The chief executive of the domestic abuse charity Sistah Space has announced her decision to temporarily step down after receiving personal abuse.
Ngozi Fulani said her charity has “suffered” after one of the late Queen Elizabeth II’s ladies-in-waiting, Susan Hussey, repeatedly asked her where she was “really” from at a royal reception in November last year.
Speaking yesterday on Good Morning Britain, Fulani said service users and the community have not been able to access the charity’s services “properly” since the incident took place.
She told the programme: “The Sistah Space charity has suffered as a direct result. When you think that this was supposed to be for violence against women and girls because of this incident, the violence has been directed to me. The palace hasn’t intervened, I think they could have.
“So what I’ve had to do, I’ve now temporarily stepped down as CEO of Sistah Space. I’m announcing that now because the service users and the community can’t access us properly.”
“It was horrible,” she said. Fulani added that the incident has cost the charity “a fortune” as it had to pay for its own PR.
She also criticised a statement issued by Buckingham Palace, which said it is “deeply sorry for the incident that took place and apologise for the distress and difficulty it caused to Ms Fulani”.
Fulani said: “Whom are they apologising to? If you’re sorry, tell me you’re sorry. If you’re not, it speaks for itself.”
She added she does not regret going public with what happened during the conversation she had with Hussey at the palace.
“I’m about discussing and making aware of violence against women and girls and I’ll go anywhere, at anytime to fight that cause. I didn’t expect for that to be directed at me at all.”
Sistah Space did not reply to Civil Society News’ request for comment.
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