Duty

 

 A deputy lord lieutenant, 

I am a personal representative of Her Majesty the Queen in the English county of Nottinghamshire. I am also an Islamic scholar and translator of the Quran. I am intensely proud of my Britishness, my faith, and my South Asian heritage.

In the 10 years I have spent representing the royal family, they have been nothing but respectful of my background. The notion that they are racist is simply out of touch with reality.

This is not to delegitimize Meghan Markle’s experience, or to belittle the inevitable difficulties of someone adapting to royal life — to an existence based on duty, not stardom.

But on many occasions, I, and other members of minority communities, have spent extended periods of time with the royals. If racism was in their DNA, I would have certainly smelt it.   Just a thought.