Yesterday, I gave the Prince & Princess of Wales the benefit-of-the doubt. Yesterday, Kate and William visited the Hayes Muslim Center. Their goal was to highlight the incredible fundraising work of the center to raise money for Turkey's earthquake relief and to direct it to Syria. Although William and Kate arrive empty-handed at refugee centers and foodbanks every day, I wondered if they might make a donation to the Royal Foundation if there is something like earthquake relief. No, I can't find anything about the Waleses giving anything from their foundations or personal funds to the Duchy of Cornwall.

This is even more remarkable because King Charles made it a point to donate to earthquake relief and make the donation public. In February, the king donated within 48 hours of the earthquake. Charles and Camilla gave to the UK Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), and were publicly thanked. They also attend DEC events about once a month. Will and Kate may have been highlighting DEC’s emergency relief fund while they were there, as almost all the coverage focused on DEC's work alongside that of Hayes Muslim Center.

The short version is that while William and Kate did indeed visit London to support the efforts of the Muslim community to raise funds for disaster relief, they also didn't make any effort other than to show up and create origami cranes. Next time, please make and promote a donation to the Royal Foundation. It's as easy as that.

Valentine Low (@valentinelow), March 9, 2023

Photos courtesy Avalon Red.