Netizens Slam Meghan Markle After Cousin Reveals 'Idyllic' And 'Happy' Childhood: 'Fraud'
Meghan Markle received another round of backlash from her critics after one of her cousins spoke about their childhood.
The Duchess of Sussex's cousin from her mother's side, Shawn Johnson, recounted the happy memories they shared growing up. He also shared old photos of Markle as a child enjoying the beach in Hawaii and Disneyland.
The snaps were a far cry from the duchess' 2011 letter to Congress, where she recounted her childhood years and shared that she started working at 13 and had worked all her life to make ends meet.
"I don't think any of us were really well off, but we had enough, and she definitely had enough," Johnson told Daily Mail about their "idyllic" and "happy" childhood.
Johnson's statement and Markle's photos enjoying what many deemed as luxury were allegedly a stark contrast to how she spoke about her childhood years. Several netizens took to X, formerly Twitter, to slam Markle in light of the revelation.
"She is [a] fraud," one wrote.
Another said, "She's a LIAR."
"Far from met tales of a modest upbringing. You mean she lied again? What consistent behavior," a third person opined.
"So vacation to Hawaii, trips to Disneyland... private schools, dance classes. Father was a Hollywood light director for 'General Hospital' ... gave her her first job. Doesn't look like the modest, almost indigent life she described...Now even her mother's side of [the] family confirms it," another netizen commented.
"I'd be furious, Meghan has rewritten her whole childhood. She's disowned many seemingly nice people. Harry said, my family is the family Meghan never had, there's something really wrong with her," another said.
Meanwhile, some netizens defended Markle. For them, her cousin's story and childhood photos enjoying Hawaii and Disneyland didn't necessarily mean they were well-off.
"You can go to Disneyland and be considered poor compared to others. I didn't grow up middle class, but we went to Disneyworld," one commented.
"Trips to Hawaii and Disneyland are not the 'luxurious' vacations Daily Mail thinks they are. CA residents had reduced Disneyland rates, & there are great deals to Hawaii from LA. Sounds like a solid middle-class upbringing," another user added.
"Childhood photos prove nothing. Meghan is the only person qualified to speak on how happy/idyllic her childhood was," a third person said.
"Meghan was raised in a broken family. Her father declared bankruptcy 2 and her mom 1. There were lean times [when] they needed to budget. There were good times, but life wasn't perfect," a fourth Sussex supporter suggested.
In Markle's letter to Congress for Paid Leave for All, she shared how they celebrated special events over a $4.99 salad and how she started working young because they seemingly struggled financially.
"I grew up on the $4.99 salad bar at Sizzler-it may have cost less back then (to be honest, I can't remember) -- but what I do remember was the feeling: I knew how hard my parents worked to afford this because even at five bucks, eating out was something special, and I felt lucky," she wrote.
She continued, "And as a Girl Scout, when my troop would go to dinner for a big celebration, it was back to that same salad bar or The Old Spaghetti Factory -- because that's what those families could afford to do too."
"I started working (at the local frozen yogurt shop) at the age of 13. I waited tables, babysat, and piecemealed jobs together to cover odds and ends. I worked all my life and saved when and where I could -- but even that was a luxury -- because usually it was about making ends meet and having enough to pay my rent and put gas in my car."
