Baroness Susan Hussey can’t be racist because she sees Black folks in church

Please don’t allow this Susan Hussey story to go away because it has taken on a life of its own in the British media. I would imagine that Buckingham Palace would love nothing more for the Hussey debacle to be done and forgotten – King Charles and Queen Camilla succeeded in pushing Hussey out after Ngozi Fulani told her story of Hussey’s racist interrogation at a palace reception. The palace lied when they said they had contacted Fulani, but according to insiders, the king and queen’s private secretaries spoke to Hussey directly and she resigned from her position immediately. Surely, this story is over, right? Wrong.

First off, Petronella Wyatt at the Spectator wrote a huffy, racist article “in defense of Susan Hussey,” in which Wyatt came dangerously close to calling Ngozi Fulani “uppity.” Some of the most ridiculous parts:

The walls of the temple then came down on the elderly miscreant. Prince William, who is Lady Susan’s godson, expressed ‘disappointment’ in his long-standing benefactor and elder, and the Palace denounced the incident as ‘unacceptable’. But what is more ‘unacceptable’? To publicly condemn and dismiss an 83-year-old for showing curiosity about someone’s heritage? Or for dispatching a loyal, grey-haired servant with such cruel haste, without even the benefit of a day’s grace? I incline to the latter. But then I am prejudiced, I have known Susan Hussey since I was 18, and if she is a racist, then I am an ornamental fountain.

Her sin, if there was one, was being old. Most pensioners are unfamiliar with the wonders of woke etiquette and its pitfalls. There are new strict rules governing what used to be called ‘making conversation’. In asking Ms Fulani where she ‘really’ came from, Susan Hussey was merely repeating what people like her and my late father used to say.

I can say with authority, however, that Susan Hussey has never knowingly offended anyone in her life. She upholds a clean tradition of honesty and equity. She possesses the milk of human kindness by the quart. This morning a mutual friend told me she is ‘shattered and heartbroken and will never recover.’ The wasteland that is now her life will be far more devastating than any injury done to Ms Fulani, who far from being the sensitive plant she portrays herself as, is currently taking herself on a tour of every television studio in London.

And now we come to the crux of this tragedy. Susan Hussey has no prejudices at all. She spent much of her life married to a man called Marmaduke, who had one leg. She has never sought publicity or the acclaim of the yelling multitudes. She abhors discrimination and once ticked me off for an article I wrote about Italians on the grounds it was both ‘racist’ and ‘unkind’.

Yet it has been suggested that she should not have been ‘allowed out’ at all, and certainly forbidden social intercourse. Poor Susan is not alone in her plight. This whole business, in fact, draws attention to the twilight world now facing the upper crust British pensioner.

[From The Spectator]

A lot of people thought this piece was brilliant satire. It was not. Wyatt truly lamented the sad lot of 80-something aristocrat who is too racist to be in a public-facing role for the British monarchy, which is funded by taxpayers. Not only that, but Susan Hussey can’t be racist because “She spent much of her life married to a man called Marmaduke, who had one leg.” Well, not only that, but apparently Susan Hussey can’t be racist because she sees Black folks at church. I sh-t you not.

The Queen’s former lady- in-waiting accused of racism is a devoted member of a church with a ‘90 per cent black congregation’. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Lady Susan Hussey has long attended St Agnes Church in Kennington, an ethnically diverse area of South London. The congregation at St Agnes has rallied around Lady Susan and dismissed the claim that she is guilty of racial prejudice.

John Vaughan, a regular worshipper, told the MoS: ‘Susan doesn’t have a racist bone in her body. I would absolutely insist on that. Everyone in the congregation, from all ethnic backgrounds, gets on extremely well with her. Watching her have coffee with people after services you see her as she really is – a nice, gentle, friendly woman.’

Mr Vaughan said the speed with which the Palace had ‘dumped’ Lady Susan following her controversial conversation with Ms Fulani was ‘very troubling’. ‘Susan had a lifetime friendship with Queen Elizabeth,’ he added. ‘Then, suddenly, after one conversation that was obviously a mis-understanding, she has been unceremoniously dumped.’

One black female worshipper at St Agnes, who preferred not to be named, said yesterday: ‘She is not a racist person, not in any way. She is a lovely, beautiful lady, and everybody in that church will say the same thing.’ Another source close to the church described the congregation as ‘90 per cent black’ and insisted Lady Susan was ‘not racist’.

The revelations come as friends of the former lady-in-waiting suggested deafness may have played a role in the fateful exchange. ‘Like many people of her age, Lady Susan is rather hard of hearing,’ one told the Daily Mail. ‘It’s likely that her deafness contributed to the problems she had that day.’

[From The Daily Mail]

LMAO. I can’t, y’all. Again, what is the point of all of this? Plenty of racists are not racist 100% of the time. And plenty of seniors are too out-of-touch to have a public-facing role in public relations and diplomacy. Here’s the thing: this just keeps getting worse and worse for Charles and Camilla. They were the ones appointing a mostly deaf racist 83-year-old woman to a public-facing role and they knew it was a roll of the dice. Seriously, it was just a matter of time.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar.

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83 Responses to “Baroness Susan Hussey can’t be racist because she sees Black folks in church”

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  1. Lorelei says:

    Someone on Twitter posted a photo of this “90% Black” congregation and I bet you’ll never guess what it actually looked like! (Not as if that was a valid defense in the first place.)

    • MsIam says:

      Next they will say she “once slept rough with a black person”. Or has that excuse already been used? Smh at these dumb, racist folks.

    • Lucky Charm says:

      More likely they meant 9% and the DM just rounded up!

    • florencia says:

      Thank you for sharing this, that claim had me raising my eyebrows in complete skepticism!

  2. Chaine says:

    Ugh this is all following that familiar-by-now script where somehow the racist aggressor is made out to be the victim and the actual victim is pilloried for speaking up.

    • Tacky says:

      Yup, just like JK Rowling.

    • Snoozer says:

      Yes, it is being reduced to:

      “Uppity black lady who likes to cause problems was mean to poor, sweet, elderly BFF of the Queen who was simply politely curious about the person she was speaking to and asking a standard question.”

      It is so gross and so predictable. I have literally seen people say that this is standard for well-travelled, open-minded and curious people. I used to move from country to country for a previous job and let me tell you (preaching to the choir), uninvited touching, rudely asking unwanted questions, and assuming things about people based on their skin colour are actually NOT the things well-travelled, open-minded, curious people do! Jeeeeeeez.

      I also find it interesting when people defend racist behaviours by going on and and on about how kind and sweet someone is. News flash: not all racists are of the Neo-Nazi, KKK persuasion. In fact, the majority of racism these days comes in the form micro-aggressions. Often from otherwise “normal” people.

      What SH did was a serious of quite aggressive micro-aggressions. It doesn’t matter if other times she’s nice or not racist or even anti-racist. She othered someone and undermined them because of their skin colour. And she felt entitled to touch an intimate part of the person, uninvited – a behaviour she would not engage in with a white woman she perceived as being of similar stature to herself.

      I once met a very sweet, kind, nice older couple. They were very interested in us, asked questions, were curious and polite. Then, out of nowhere, they made a comment about not wanting “them” to live next door to you – “them” being a reference to aboriginal people (we are Australian). It was so shocking and they were clearly used to being backed up on opinions like this.

      All this to say: otherwise sweet, nice old people (or any age) can also be extraordinarily racist. We all contain multitudes. I despise these character witness defences.

      It’s like how people don’t understand that rapists and wife beaters are most often otherwise nice, charming people who have friends and family who love and admire them. They’re not all depraved strangers hiding in the bushes or drunken louts in dirty singlet tops. They are otherwise upstanding members of the community.

      We are multi-faceted. Being nice sometimes doesn’t mean we aren’t capable of doing the wrong thing.

      • KATHLEEN says:

        Also, this Hussey was put in charge of Meghan to “guide her into the royal fold”. I cannot imagine what a nightmare that was.

  3. K says:

    I am dying laughing at the equation of one-legged husband with ridiculous name = unable to be a racist. Omg lol

    • OriginalLeigh says:

      Her husband was a White aristocrat and Chairman of the BBC! He was hardly an underdog. That article has to be a joke….

    • ChillinginDC says:

      I am baffled at that line. WTF. Am I missing something? Is he Black? No? Then why compare??? JFC

      • Lori says:

        They see skin colour as a disability to be tolerated and pitied. And somehow think that’s better than being racist.

      • zazzoo says:

        @Lori – You absolutely nailed it. I just thought it was some stupid attempt to make her look compassionate, but OMG, what you said is the real story here.

      • Emily_C says:

        Seeing a disability as something to be tolerated and pitied is foul too. Don’t forget that the Tories have killed thousands of disabled people on purpose.

    • Nicole r says:

      My favorite tidbit too! Imagine trotting that out as an excuse for behavior – but what about one legged Marmaduke!

    • Agreatreckoning says:

      OMG. That line was hysterical. Is Petronella saying if ‘ol Marmaduke had two legs it would be a totally different story?lol I’m not buying the “deafness” stuff either. The exchange was pretty clear. I remember when they pulled the hard of hearing stuff with QE2 and the naming of Lilibet yet they would talk about how sharp the Queen was.

  4. Flower says:

    “Her sin, if there was one, was being old. Most pensioners are unfamiliar with the wonders of woke etiquette and its pitfalls. There are new strict rules governing what used to be called ‘making conversation’.”

    ^^ This is disgusting and culture-war-ish. It also frames Lady H’s questioning as being one single question when according to all incl LH herself it was a full on interrogation.

    Petronella Wyatt – aka Boris Johnson’s jump off is delusional as always.

    • Lizzie says:

      Weren’t these ‘pensioners’ our parents and grandparents who taught us to be polite to strangers? Now the right is rebranding simple politeness and common courtesy as ‘woke etiquette’. Or is that just when it applies to POC?

      • IForget says:

        Exactly. My (white) grandmother who grew up in England and moved to Canada in her late thirties wasn’t racist. Her child, my dad, raised in rural Canada, grew up to be racist. Not even in her early nineties did she say or do anything that could be misconstrued as racist, and she chastised others in her nursing home for being racist or sexist or problematic. She was even older than Sarah is. There just is no excuse, and I do not accept anything less than calling this situation what it was- racism, classism, and elitism (but mainly racism).

    • Tacky says:

      This is why diversity and inclusion matter in the workplace. Charles and Camilla are so deep in the palace “group think” it never occurred to them that sending a stuffy old aristocrat to a diverse event was truly a bad idea.

    • Bklne says:

      Also, you gotta love the irony: their injured bewilderment at the “new, strict rules” governing appropriate behavior and etiquette, and if you don’t already know, if you put a foot wrong, you get excoriated … what does that sound like, hmm? Maybe the social class gatekeeping etiquette police shrieking “protocol!” and looking down on the plebs who didn’t grow up with lessons on how to use the escargot fork instead of the caviar spoon …
      Enjoy that taste of your own medicine!

  5. Renae says:

    Well, Bless her Heart!

  6. girl_ninja says:

    That island is disgusting. They need to either own up or SHUT UP. They refuse to learn and when they fuck up they make excuses. Disgraceful.

  7. Emmi says:

    It is Monday. It is too early in the week for racist bingo. WTF?

    Also: “the milk of human kindness by the quart” ???? Why are writers sometimes so far up their own asses? I can’t with this today.

    She acted racist so we HAVE to assume she is, anything else would be irresponsible. People need to accept that you’re never too old to evolve and learn, only too lazy.

    • Snuffles says:

      Also: “the milk of human kindness by the quart” ????

      White milk for sure. None of that woke Chocolate, Strawberry or, worse VEGAN milk for goodness sake!

    • lanne says:

      The milk of human kindness os how Lady Macbeth spoke of Macbeth. Hardly a ringing endorsement of good behavior.

    • Emily_C says:

      If you’re carefully measuring the “milk of human kindness,” you’re entirely missing the point. It’s like “Welp, I’ve only got a tablespoon of kindness left for the month, and I’m saving it for someone else!”

  8. CC says:

    I’m just impressed that an ornamental fountain can write an article printed in a national publication.

    • Brassy Rebel says:

      LMAO 🤣😂!

    • serena says:

      I snorted way too loud at this, lol!!!

    • Dierski says:

      😂 YES – Came to say the same, CC!

    • Agreatreckoning says:

      LOL @CC. This particular ornamental fountain gets publicized in the British tabloids/RR papers quite often. (The Spectator has the same ownership the Telegraph does)

      I’ve never tried psychedelic mushrooms. Reading Petronella sounds like what one experiences. PW’s Kate 40th birthday article was mind blowing in the funniest way possible. Basically, Kate was the bestest royal of any royal in any country ever. I know bestest isn’t a word.jic

  9. Josephine says:

    I don’t need to know anything more about Petronella than she wrote an entire article about a nation of people in which she apparently stereotyped and degraded them to the extent that even another racist told her she was being unkind. Racists defending racists is nothing new. Standard formula here — pretending that being woke means something other than being a decent human being, pretending that being old is an excuse for being racists, pretending that a woman with every advantage and gobs of money not earned is a victim who will never recover. Brilliant.

    • tanesha86 says:

      That’s not what being woke means at all though, at least not the AAVE definition. Racist people have bastardized the term and turned it into something ugly but what woke/wokeness is actually about is understanding that we as Black people live in a racist and white supremacist society. It’s about knowing how to safely navigate such a dangerous world. It has nothing to do with political correctness, kindness, or social justice

    • Dara says:

      I don’t need to know anything more about Petronella other than her name is Petronella. Tell me you are an aristo-adjacent upper crust Brit without saying so.

  10. Mmmm says:

    PLEASE get more info on this church 😆

  11. Zazzoo says:

    First of all, Petronella? Is she an alum of Slytherin? Second, this has got to be satire. A real life black woman who exists had this to say: [Person X] is [not racist].

  12. ThatsNotOkay says:

    She’s old, deaf, and racist. She can be all three! And her whiteness and white tears buy her sympathy.

  13. Brassy Rebel says:

    Elderly people stay in the same churches long after the racial make up has changed around them for sentimental reasons, not because they’re so racially sensitive or inclusive. I had married elderly relatives who continued to attend events and services at an inner city parish in Detroit when it was overwhelmingly Black because they met there and went to high school there. I would like to be able to say that these two, now deceased, were not racist but that would be a lie.

    • lamejudi says:

      And if Hussey is a regular at this church, socializes with other attendees on a regular basis-how in the world did she summon such racist, rude, behavior at a palace reception?

      Naw, this tells me that this is Hussey’s true self. She was super comfortable at the palace reception and showed everyone who she is.

    • Blue Nails Betty says:

      See also: people at church often act on their best behavior while at church functions but act like fools outside of church functions.

  14. Noor says:

    The baroness’s behavior and actions are troubling because it smacked of imperialism and colonialism. on top of being racist. It is how in the past colonial masters behaved towards the natives.

  15. equality says:

    If she truly is so devastated about the incident, why not reach out to Ms Fulani and apologize? Or is she only devastated that she got kicked out of the palace and the tears are only for herself?

  16. Jais says:

    This is hilarious but not. Bc it’s real. Petronella wrote this in sincerity and people sincerely believe this. Gross. Need a shower.

  17. Zapp Brannigan says:

    “Then, suddenly, after one conversation that was obviously a mis-understanding”

    You know they believe the mis-understanding was that Miss Fulani didn’t “know her place”, right?

  18. MY3CENTS says:

    I just want to know where she’s from?No really where is she from? Can someone please inquire?

    • Jaded says:

      She’s a la-di-da aristo and comes from a long line of impeccable aristos who served the Queen and Queen Mother. She joined the royal household in 1960 and became a close friend of QEII, as well as of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.

  19. Lizzie says:

    Now she’s deaf? When I don’t hear something clearly I either say ‘Sorry, I didn’t catch that’, or ‘Sorry, can you repeat what you said’. I never just repeat the same question over and over.

  20. Pam says:

    My opinion is that they’re all used to the days when Prince Phillip made similar gaffs and it was swept under the rug. Those days are GONE, and they need to realize this. My mother was brought up in England, with impeccable manners, and she always taught me that job ONE of being polite is putting someone at their ease. Interrogating an honored guest is NOT putting someone at their ease.

    • Sharrrrrron says:

      This exactly. Anyone with an ounce of genuine manners and diplomacy would have changed the subject at the slightest hint their guest was uncomfortable.

  21. Becks1 says:

    Oh lordy. The milk of human kindnesss line sent me over the edge. And then the final defense is that she’s DEAF? That’s the excuse now?

    Look, in general, I think this can be a learning experience. And I think that’s what Ngozi Fulani is hoping it becomes. Being racist doesn’t mean you use a racial slur. I mean that can be part of it, obviously, but a lot of times its a lot more ….understated….than that. Like saying that a Black person is very well spoken, or articulate. Or pumping a person for where they’re from when they already told you. This is why the royals do need diversity training and a diversity czar or whatever else they were discussing.

    you can be perfectly nice to black people in your church and still be racist.

    • Seraphina says:

      Whatever happened to the diversity tsar? I really do not think any amount of training will help this sad lot out. They are who they are and they think their antiquated system is perfectly acceptable and the way it SHOULD be. Because if they did question it, it would mean questioning their entire life as well.

  22. CC says:

    Don’t you hate it when you receive a monkey’s paw as part of your induction into the Society of Marmadukes, and your first wish is for your wife to not be racist, but then you lose your leg?

  23. Polo says:

    The way they have now demonized Ngozi instead of the actual racist is actually not surprising but disheartening. I really hope she has some support.

    And this is why it’s important that Harry and Meghan keep speaking no matter how many times the rota or BM or trolls complain.
    In the future people who are making documentaries on Harry and Meghan can get their own words instead of lies from the 50 books written by the rota.

  24. MF says:

    “The wasteland that is now her life will be far more devastating than any injury done to Ms Fulani”

    I about died laughing. The WASTELAND OF HER LIFE! Yes, it must be soooooooo difficult being a rich old baroness who is required to retire from attending royal events. I really can’t imagine a worse existence. /s

    • Seraphina says:

      Yeah, that part made me scratch my head like, for real? She lives a life along side of Liz, the QoE. I do not feel sorry for her. She is also a casualty of the bigger issue of the evil racism that plagues that family. She probably feels like she’s a victim because EVERYONE does it. And so to wash their hands clean they did what they did. But I do not feel sorry for her – for the love of God she is 83.

      • Debbie says:

        Oh, but she’s “old” and “elderly” and a “pensioner” and she’s “83 years old” and she “has grey hair” and have I mentioned that she’s “old”? At a certain point, I just gave up counting the numbers of references to Susan Racist’s age. Oh my God, subtlety is not this writer’s forte.

  25. Pumpkin (Was Sofia) says:

    Well if she is so deaf to the point of unable to hear someone after repeating where they’re from then should she have continued to have been in a public facing role? She is 83, having her retire would hardly be putting someone in their prime out of work or whatever.

  26. kyliegirl says:

    The royalists are really telling on themselves with their reactions to the palace removing Lady SH. Many are even turning on Prince William for “sacking” his godmother. It is really sickening to read/hear people trying to justify this situation and defending the poor, elderly woman who did nothing but serve her country. They really don’t have any idea how wrong her actions were and I am sure this experience is just the tip of the iceberg. That they are putting themselves into contortions to defend this woman at the expense of their golden boy Prince William tells you how entrenched this type of behavior is in the upper classes of British society and they don’t want to change. Meghan never stood a chance.

  27. ChillinginDC says:

    The derangers want her back and they want William and Kate to denounce Fulaini. This is some sick crap. I could not believe some of the Twitter comments. This is who William and Kate keep embracing? Loud and racist white British people.

    They should all just meet with Fulain (if she wants) and then apologize in person and squash this mess. HIRE A NEW PR PERSON!

  28. Sharrrrrrrron says:

    Ahaha, the quote from the “black female worshipper at St Agnes” doesn’t sound coerced at all!! Lmao.

  29. Jackie says:

    Whenever I see someone argue that an offender is just “from a different time”, I want to scream! They didn’t TIME TRAVEL directly from the past to 2022, they had literal DECADES to enlighten themselves and grow and CHOSE NOT TO. Hussey was, and continues to be, a racist.

  30. serena says:

    ” Ms Fulani, who far from being the sensitive plant she portrays herself as, is currently taking herself on a tour of every television studio in London.”.. What the actual f-? I have already seen it and it’s an ugly display. According to them, if you’re a victim you need to shut up and take it and not tell your story for whetever reasons, otherwise it’s not valid anymore.

    And I’m so over this ‘they’re old’ reason, it’s not the excuse they think it is. It just make them all look a racist bunch stuck in the past.

    I just want to slap these fools. And I hope Fulani and M&H keep talking about it. FOREVER. Let them haunt even their dreams.

  31. Amy Bee says:

    She may have been a member of that church at one stage of her life but I doubt she attends nowadays. Given that she spent most of her life shadowing the Queen, it stands to reason that she attended church at Windsor or Balmoral rather than Kennington on most Sundays.

  32. SueBarbri33 says:

    Besides, as many of us have said over the past few weeks, being 83 isn’t really an excuse for being racist. She’s a contemporary of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, for goodness sakes. Even adjusting for all the differences between rock stars and ladies in waiting, she should know better than to behave this way. Everybody in their circle behaves as if they were born and raised in Queen Victoria’s time, but there’s just no excuse. This is awful and the palace and RR really shouldn’t waste their time defending her. They had so many L’s last week, this is the least important.

  33. D says:

    The author of this piece is only 54! I thought for sure it was some older aristo whinging about cancel culture. Wow. The fact that his was able to be published and she isn’t being called out is astonishing to me.

  34. Mel says:

    So….. having a rich, one-legged hubby with a stuffy name means that you can’t possibly be racist? Who knew???!!! ( slaps palm to forehead).

  35. Wrin says:

    Where is that ornamental fountain because it is surely there!

    • ML says:

      Petronella Wyatt reminds me of Brusssels’ famous fountain, The Peeing Boy. https://www.brussels.info/peeing-boy/

      This woman has been part and parcel of a royal household that has made hiring minorities for higher positions difficult—the royals got exempted from having to follow the law. She’s been close to Queen Elizabeth whose husband often made derogatory comments about people from Asia and Africa. She’s apparently close to Angela Kelley, another racist cee-you-next-Tuesday.
      In her defense, people are somehow implying that this woman lived in a time when racism was an acceptable practice, yet British papers of the 1960’s lauded Martin Luther King. So exactly how does that work? Hint: it doesn’t. Petronella must therefore be a fountain (like Manneke Pis) and Hussey is a racist who has withheld a job from someone more deserving long enough.

  36. Therese says:

    This article continues to abuse Ms. Fulani, saying that she is portraying herself as a delicate plant, while parading in various news shows. When does this stop? This showcases the MO of the RF, and I guess some of the English. Instead of using this incident for good, apologizing and making reparations, it is a case of covering up and making excuses. Ms. Fulani is adorable and is doing wonderful, meaningful work, and has actually been very gracious.

  37. QuiteContrary says:

    “The wasteland that is now her life will be far more devastating than any injury done to Ms Fulani.”

    That, right there, says it all.
    To Petronella and her ilk, a white woman’s life is much more valuable than that of a Black woman. A white woman’s tears are far more important than the harm inflicted on a Black woman.

  38. JK says:

    This lady has quite an aquiline nose! I wonder where she’s from? Where she’s REALLY from? Where her nose comes from? Where her “people” really come from? No, no, that can’t be a British nose! Surely if we go back far enough…. What, I am just showing polite interest in her heritage!!!!! Surely it’s a perfectly normal conversation to have.

  39. Jean says:

    Honestly I don’t think the older lady was trying to be racist, she’s probably just so stuck in her ways and speaks to minorities and people if a so called lower class a certain way, never gets any backlash and definitely has no black friends. I think she’s just old and tone deaf and belongs to another era. My black grandmother had inappropriate terms for addressing white people and she meant no harm at all.

  40. Sintara says:

    What gets me is how the Daily Mail puts in articles excusing Susan Hussey since this happened. Just like they attack Meghan Markle starting with the article where she was supposed to be “straight out of Compton.” As if she was a gangster or something, whereas she never lived anywhere near Compton. The UK tabloids are racist xenophobic trash and why anyone reads them is beyond me. More than half of the tabloids are made up garbage. No wonder “Lady” Susan Hussey is made out to be the victim. Disgusting!