Ever since her reported relationship with Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's every move has been scrutinized, dissected, and often smeared in the press and on social media. On Wednesday, in honor of Archie's first birthday, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released a super cute video (opens in new tab) of Meghan reading to her son in support of Save the Children UK's coronavirus appeal. But writer Emily Giffin responded to the adorable clip with a series of attacks on the Duchess.

Giffin has since taken her social media private, but writer Caitlin Menza tweeted a screenshot of the writer's Instagram story, in which she said that Princess Meghan seemed "so unmotherly" in Archie's birthday video and called her "such a phony." Giffin posted a screenshot of the video and wrote, "Happy birthday, Archie. Go away, Megan (sic)," he wrote.

Giffin doubled down on his attack when he made a lengthy comment on the Instagram post and shared it on his story. 'Adorable kids and books. But .... But ....... This is Megan's show. Why didn't she film it and let Harry read it? Because that would make it about Harry, even for a moment, God forbid. Besides, you want to protect your kid's privacy, so you put out a video of Harry with no pants on (by an authorized biographer), right? Okay ......."

Royal correspondent Omid Scobie tweeted, "Imagine something as hateful and pathetic as this." Some social media users said it was clear that Giffin's hatred of Princess Meghan was based on racism, as were many of the media attacks against her.

In an Instagram post, which is now private, Giffin responded to the criticism and apologized for the "negative impact" of her comments. He wrote: "I enjoy following celebrities and analyzing them with my readers. I post dozens of IG stories a day in a very honest and unfiltered way, as if I were confiding directly to a close friend. Additionally, I am very interested in the British monarchy. Always have been," she writes.

"To be clear, I absolutely loved the idea of a biracial American woman marrying into the Royal Family. It seemed wonderful and happy for everyone. I hosted a gathering at the house and posted many pictures to celebrate their wedding. Furthermore, I was appalled at the signs of racism against her. My feelings about Harry and Meghan have changed over the past few months. However, I can say from the bottom of my heart that my criticism of Meghan has never had anything to do with race."

"Furthermore, I understood her reasons for leaving the monarchy and trying to forge her own path. However, I feel flawed in my response to her and Harry, and that sentiment has bled into my subsequent posts, including today's post," Giffin continued. 'Some of my posts may have been perceived as mean-spirited or interpreted as having racist overtones. That was not my intention, but I understand that intent and impact are two very different things. And I am truly sorry about that negative impact."

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