As you watch the royal wedding…

Posted on by Moni Basu
An official photo of the royal couple from Kensington Palace.

For many weeks, we’ve been saturated with news of the Royal Wedding. This time, there’s a higher interest in some of my circles because Meghan Markle is an American commoner and more importantly, a woman of color.

Saturday, millions will tune in to watch the spectacle. CNN and other major media outlets have devoted a whole lot of energy and resources to covering this story.

I tried hard to understand the mass obsession with the British monarchy and wrote about it for CNN: A royal skeptic meets Americans obsessed with Harry and Meghan.

Beyond my homeland’s ugly history with the British Empire, I suppose I find all this royalty stuff rather silly. I also think it says a lot about the world we live in.

Last weekend, I went to visit the Clarkson Community Health Center that offers free services for refugees in Atlanta. In the short time I spent there, I heard horrific stories of human trauma and survival. One Rohingya woman spent 25 years in a Malaysian camp. Her husband died there and she is separated from the rest of her family except for one son, who also managed to make it to America. Her life has been so difficult that she wishes now she could return to that wretched camp.

It was again reminded of the tales of suffering I’ve heard from people I have encountered on my reporting trips. The Rohingyas, South Sudanese, Syrians, Iraqis. The list is long and includes many Americans.

Their realities are in such incredibly stark contrast to the events at Windsor this weekend.

Consider that the royal wedding could cost more than $1.4 million and that does not include security. The dress alone could top $300,000 and the flowers, $70,000. British taxpayers will ultimately bear much of the cost and not all Britons are thrilled about paying for a lavish private event.

It seems the money could be spent in a more useful way. Why do these things have to be so over the top? Why is this such a huge news story? What makes British monarchs so worthy of attention in 2018? What does this say about the things we value in life? I don’t have any answers but I’m pondering these questions this weekend. And no, I will not be waking up at 4 a.m. to watch live. Sorry, Harry and Meghan.

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