Prince Harry's girlfriend, Meghan Markle, speaks out against racist trolls

Prince Harry's girlfriend Meghan Markle has penned a powerful essay addressing social media trolls.

Meghan, 35, has opened up about the backlash she received over the producers of Suits decision to cast black actor Wendell Pierce to play her on-screen father.

In an essay for Elle UK magazine, she wrote: "I remember the tweets when that first episode of the Zane family aired, they ran the gamut from: 'Why would they make her dad black? She's not black' to 'Ew, she's black? I used to think she was hot.'"

The American actress says that the few tweets she was aware of spoke volumes of the racism still at large in the US.

She continued: "The reaction was unexpected, but speaks of the undercurrent of racism that is so prevalent, especially within America."

Meghan- who has been dating Prince Harry for eight months - says in order to show she is above online bullies she made the decision to find her own "identity" and she continues to push for positive change when it comes to racism in Hollywood.

She added: "You push for colour-blind casting, you draw your own box ... you create the identity you want for yourself, just as my ancestors did when they were given their freedom."

Meghan's essay comes after her beau Prince Harry slammed trolls for attacking his girlfriend and her family.

The 32-year-old royal said he was "deeply disappointed" that he has not been able to protect Meghan from the "wave of abuse and harassment" she has suffered since their romance was made public.

A statement released by Kensington Palace read: "His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment.

"Some of this has been very public ... the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments.

"Prince Harry is worried about Ms Markle's safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her. It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms Markle should be subjected to such a storm.

"He knows commentators will say this is 'the price she has to pay' and that 'this is all part of the game'. He strongly disagrees. This is not a game - it is her life and his."

Meghan's relatives were also bombarded with messages and questions after the news of their romance broke.

And the brother of Prince William also insisted he has "never been comfortable" with the curiosity around his love life.

In a statement, the spokesperson added: "Since he was young, Prince Harry has been very aware of the warmth that has been extended to him by members of the public.

"He feels lucky to have so many people supporting him and knows what a fortunate and privileged life he leads.

"He is also aware that there is significant curiosity about his private life. He has never been comfortable with this, but he has tried to develop a thick skin about the level of media interest that comes with it."