Meghan Markle's letter to US Congress about paid parental leave

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Speaking to Podcast Royal, expert Jessica Robinson said it was “very strange” for Meghan to sign off using her royal title as she claimed it was wrong to “crossover” royalty with US politics, despite it not breaking any protocols. The comments follow a letter the Duchess sent to Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and Senate leader Chuck Schumer demanding American families are paid a proper wage when on parental leave.

Ms Robinson hammered how the letter signed by Meghan was no only signed off as Ms Markle referring to herself as the Duchess of Sussex but it also used the official Duke and Duchess letter paper.

The royal expert explained this decision “rubbed me the wrong way” as she argued that royal familial links should be kept out of politics.

She explained: “It feels a little funny to me to crossover into political territory when you are using your royal titles.”

Ms Robinson went on to note how observers are aware that the Royal Family “for the most part try to stay away from politics”.

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She added this is because such incursions into the political realm ”really hurt the impact they [the Royal Family] have” as well as damage the longevity of the Royal Family if they get involved in “such a dividing thing”.

The podcast host added: “It just fees odd to me that you would write a letter appealing to the US Government signing it with royal titles that you got form another country!”

Ms Robinson went on to suggest that if Meghan had instead signed off the letter as “a mum” then it would have be more meaningful and have a greater impact coming from a personal position.

While Meghan is allowed to sign off as the ‘Duchess of Sussex’ on formal communication, she cannot refer to herself as ‘Her Royal Highness’ and thus has not broken Royal Family protocol through the letter.

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But despite this, the move by the Duchess of Sussex triggered Republican Jason Smith to accuse Meghan of “interference” in American politics.

The enraged Republican went on to ask why the Royal Family “does not simply strip her and Harry officially of their titles” as he laid out why it was wrong for member of the Royal Family to enter politics in such a way.

The letter Meghan wrote called for a “strong paid leave program for every American that’s guaranteed, accessible and encouraged without stigma or penalty”.

She acknowledged that since the beginning of the pandemic, millions of women had dropped out of the workforce in order to provide for their children.

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Meghan also spoke of her own childhood, saying that she had felt “lucky” to be eating a $4.99 salad at Sizzler as she was aware of how hard her parents had worked. 

The Duchess added: “I started working (at the local frozen yoghurt shop) at the age of 13. I waited tables, babysat, and piecemealed jobs together to cover odds and ends.

“I worked all my life and saved when and where I could—but even that was a luxury – because usually it was about making ends meet and having enough to pay my rent and put gas in my car.”

But the Duchess of Sussex’s letter is not her first foray into politics, which follows a video with Time100 days before the US presidential election last year, where Meghan and Prince Harry called on American citizens to exercise their right to vote.

In one controversial moment, Meghan declared “we all know what’s at stake” in what many took as an apparent jab at Donald Trump and implied her support for the Democratic candidate Joe Biden.

While last month, the Sussexes travelled to New York for a three-day tour where they met New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio. They also visited the United Nations and joined a roundtable discussion with the World Health Organisation.

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