Remember she looked at the name badge. Maybe if she'd been called Angela Smith the conversation might have gone differently. To my mind, a black person with an African sounding name is likely to either be an immigrant or have parents or grandparents who were.
Her heritage is the reason she was there, to represent 'African and Caribbean heritage women'. And while she acknowledges her heritage, her descent and where she's 'from' as three distinct parts of her identity, that distinction may be lost on some, perhaps especially on those who observe their own ancestry through the other end of the colonial telescope.
Hmmn, I don't think there's
any excuse for her abject and persistently racist rudeness I'm afraid.
Age 'class' (sic🙄) background or whatever..
It's not like she's some little old lady from the back of beyond, who has never come into contact with anyone from 'outside of the village' which might excuse some social ineptness, in this kind of interaction .
'Lady' Hussey, was supposed to be 'welcoming' people to this event.
She's been in the public sphere for sixty years. She knew
exactly what she was doing, and saying ..
Probs used to be
very dear friends* with the Mitfords dahling..
*I do know people who say stuff like this, and they are fantastically aware of how to put people down, and in their place, if they don't think those certain people quite 'fit'.
