A Norwegian princess says she received death threats for being in an interracial relationship, and it's strikingly similar to the backlash Meghan Markle faced

• Norway's Princess Märtha Louise opened up about the racist treatment her boyfriend Durek Verrett has been subjected to since they started dating.
• Märtha Louise said that both she and Verett have received death threats, and have "been told that we shame our people and families for choosing each other."
• "The press presents him as a liar, being violent and a threat to my family and myself, sharing scrupulously his X's story without checking facts, because it supports the belief system already in place about him," she wrote on Instagram.
• The treatment is eerily similar to the racist treatment Meghan Markle has received at the hands of internet trolls and British tabloids through the years.
• Prince Harry made a statement condemning the "wave of abuse and harassment" back in 2016.

Princess Märtha Louise of Norway has opened up about the death threats she received for being in an interracial relationship with an American shaman.

Märtha Louise announced that she and Durek Verrett were dating in May 2019. The couple have been public about their relationship — and Martha Louise even gave up her royal title in order to go on tour with him.

The princess wrote on Instagram that Verrett has been subjected to racist treatment — even from her own friends — throughout the past year since their relationship was made public.

She also spoke about how the press branded him as manipulative and a liar "without checking facts, because it supports the belief system already in place about him."

Märtha Louise says 'people at high places' have refused to shake Verrett's hand because he's black

"Being @shamandurek's girlfriend has given me a crash course in how white supremacy is at play and the way I have consciously and subconsciously thought of and acted towards black people," Märtha Louise wrote.

"How I have taken my rights for granted — never looked properly at what racism really is, because it has been comfortable for me that the system is in place.

"I am not proud of it, but I realize I need to grow into understanding this deeply rooted system to be able to be part of the dismantling of it. I, as a white person, need to grow, educate myself, and become better and move from being against racism to being anti-racist."

Being @shamandurek ‘s girlfriend has given me a crash course in how white supremacy is at play and the way I have consciously and subconsciously thought of and acted towards black people. How I have taken my rights for granted - never looked properly at what racism really is, because it has been comfortable for me that the system is in place. I am not proud of it, but I realize I need to grow into understanding this deeply rooted system to be able to be part of the dismantling of it. I, as a white person, need to grow, educate myself and become better and move from being against racism to being anti-racist. Racism is not just the obvious (which I thought it was), of the openly discrimination, mistreating and killing of black people which is easy and obvious to take a stand against. It is in the details (which I had no idea still existed). It is in the way people shy away from Durek. How friends assume he lies about everything. That he is evil for being kind. The words muttered under their breath, making it perfectly clear to him that he does not have a natural place at the table. People at high places saying “How dare you think I would touch your hand?” when he reached out his hand to say goodnight (pre Covid-19). People thinking they aren’t racist, but don’t know anyone with a different skin color than their own, apart from the people working for them. How it is assumed that Durek is not a good person who actually loves me, but has manipulated me into loving him and keeps manipulating me in our relationship. How he will exploit me financially. The press presents him as a liar, being violent and a threat to my family and myself, sharing scrupulously his X’s story without checking facts, because it supports the belief system already in place about him. THAT IS RACISM! We have both received death threats for being together and have weekly been told that we shame our people and families for choosing each other. The reality of it all is that I love how he holds space for me as a woman, listens to my wisdom and shows up for me and my girls. I love how he shares his wisdom with the world CONTINUES IN COMMENTS

A post shared by Princess Märtha Louise (@princessmarthalouise) on Jun 4, 2020 at 3:31pm PDTJun 4, 2020 at 3:31pm PDT

The princess went on to say that racism is not just open discrimination, but in "the way people shy away from Durek."

"How friends assume he lies about everything. That he is evil for being kind. The words muttered under their breath, making it perfectly clear to him that he does not have a natural place at the table," she said.

"People at high places saying 'how dare you think I would touch your hand?' when he reached out his hand to say goodnight (pre-COVID-19).

"People thinking they aren't racist, but don't know anyone with a different skin color than their own, apart from the people working for them," she added.

It's strikingly similar to the treatment Meghan Markle has been subjected to

Märtha Louise added that the press has presented her boyfriend as "a liar," "violent" and manipulative — all traits that have also been attributed to Meghan Markle by the British tabloids.

She said: "How it is assumed that Durek is not a good person who actually loves me, but has manipulated me into loving him and keeps manipulating me in our relationship.

"How he will exploit me financially. The press presents him as a liar, being violent, and a threat to my family and myself, sharing scrupulously his X's story without checking facts, because it supports the belief system already in place about him.

"THAT IS RACISM! We have both received death threats for being together and have weekly been told that we shame our people and families for choosing each other," she added.

It's reminiscent of the negative press treatment Meghan Markle has received. From being accused of "manipulating" Prince Harry into leaving the UK — and accusations that she had taken him away from his family — to "fueling human rights abuses, drought, and murder" for eating avocados.

Prince Harry called out the racist treatment of Markle back when they were just dating in November 2016.

In a statement released via Kensington Palace, Harry said Markle had been "subject to a wave of abuse and harassment."

"Some of this has been very public — the smear on the front of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments," he said.

"Some of it has been hidden from the public — the nightly legal battles to keep defamatory stories out of papers; her mother having to struggle past photographers in order to get to her front door; the attempts of reporters and photographers to gain illegal entry to her home and the calls to police that followed; the substantial bribes offered by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of nearly every friend, co-worker, and loved one in her life," he added.

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