Prince Harry’s girlfriend Meghan Markle reveals she blocked and reported Twitter trolls as she pens powerful essay about her race
The 35-year-old actress has opened up about her experience of being targeted by social media trolls, whose abusive tweets she says reveal shocking undercurrent of racism in society
PRINCE Harry's girlfriend Meghan Markle has hit back at racist trolls who attacked her on social media.
Meghan, 35, has penned an article relaying her experience of being targeted by sick social media trolls, whose abusive tweets she says speak volumes of the racism still at large in the US.
The Suits actress spoke out about the backlash she received after black actor Wendell Pierce was cast to play her father in the show - and how she didn't hesitate to block and report the trolls attacking her.
Writing for Elle UK, Meghan, who has been dating Harry for eight months, said: "I remember the tweets when that first episode of the Zane family aired, they ran the gamut from: 'Why would they make her dad black? She's not black' to 'Ew, she's black? I used to think she was hot.'"
"The reaction was unexpected, but speaks of the undercurrent of racism that is so prevalent, especially within America."
In the she says she will push to create her own identity.
"You push for colour-blind casting, you draw your own box … you create the identity you want for yourself, just as my ancestors did when they were given their freedom," writes Meghan, who was born in Los Angeles but now lives in Canada.
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Her comments come after her beau Prince Harry slammed trolls for attacking his girlfriend and her family.
The 32-year-old royal, who is believed to have doggedly pursued Meghan by text after meeting her in Toronto, said he was "deeply disappointed" that he has not been able to protect Meghan from the "wave of abuse and harassment" she has suffered since their romance was made public.
A statement released by Kensington Palace after news of their relationship broke read: "[Harry's] girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment."
In her essay, Meghan also says while being "ethnically ambiguous" meant she could audition for any role, she struggled to get jobs as she "wasn't black enough for the black roles and I wasn't white enough for the white ones".
"Every role has a label, every casting is for something specific. But perhaps it is through this craft that I found my voice," she says.
"While my mixed heritage may have created a grey area surrounding my self-identification, keeping me with a foot on both sides of the fence, I have come to embrace that."
In the candid piece, she also reveals the lifelong advice given to her by her dad when she first encountered issues around ethnicity.
The actress recounts having to fill in a survey at school in which she had to tick either "Caucasian" or "black".
"You could only choose one, but that would be to choose one parent over the other – and one half of myself over the other," says Meghan.
"When I went home that night, I told my dad what had happened. He said the words that have always stayed with me: 'If that happens again, you draw your own box.'"
Despite being together for just a few months, the pair's budding relationship has fuelled inevitable speculation about whether Meghan could be the one for Harry.
The actress, who plays Rachel Zane in the US legal drama Suits, has reportedly met Prince Charles, with insiders claiming an engagement could be on the cards for the couple.
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