I think the only things we really differ on here STG is whether the threads should have been pulled and maybe our reactions to what was being said.
Only points I would add is that I wouldn't necessarily say people were defending Prince Philip's racism it was more like they were trying to excuse it…like it wasn't really relevant or it was of little consequence.
It's relevant because nobody has a right to airbrush history to make it more palatable for themselves, if the media and others are going to eulogise about the man's 'achievements' then they also have to be honest and open about the man's 'faults' and accept that not everybody has the same level of respect for him as they do and for very good reasons.
He was a man in an extremely privileged position who held influence in the UK and abroad and his words and attitudes had consequences, not just for the people he racially abused but for the emboldening of similar attitudes and behaviours in those he influenced.
Also I don't really buy into the premise of 'it's not acceptable now but it was then' or 'it wasn't considered offensive then but it is now'. It never was acceptable to those on the receiving end of it and it was just as offensive to those people then as it is to them now. Just because those dishing it out thought it wasn't offensive or thought it was acceptable doesn't make them right.
HH