Hussey “pledged to deepen her awareness of the sensitivities involved and is grateful for the opportunity to learn more about the issues in this area,” according to the statement, which noted that Fulani had “unfairly received the most appalling torrent of abuse on social media and elsewhere.” Fulani accepted the apology and said “that no malice was intended.”
The controversy arose after an event at Buckingham Palace last month, designed to raise awareness about violence against women and girls. Fulani, one of about 300 guests at the event, later wrote on Twitter that she had “mixed feelings” about the event and described an interaction with a woman she named “Lady SH” shortly after she arrived.
The woman had asked a series of questions, Fulani said, including, “What part of Africa are you from?” and “Where do you really come from?”
Mixed feelings about yesterday’s visit to Buckingham Palace. 10 mins after arriving, a member of staff, Lady SH, approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge. The conversation below took place. The rest of the event is a blur.
Thanks @ManduReid & @SuzanneEJacob for support🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/OUbQKlabyq— Sistah Space (@Sistah_Space) November 30, 2022
“I just stood at the edge of the room, smiled [and] engaged briefly with who spoke to me until I could leave,” the activist wrote on Twitter.
Mandu Reid, leader of the Women’s Equality Party and a witness to the interaction, later told The Washington Post it felt like “an interrogation.”
“It was question after question … it wasn’t fleeting, it was several minutes,” she said.
Buckingham Palace announced the following day that a royal household member had “stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect” after an investigation had concluded that “unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments” had been made.
Though she was not named, it soon became apparent who the royal household member was.
Hussey was a well-known royal fixture, having served in an unpaid role since 1960. She was depicted in the new season of “The Crown” on Netflix as a close friend and adviser of the queen — a role she played in real life too, earning the nickname “Number One Head Girl” and the official title “Woman of the Bedchamber,” which effectively meant she was the queen’s right-hand woman.
Her remarks sparked a wave of criticism of the royal household, which has struggled with reports of racism in the past. But some people took aim at Fulani for publicizing the incident.
Sistah Space, which supports women of African and Caribbean heritage affected by domestic abuse and sexual assault, posted a statement to Instagram last week announcing that it had to “temporarily cease many of our operations to ensure the safety of our service users and our team.”
Fulani’s team and family received “some horrific abuse via social media,” she said in a statement quoted by British media.
After their meeting on Friday, Fulani and Hussey said they would seek “peace to rebuild their lives in the wake of an immensely distressing period for them both.”
