Prince Harry & Meghan are ‘friends’ with some of Oprah’s favorite self-help gurus
There is so much racism and just *insanity* targeted at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, it didn’t even seem important to point out the dumbf–kery of the British media’s obsession with Oprah’s connection to the Sussexes. The British media would have their readership believe that Harry and Meghan are being guided by Oprah in all things, that Oprah is their mentor and that if H&M know anyone in LA, it’s because Oprah introduced them. It’s more than possible that Oprah has taken an interest in the Sussexes in general, but the application of Oprah’s name to every Sussex story is hilarious and vaguely racist, playing into the “all black people know each other” stereotype. Plus, it discounts the fact that Meghan and Harry know tons of people on their own. So, here we go.
Oprah Winfrey seems to be playing an integral role in helping Prince Harry and Meghan Markle settle into their new life in America. First, the legendary talk show host may have set them up in Tyler Perry’s mansion, and now it looks like she’s introducing them to all her friends, like self-help guru Brené Brown.
For their first joint appearance from their new Santa Barbara home, the royal couple spoke with the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust, a group set up to “champion, fund and connect young leaders who are working hard to change the world,” about how the digital world can be used for good. During the conversation, CEO of The Man Cave, Hunter Johnson, quoted Brown, saying, “Vulnerability brings connection and connection is why we are here. It brings meaning and it brings purpose to our lives.” Johnson also brought up Tristan Hunter, the co-founder of the Centre for Humane Technology, who urges the tech industry to address “the broader societal threats that the attention economy poses to our well-being, relationships, democracy, and shared information environment.”
Prince Harry enthusiastically responded to Johnson, “I love the fact you’re quoting Brené Brown and also bringing up Tristan Harris because they are two people we absolutely adore as well and that we know.” Meghan added, “We love them!”
Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston and best-selling author of numerous self-help books. She became widely known thanks to her 2010 TED Talk, “The power of vulnerability,” and, in 2013, she was interviewed by Oprah in a two-part Super Soul Sunday episode. Since then, the pair have remained close friends and collaborators, regularly appearing on the OWN Network in conversation. In 2018, Brown wrote that she is, “so grateful for what Oprah Winfrey has taught me and continues to teach me.”
[From Vanity Fair]
See, to me, the story is not “Oprah introduced H&M to her guru friends.” The story is that Harry & Meghan are friends with self-help gurus. In Finding Freedom, one of the most ominous parts of their courtship was when Meghan gave Harry a book about “mindfulness” and he read it and became some kind of mindfulness convert. I know I’m cynical as hell, and I’m not trying to convert people to my cynicism. People may genuinely find help and inspiration in what Brene Brown says and I’m not discounting that. But I do find all of this stuff vaguely Goopy and false, and it has nothing to do with Oprah. It’s about self-styled gurus peddling trendy watchwords and rebranded philosophical and spiritual ideologies which are appropriated and disconnected from their actual roots. So much of this sh-t is just “rebranded Hinduism” and “rebranded Buddhism.” Oprah is Oprah, and we’ve known about her love of gurus and self-help motivators for decades. That works for her. But for the Sussexes, it’s kind of a weird Goop-adjacent look. Just my opinion!
Speaking of Oprah introducing them to people, someone in the Sussex camp slipped a story to People several days ago about how grateful they were to Tyler Perry for lending them his mansion. A source said: “They’re really grateful to Tyler Perry for his kindness. They have endless gratitude to him for helping them during a complicated time. With COVID and as they were stepping back from their royal duties, he provided them a safe haven.” I guess that’s for all of the stories about how much Harry hated LA and he didn’t think Perry’s mansion was his style.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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