Ngozi Fulani has temporarily stepped aside as chief executive of the charity Sistah Space, which she founded, as the fallout from a Royal race row continues.
She announced her decision yesterday, saying that the row over racism had affected both the charity, which supports African- and Caribbean-heritage women and girls affected by domestic violence and sexual abuse, and its beneficiaries.
Sistah Space hit the headlines at the end of last year when Fulani spoke about her experience of repeatedly being asked where she was “really from” during a Buckingham Palace reception.
She said she subsequently received “horrific abuse” on social media.
Lady Susan Hussey, an aide to Queen Elizabeth II, later apologised to Fulani for the comments at a meeting that Buckingham Palace said was “filled with warmth and understanding”.
But Fulani told ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Wednesday that she had decided to step away from her position.
She said: “The Sistah Space charity has suffered as a direct result [of the race row].”
Fulani argued that Buckingham Palace could have “stepped in” to help deal with some of the abuse she had received, and told the programme: “I have now temporarily stepped down as CEO of Sistah Space.”
She added that the charity’s “service users and community cannot access us properly” and that hiring public relations professionals to handle the fallout from the race row “has cost us a fortune”.
The charity did not respond to queries about when Fulani might return to her role or the amount spent on PR.
Asked whether she regretted going public with her experiences, Fulani said: “No, not at all.”
As a campaigner to end violence against women and girls, “I will go anywhere, any time to fight that cause,” she added.
The Charity Commission issued Sistah Space’s trustees with advice in December on managing conflicts of interest after questions were raised on social media about its finances and governance.