Royal family members Prince William and Kate Middleton have gotten a bit of a colonizer’s welcome when they got to Jamaica for the fifth day of their eight-day tour of the Caribbean. And while a dignitary classily ignored reports that she snubbed the couple, the footage of her looking like she’s giving Kate an understandable cold shoulder is going viral.
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According to PEOPLE, William and Kate have been “encountering mounting tensions in the Caribbean nations where William’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, remains head of state.” That will apparently come to an end, however, adds PEOPLE which reports that Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness told the Duke and Dutchess directly that the country intends to break away from the British monarchy.
“And we’re moving on and we intend to… fulfill our true ambitions and destiny to become an independent, developed, and prosperous country,” said Holness.
You see, the European queen is also head of state for a number of non-European nations including Belize, Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada, and the Bahamas. And I don’t know if y’all have heard the news over the last 400 years or so, but Europe’s “We Are the World…Literally” tour hasn’t worked out well for the inhabitants of the Black and brown nations it has put its colonial stamp on (*gestures widely towards everywhere free people of color have ever existed*). With that people are protesting literally in front of William and Kate while demanding reparations.
Lisa Hanna Goes Viral After Viewers Think She Snubbed Kate Middleton
And since Lisa Hanna, an opposition spokesperson on foreign affairs in Jamaica, is so outspoken about her advocacy for independence and reparations for those caught in the Caucasian web of Europe’s centuries-long “all this is mines now” campaign, it’s no surprise that she people think she gave Middleton the ultimate “who is you?” snub while tossing her hair.
“Girl, getcho colonizer teeth out my face,” Hanna said. (OK, she didn’t say that. But her swift look-away after Kate’s smile said those words exactly.)
Newsweek reports that Kate and Prince William’s arrival in the country on Tuesday triggered protests by “around 350 anti-colonialism campaigners calling for an apology and reparations.” In a viral clip Kate’s seen wearing a bright yellow dress, a nod to the flag of Jamaica, sitting alongside Lisa Hanna at what appears to be an arrival event at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston.
Yeah, Kate thought she was slick out here wearing flag colors and giving big “Adele Bantu-nots” energy, but Hanna didn’t appear to be too impressed and the clip of her seemingly snubbing Kate has been viewed thousands of times.
OK, so later, Hanna posted a clip showing her being a little more friendly with the royal couple (I mean, she probably realized the cameras were on her that time, but water).
“Today I welcomed Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge Kate to Jamaica on behalf of the Leader of the Opposition in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee,” she captioned the post.
She went on to tweet about how she and the royals had a “very interactive and pleasant conversation,” and how “There’s no doubt at this time that we all seek our true independence and want to develop systems & strategies where we become free from the monarchy.”
What do YOU think about the Royals’ Caribbean tour? Is it time for the two of them to pack it up?