Al Sharpton says Meghan Markle was treated badly because she was ‘black and working in the C-suites’

American civil rights leader Al Sharpton has claimed that Meghan Markle was treated differently after her ‘beautiful wedding’ to Prince Harry because she was ‘black and working in the C-suites.’

Speaking on Good Morning Britain, the reverend tried to defend the Duchess of Sussex who, along with her husband, has come under fire for claiming that she did not receive the same support as other Royal family members due to her skin color.

It is unclear from the interview whom he says is treating Meghan, who is biracial, differently than the other Royal family members for her success.

But Sharpton also used the opportunity to speak out against British TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson‘s column in which he said he dreams of parading Meghan around naked as people throw feces at her.

Clarkson has since apologized for his remarks.

In the interview Tuesday morning, Sharpton said that while Meghan’s wedding to Prince Harry in 2018 seemed to be universally celebrated, she soon became the victim of racism.

‘I think when they were married it was a beautiful day,’ the reverend told a panel of co-hosts. ‘And people were celebrating how, you saw this woman of color now in the Royal family, gospel songs [were] sung at the ceremony and the Queen sitting there.’

‘And the reaction was so, so much acrimony. And just looking to treat her differently,’ he said. ‘And people who, whether you were in the UK or around the world, they are always treated differently, understood what Meghan was going through.

‘It was somebody black working in the C-suites for the first time,’ he said, claiming Markle was the first black person to hold an executive position in the Royal family. ‘And they treat you differently.’

He concluded: ‘I think she became a symbol not of her own making.’ 

The reverend then condemned British television presenter Jeremy Clarkson for writing a column in The Sun newspaper in December.

He had written that he hated the Duchess of Sussex ‘on a cellular level’ and said he dreamed of her being paraded naked through British towns ‘while the crowds chant “Shame!” and throw lumps of excrement at her.’

The television presenter later apologized for his remarks, saying he emailed the couple on Christmas Day to say his language in the column had been ‘disgraceful’ and he was ‘profoundly sorry.’

He said he should have had another writer read over his column before he submitted it. He also insisted he is not sexist ‘and I abhor violence against women, and yet I seem to be advocating just that.

‘I therefore wrote to everyone who works with me saying how sorry I was and then on Christmas morning, I emailed Harry and Meghan in California to apologize to them too.

‘I was baffled by what they had been saying on TV, but that the language I’d used in my column was disgraceful and that I was profoundly sorry,’ Clarkson said.

But Sharpton did not seem to accept the apology, saying his article was ‘mean-spirited.’

The reverend said people can always apologize for things they have said ‘but what makes you feel that you can say that in the first place?

‘And I think that in many ways they exposed what was already there,’ Sharpton concluded. ‘And then people try to blame Meghan for they are being exposed.’ 

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have come under fire in recent months after claiming the Royal family treated Meghan Markle differently because of her race.

Harry has since denied calling the Royal family racist, but said they were guilty of ‘unconscious bias’ while discussing Meghan’s controversial claim to Oprah that an unnamed royal had expressed ‘concern’ about Archie’s skin color. 

Winfrey had asked Meghan in 2021: ‘They were concerned that if he were too brown, that would be a problem? Are you saying that?’ Markle replied: ‘If that’s the assumption you’re making, I think that feels like a pretty safe one, which was really hard to understand, right?’

It prompted a worldwide guessing game about the senior royal who said it and hours later Harry’s estranged brother, Prince William, was forced to publicly remark that they were ‘very much not a racist family’. The Queen also gave a rare statement and said ‘the issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning’ but stressed that ‘recollections may vary’.

But in another incendiary interview to plug his new memoir, Harry said the Royal Family is not racist.

British broadcaster Tom Bradby, sought to clarify the comments, saying: ‘You accused members of your family of racism.’ 

But Harry snapped back: ‘No I didn’t. The British press said that. Did Meghan ever mention that they’re racist?’

The duke then insisted the comments made about his son Archie’s skin color were ‘unconscious bias’.  

He then went on to accuse Buckingham Palace of failing to follow up on promises to appoint a ‘diversity tsar’.

Harry claimed there is a place for the monarchy in the modern world if they addressed unconscious bias.

‘I think the same process that I went through with regarding my own unconscious bias would be hugely beneficial to them,’ he said on Good Morning America last month.

‘Not racism, but unconscious bias, if not confronted, if not learned and grown from, that can then move into racism.

‘But there was an enormous missed opportunity with my wife.’