charity worker in what would seem to most of us as harassing and pretty racist way is an 83 year old member of the priveledged aristocracy whose attitudes not moved with the times. I would describe her as "unreconstructed".

I am quite sure that she was probably unaware of having caused any offence. It is possibly time she was pensioned off from whatever role she might have in the royal household.

There were two victims there. As previously stated the old lady has resigned in humiliation from which she'll probably never recover.
Ngozi Fulani (not an easy name to pick up in a noisy reception) is now very high profile, indeed, she's headlining the BBC news. If that's not a rise in profile I don't know what is.
I, personally would not do as Lady Susan Hussey did, but I have a very different background and life experience. People do.

Actually Smileless some posters are doing far more than that.!

No one's suggested that the lady in question should have 'sucked it up' Parlsey some of us are questioning the need to have made it public, before or in place of bringing it to the attention of the Palace.

JenniferEccles

Thank goodness I’m not the only one.
We frequently ask waiters in restaurants here where they are from, whether it’s Italy, Spain, Croatia etc, as we have holidayed in those countries and are genuinely interested.

We have also spoken to some who are here from various Caribbean islands, who likewise are more than happy to talk about their country of origin.

Do you badger them and make them tell you things they don't want to tell you?

The woman is British. From Britain. 🙄

Thank goodness I’m not the only one.
We frequently ask waiters in restaurants here where they are from, whether it’s Italy, Spain, Croatia etc, as we have holidayed in those countries and are genuinely interested.

We have also spoken to some who are here from various Caribbean islands, who likewise are more than happy to talk about their country of origin.

Was she a deaf old lady? So is it bad form to call out members of the Royal household? Should it all be hushed up in recognition of her lifetime of Royal service? Should the woman who was inappropriately questioned as to her origin just suck it up in deference to her betters. Unbelievable! Hussey was there to do a job that she clearly unsuited to do.

Just said on the BBC news that she was an integral part of the household and has been for several decades, and is William's godmother. How much further into the hierarchy can you get?

Aveline

I'm with you JenniferEccles. A deaf old lady struggling to keep her end up socially in a noisy environment and getting it wrong. She'll be devastated at how her long term involvement with the Royal family is ended.
Meanwhile, a fine profile boost for her 'victim'.

Is she deaf ?

A fine profile boost for her victim ?
Sometimes my jaw drops when I read GN

She had been a lady in waiting to the late Queen volver, hardly a member of the Palace's hierarchy but good for anyone who wants to continue to smear the RF we have now as racist.

Oh gosh I can’t believe some of you apologist for this rude woman
avaline you ve really shocked me that’s a truly nasty way to view this, ‘the victim’ in inverted commas means you are disbelieving that anything wrong has been said.
Gosh