Afua Hirsch (We can mourn Prince Philip, but not the monarchy, Journal, 15 April) captures precisely the ambivalence so many of us feel about the symbols of patriotism. How do we show a love and appreciation of our country and many of its values while distancing ourselves from the pernicious jingoistic narratives that so often accompany these? As a white English male, I can learn a lot from the contortions that Hirsch describes as having to go through herself, to prevent an apology escaping her lips for questioning the excuses made about Prince Philip’s racism that we might have guffawed at, but can recognise in our own internalised racism.
Marcus Page
Brighton
• For all my life I’ve struggled to accept our royal family, their privilege and their separation from the rest of the populace. For years, I’ve half-heartedly tried to agree with friends and family that the royals’ significance in history, their public activities and their roles as figureheads made it all worthwhile. So it was with immense relief and enjoyment that I read Afua Hirsch’s article. She encapsulates the complex issues around our attitudes to the royal family. I no longer feel obliged to be “complicit in a toxic transaction”. How liberating.
Hilary Perrott
Cambridge
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