Charlie Hebdo magazine, the French voice of satire, has come under fire, both literally and figuratively, for some of its more bold cartoons in the past. In 2015, it was famously targeted by terrorists for its earlier caricatures mocking Prophet Muhammad, which were considered blasphemous by Muslims; 12 people were killed in the attack.
Charlie Hebdo could not miss a chance to mock the furore around Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s ‘tell-all’ interview to Oprah Winfrey.
The magazine has unveiled its new cover featuring a caricature of an evil-eyed British Queen kneeling on her grandson’s wife neck in apparent reference to George Floyd death.
“Why did Meghan leave Buckingham?” the caption to the cartoon reads.
“Because I could no longer breathe,” the caricatured duchess ‘replies’.
Pourquoi Meghan a quitté Buckingham ?
Retrouvez :
👉 Reportage : l’écologie sonore à l’écoute des animaux
👉 Enquête sur la véritable histoire du poison chlordécone
👉 Comment Erdogan traque ses opposants jusqu’en France
En vente demain ! pic.twitter.com/X7hJHKHPDx
— Charlie Hebdo (@Charlie_Hebdo_) March 9, 2021
The magazine unveiled the cover online before the new issue went on sale on Wednesday, prompting eyebrow-raising reactions from Twitter users.
“Oof. I guess this is what they mean by “go hard or go home,” one person said, while sharing the alarmingly-red cartoon.
Another joked: “I was gonna say something but I’m gonna have some trouble.”
“Why did Meghan leave Buckingham?”
“I can’t breathe.”
Typically unifying cover art from Charlie Hebdo. pic.twitter.com/0V0zCIvdTF
— Dr. Nick (@NM_Wilkinson) March 11, 2021
One user commented ‘Meghan Lives Matter’, mocking the eponymous slogan of the black lives matter movement, which was heavily involved with the widespread anti-police brutality protests last summer following Floyd’s death. The African-American man died in police custody in May 2020 after one officer kneelled on his neck for over eight minutes.
Meghan Lives Matter 🙃✌️
— Guytoo (@Guytou93) March 10, 2021
https://t.co/3Gu7pSnJa2 pic.twitter.com/1MShtK9h9W
— C. Maquoy (@fipouf2012) March 10, 2021
— Fournié Christian (@fourniec) March 10, 2021
The Sussexes’ interview with Oprah Winfrey that aired on Sunday has raised some scandalous points, with Meghan Markle claiming that the skin colour of her yet-to-be-born son was a point of discussion among unnamed royals. Prince Harry confirmed his wife’s remark but refused to say who the person or people in question were – signalling only that it was neither the Queen nor Prince Philip.
Sputnik