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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Are ‘Feeling Free’ After Their Bombshell Oprah Interview, Friend Says

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry got candid with Oprah Winfrey about their reasons for leaving the British royal family. It has boiled down to racism and lack of support. Now a friend says that couple is feeling free now that they've spoken their truth.

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry‘s tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey sent shockwaves across the globe, and the British royal family and the British press are still trying to find their footing. In the two-hour-long special, the Sussexes went into detail about the reasons why they decided to leave the British royal family and their hopes for the future.

People have known about the tension that the Sussexes experienced as members of the British royal family for some time. However, many people were stunned to hear Meghan’s experience firsthand.

Now that their revelations are still thundering across the U.K., a close friend of the couple says they feel free.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex smile and wave at cameras
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex | Daniel Leal-Olivas – WPA Pool/Getty Images

Why did Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leave the British royal family?

It was obvious to everyone that the British press did not welcome Meghan with open arms. From the constant criticisms about her to the horrendous rumors that swirled, including one that claimed the duchess made Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge cry, there appeared to be a clear intent to assassinate Meghan’s character. “The U.K. press is bigoted, specifically the tabloids,” Prince Harry told Oprah.

In Oprah with Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special, Meghan said it all took such a toll on her mental health that she no longer wanted to be alive. Prince Harry revealed that a family member also had concerns over Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor’s skin color before he was born.

In the end, the duo told Oprah that they left largely because of racism and lack of support from the royal family.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are ‘feeling free’ after their interview with Oprah

While the British press and the British royal family are scrambling to save face, the Sussexes who are now living in Santa Barbara, California, and expecting a baby girl in the spring are happy to close this chapter in their lives.

“I think they are feeling free. It is nice to see them feel free,” Meghan’s friend of 17-years, actor Janina Gavankar told ITV’s This Morning. “Now they can get back to what they really were focused on and how they really met and fell in love — that was through humanitarian and environmental work. They have been doing that kind of work way before they met each other and now they can do it together. It is actually a really good time.”

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Why Is Piers Morgan so Obsessed With Meghan Markle?

What is Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Archewell foundation?

Through their Archewell Foundation, Meghan and Prince Harry have signed megawatt deals with Netflix and Spotify. The couple had hoped to officially launch Archewell in 2020, but the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic stalled their plans. In a statement the Sussexes shared,

Before SussexRoyal, came the idea of ‘Arche’—the Greek word meaning ‘source of action.’ We connected to this concept for the charitable organization we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name. To do something of meaning, to do something that matters. Archewell is a name that combines an ancient word for strength and action, and another that evokes the deep resources we each must draw upon.

So far, Archwell has helped rebuild a roof at a Texas woman’s shelter following the storms and they’ve partnered with the non-profit, World Central Kitchen to end hunger.