Prince William, Kate Middleton Booed at Celtics Game on Day of Race Storm

Prince William and Kate Middleton were booed at a Boston Celtics game and met with chants of "U.S.A." hours after his godmother quit the palace over racially charged remarks.

The Prince and Princess of Wales' tour of America started with a scandal, as Lady Susan Hussey stepped down as a "Lady of the Household" after repeatedly questioning a Black charity boss over where she was "really" from, despite having been told she was British.

Hussey is a former lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth II, and the departure prompted a spokesperson for William to denounce the remarks at the start of the Boston visit, saying: "Racism has no place in our society. The comments were unacceptable, and it is right that the individual has stepped aside with immediate effect."

If William and Kate thought it would be plain sailing from there, Boston had more in store for them.

Prince William and Kate Booed at Basketball Game

On their first night in America the couple joined basketball fans at TD Garden to watch the Boston Celtics beat the Miami Heat.

Some in the crowd could be heard booing and there were widespread chants of "U.S.A." as the couple were announced and shown on the big screen.

If that wasn't awkward enough for the visiting royals, Celtics star Jaylen Brown was less than effusive when asked at a press conference how it felt to play in front of royalty. He simply said: "It was just a regular game to me."

Earthshot Launch Hears of 'Colonialism and Racism'

William and Kate's first visit of the tour was to Boston City Hall, where they met Mayor Michelle Wu for a launch event counting down to The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony on Friday.

The project is William's flagship contribution to the fight against climate change and awards £1 million (roughly $1.2 million) to each of five winners to fund projects aimed at saving the planet.

When dignitaries gathered at Speaker's Corner outside City Hall, though, particular attention may have been paid to the words of Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, Boston's chief of environment, energy and open space.

Quoted by the Daily Mail, she said: "On this day, I invite us all to consider the legacy of colonialism and racism."

"The ways it has impacted people across the world and its connection, its deep connection to the degradation of land and our planet that we are all seeking to reverse," she said. "The stories lost, the species made extinct, but also the persistence of people in the face of oppression and the fundamental dignity of all of our relations."

Her comments are particularly awkward for William, who was accused of blaming the people of Africa for the impact of population growth on the environment a year ago.

In November, 2021, he told the Tusk Conservation Awards in London: "The increasing pressure on Africa's wildlife and wild spaces as a result of human population presents a huge challenge for conservationists, as it does the world over."

At the time, Franklin Leonard, movie executive and founder of the Black List, wrote: "'There are too many Africans' is quite the position."

William and Kate's visit to Boston City Hall also drew large crowds, but colonialism appears to be the subject William can't shake, having months earlier faced calls to apologize for slavery during a tour of the Caribbean in March.

Lady Susan Hussey Steps Down Over 'Unacceptable' Comments

William and Kate's tour had an unwelcome backdrop before it had even begun, after the prince's godmother and former lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth II made racially charged comments to Ngozi Fulani, chief executive of Sistah Space.

Fulani had been invited by Camilla, the Queen Consort, to Buckingham Palace for an event in support of domestic violence victims and described Lady Susan Hussey's remarks as "insulting" on Instagram.

She said: "This event remains a blur after the violation."

The exchange was witnessed by Mandu Reid, leader of Britain's Women's Equality Party, who told Newsweek she felt it indicated "institutionally racist dynamics baked into the fabric of the institution."

Buckingham Palace said in a statement: "We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full details. In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made.

"We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes.

"In the meantime, the individual concerned wishes to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect.

"All members of the Household are being reminded of the strict diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times."

After the statement came out, Reid told Newsweek: "I want her and people who have these views and attitudes to reflect on those views and attitudes and work to change them. Understand why that is wrong and be committed to showing up differently, to changing the dynamics and culture of the institution they represent.

"It is interesting to me that they've reacted so quickly and that has taken me by surprise. And that speaks to how important it was that me and Ngozi spoke up about this.

"We both slept on it, we reflected and realised we can't just allow an encounter like this to just be shrugged off because that just normalizes it. You don't get the change."