Royal family says Harry, Meghan racism charges 'concerning'

This image provided by Harpo Productions shows Prince Harry, left, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, in conversation with Oprah Winfrey. [File photo: Harpo Productions via AP/Joe Pugliese]

This handout provided by Buckingham Palace shows a statement issued on behalf of Britain's Queen Elizabeth on Tuesday, March 9, 2021. [Photo: Buckingham Palace via AP]

A view of Buckingham Palace, in London, Tuesday, March 9, 2021. [Photo: AP/Frank Augstein]

A sign depicting the image of Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, hangs outside the Duke of Sussex pub near Waterloo station, London, Tuesday March 9, 2021. [Photo: AP/Frank Augstein]

Buckingham Palace said Tuesday that allegations of racism made earlier this week by Prince Harry and Meghan were "concerning" and would be addressed privately by the royal family.

The comments, made in a statement issued on behalf Queen Elizabeth II, are the first from the palace since the two-hour television interview with Meghan and Harry rocked the royal family. Meghan, who is biracial, said the palace had failed to help her when she had suicidal thoughts and that an unidentified member of the royal family had raised "concerns" about the color of her baby's skin when she was pregnant with her son, Archie.

"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan," the palace said. "The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.''

The interview, conducted by Oprah Winfrey and which aired Sunday night in the U.S. and a day later in Britain, has divided people around the world. While many say the allegations demonstrate the need for change inside a palace that hasn't kept pace with the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements, others have criticized Harry and Meghan for dropping their bombshell while Harry's 99-year-old grandfather, Prince Philip, remains hospitalized in London after a heart procedure.

Anna Whitelock, a professor of history and director of the Centre for the Study of Modern Monarchy at Royal Holloway, University of London, said the palace's brief message was an effort to quiet the controversy.

"It's not very long, but it's very precise and it has a clear intent — and that is to close this down as a family matter; to make clear that this is clearly a family in crisis, that there's family issues to sort out, but to separate this very clearly from any criticism or discussion about the institution of monarchy itself," she told The Associated Press. "And I think time will tell whether that's a distinction that the public will accept."

While the palace often tries to stay above controversy by remaining silent and riding out the storm, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's charges proved so damaging that the family was forced to respond.

The response was likely delayed by the queen's struggle to balance her sometimes-conflicting roles as monarch and grandmother, said Angela Levin, author of "Harry, a Biography of a Prince," before the statement was released. During past crises, the 94-year-old monarch has usually come down on the side of the 1,000-year-old institution she has led since 1952.

"The queen has a motto: Never complain, never explain," Levin told the AP. "And she's stuck with this for decades. But I think in this climate and 2021, everything goes everywhere. There's so much social media that in this instance, she really can't not say anything."