The public has always been enamored with the British royal family. The family’s lavish lifestyle and charming demeanor always reflect Western society’s ideals for beauty. Their wealth is worth that of a small country, and they exemplify what Americans want in foreigners: jet-setting millionaires who spread their presence across the Commonwealth. We see them reflected in ourselves in terms of what America has done for the past century – cripple growing nations to serve our economic gain. The royals are the minimalist, sanitized versions of the colonists that influenced political structures across the world. Sure, the British royal family might have colonized all of India and southern Africa, but their accents are sophisticated. They colonize with class and supposed respect for the cultures they have disrupted. 

I am not going to criticize the fans of the English monarchy; I am in no position to do so. I read the tabloids – the royals are charming and maintain the appearance of polite people. However, when I glanced at Twitter last week, I discovered that the newlyweds, Duchess Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, have moved to Los Angeles. As with anything mildly annoying on Twitter, Trump turned it into a wildfire. Soon after the press ran the story, Trump tweeted that the U.S. government is not going to pay for their security. His tweet read, “I am a great friend and admirer of the Queen & the United Kingdom. It was reported that Harry and Meghan, who left the Kingdom, would reside permanently in Canada. Now they have left Canada for the U.S. however, the U.S. will not pay for their security protection. They must pay!”

In right-wing politics, payment is not just the transfer of resources; it is also a figment of political communication. It’s fuel for the Twitter politics machine. Centrists who adhere to principles of neoliberalism will furiously post in favor of the royals’ acceptance, whereas conservatives will dogwhistle xenophobia through their refusal to ‘pay.’ It’s a paradigm that internet users have recycled countless times. I do not care for it and I am not interested in it. I couldn’t care less about who pays for the security for Prince Harry and Duchess Markle if they decide to permanently reside in the United States. The British royal family should not exist in the first place. They are an artifact of a world that has been minced into colonies and exhausted of its resources. The British Empire, needless to say, was the evilest in all of history.

The consequences of upholding colonialism reach way beyond political spats on Twitter. They reshape our cultural practices and norms. I’m not saying your kid shouldn’t dress up as a princess for Halloween – I just want everybody to recognize the bloodshed the British Empire, and the royal family, has caused in the world over the course of its reign.

The modern conception of the royal family is not as overt as some of its more visible crimes, like the installment of the caste system in India and Pakistan or its slave-powered colonies in the Caribbean. The British royal family is currently used as cultural diplomacy to connect the former colonies to the British economy. In the scope of the United Nations, the Commonwealth and the royal family have limited power. Despite little recognition of its multilateral legitimacy, the Commonwealth still serves as a commerce platform for cruel governments and dictators, a sort of signal for a blind-eye stance on human rights and democracy – concepts the United Kingdom supposedly advocates for. 

Prince Harry did not decide to be born into the family, and I have respect for his attempt to leave with Duchess Markle. After reports of Queen Elizabeth II’s feud with the couple, I can understand the pressure they faced to leave. I wish them happiness and an easy resettlement in Los Angeles, especially during the trying times of COVID-19. However, I hope the world does not forget the origin of the British royal family and its crimes. 

Daniel Cody is a freshman journalism major from Pennsylvania who writes about politics.