Royal followers have been wondering why Jessica Mulroney deleted Meghan Markle’s wedding photo from her Instagram page—and the fashion stylist is finally sharing an explanation. The 40-year-old’s comments on her Instagram Stories follow nearly two months spent off of the social media platform after getting called out for her white privilege and threats against influencer Sasha Exeter.
When Mulroney first returned to Instagram on August 27, the former CTV host decided to share a photo of one of her twin sons holding Meghan Markle’s veil at the royal wedding in May 2018. Mulroney and Meghan, who met in 2011 when the Duchess of Sussex hired the stylist while acting on Suits, were best friends at the time. “When I feel dark and grey, I see this and it all goes away,” Mulroney originally wrote in the caption of the photo. She later changed the caption to, “I see this and pure joy,” before deleting it. Both of Mulroney’s sons, twins Brian and John, now 10, served as pageboys for the nuptials, while Mulroney’s daughter, Ivy, now 7, was a bridesmaid. Meanwhile, Mulroney and her husband, former etalk host Ben Mulroney, were in attendance as well.
Fans were quick to notice the wedding photo was gone from her feed within a few hours after posting. Eventually, Mulroney issued a quick statement on her IG Stories to address their questions. “People often ask why I delete certain posts,” she began. “The amount of bullying and hatred I’ve had to put up with for 3 years…I’m tired of looking at it.”
“Be kind. Be gracious. We are grown ups,” she continued. “Stop acting like teenagers. Real women don’t put down other women.”
Others wondered if the reason for Mulroney’s quick removal of the post also had anything to do with her rumored fallout with Meghan. The Duchess of Sussex reportedly cut ties with the Canada native following her mistreatment of Black social media influencer, Sasha Exeter in June 2020. Exeter called Mulroney out on Instagram at the time for her “textbook white privilege,” claiming that the stylist “took offense” when she issued a call-to-action among her fellow influencers to support the Black Lives Matter movement.
After her “problematic behavior and antics” were exposed, Mulroney issued an initial apology to Exeter. “I have lived a very public and personal experience with my closest friend where race was front and centre,” she wrote in a comment, referencing the Duchess of Sussex. “It was deeply educational. I learned a lot from that. I promise to continue to learn and listen on how I can use my privilege to elevate and support black voices.”
Yet Mulroney allegedly went on to issue threats against Exeter for exposing her. The social media influencer also revealed Mulroney’s claim that she would file a libel lawsuit, after which point the former I Do, Redo host issued a final apology on June 11. “As some of you may have seen, @sashaexeter and I had a disagreement,” she wrote on a post. “She rightfully called me out for not doing enough when it came to engaging in the important and difficult conversation around race and injustice in our society. I took it personally and that was wrong. I know I need to do better.”