The Duchess of Sussex sat down with American comedian Robin Thede along with others where they discussed what it really means to be called the B word.
During her latest expose of “Archetypes” featured a conversation about the “slur.” Meghan stated that being called the B word makes a woman seem as if she is “difficult.”
“It’s just, it’s one of those labels that feels like it’s thrown around constantly,” Meghan explained. “And while its usage certainly has undertones that say a lot about the person who’s speaking, there’s still a specific type of woman who tends to be the recipient…”
“Even in 2022 and beyond, it’s still just used to describe a woman who goes after what she wants, who has an opinion that’s different from a man’s, you know, who turns you down at the club,” Robin added.
“In other words… I think what Robin’s getting at – and what these people are implying when they use that very charged word – is that this woman… oh, she’s difficult,” Meghan said in a voiceover. “Which is really just a euphemism, or probably not even a euphemism, it’s really a code word for the b-word.”
Robin, who is the creator of “A Black Lady Sketch Show,” went on to explain how she uses the word b—- positively in order to “offset” the negative usage by others.
“I mean, for a person who hates the word so much, this is giving me hives,” Meghan said before touching on Robin ‘s point. “Nevertheless, I will say, it’s all really interesting to me, what Robin is talking about. Because, as you may have guessed, I have zero interest in reclaiming this term. But these women I respect, whose work I love, a lot of them are entirely comfortable with that; they want to do that to take the power of it.”
Markle also stated that calling a woman the “b-word” can be a “deflection.”
“So perhaps the truth is… that labeling a woman as the b-word, or as difficult – is often a deflection,” she further explained. “A way to hide some of her really awesome qualities: her persistence, her strength, her perseverance, her strong opinion, maybe even her resilience.
Meghan is not one to shy away when it comes to uncomfortable conversations as this is not the first time she has used the word “difficult,” to reference something.
During a conversation with yet another comedian Issa Rae, the former Suit star opened up about being labeled “difficult” and “particular.”
“Because I often find myself even in walking into a room, I’m particular,” Meghan explained. “I think a high tide raises all ships, right? We’re all going to succeed. So let’s make sure it’s really great because it’s a shared success for everybody. But I also know that I will find myself cowering and tiptoeing into a room where, I don’t know if you do the thing that I find the most embarrassing, when you’re saying a sentence, but the intonation goes up like it’s a question,” Meghan said.
Also see: Meghan Markle on being labelled ‘difficult’
