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Freedom of speech or empathy? Sharon Osbourne chose Piers Morgan over fellow depression sufferer Meghan Markle

Osbourne could have been more sympathetic to Meghan Markle's mental health revelations given her own suicide attempt and battle with depression

Sharon Osbourne was in the news for all the wrong reasons for almost the whole of March after she defended Piers Morgan’s less-than-pleasant comments about Meghan Markle. She recently has had to leave ‘The Talk’ after being accused of racism and mistreatment. But she is also walking away with a $10 million payout and a non-disclosure agreement 

The 'royal' controversy began after Meghan Markle along with Prince Harry gave an explosive interview to the chat show queen Oprah Winfrey on March 7 and explained how she felt suicidal while living in the UK. The former actress told Winfrey, “That was a very clear and real and frightening thought. I couldn't be left alone.”

In the interview, she also claimed that when the palace refused to provide any help, she had to reach out to someone who was one of late Lady Diana's "best friends". “Yes, this was very clear and very scary. I did not know who to turn to. One of the people I reached out to, who has been a friend and a confidante, was one of Diana’s best friends. Who else could understand what it is actually like on the inside,” Meghan told Oprah Winfrey.

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When the bombshell interview was aired in the UK, Piers Morgan wasted no time slamming the Duchess of Sussex’s claims and accused her of lying about having mental health issues and suicidal thoughts. The former host of the ‘Good Morning Britain’ received a lot of flak across the Internet, but there was one person who supported him. That person was Osbourne, who has attempted suicide in the past, and has also candidly talked about her mental health struggles.

The television personality, 68, took to Twitter to show her support to Morgan as she wrote, “@piersmorgan I am with you. I stand by you. People forget that you’re paid for your opinion and that you’re just speaking your truth.” Not just that, she also spoke rudely with her co-host and comedian Sheryl Underwood, who was almost in tears. Osbourne told her on-air, “I know he [Morgan] has a right to say what he feels on the interview, as we have a right to say and everybody has a right to say what they feel with freedom of speech.”

Though she later issued an apology, saying: “To anyone of color that I offended and/or to anyone that feels confused or let down by what I said, I am truly sorry. I panicked, felt blindsided, got defensive & allowed my fear & horror of being accused of being racist take over. There are very few things that hurt my heart more than racism so to feel associated with that spun me fast!!" The statement did not do any wonders for her as more allegations started coming against her.

One of Osbourne’s accusers was her former co-host Holly Robinson Peete who alleged that she called her “too ghetto”. Peete also claimed that she quit ‘The Talk’ because of Osbourne. "I’m old enough to remember when Sharon complained that I was too 'ghetto' for #theTalk... then I was gone. I bring this up now bc I was mortified watching the disrespectful condescending tone she took w/her co-host who remained calm & respectful because...she HAD to," she tweeted.

Shocking allegations against Osbourne did not end there as journalist Yashar Ali started a behind-the-scenes probe into Osbourne's daytime show that features a panel of well-known entertainment personalities discussing current events, pop culture, family, celebrity, and trending topics of the day, and found that in the past she had used racist monikers to refer to her colleagues.

The probe revealed that she had called her former Chinese American co-host Julie Chen "wonton" and "slanty eyes", and branded another co-host Sara Gilbert as "p***y licker" and "fish eater." She also reportedly shamed Iranian-American talent agent Renee Tab by calling her "persian carpet c**t" and falsely alleged that she stole jewelry.

Did Osbourne suffer depression in the past?

Osbourne did not give a second thought before justifying Morgan’s harsh comments against Meghan and her suicidal thoughts. One would assume that she would be more sympathetic to Meghan Markle given her own mental health struggles but this was not the case. Osbourne has spoken up in the past, much like Markle, about how she did not want to live anymore. In 2020, during a special episode of ‘The Talk’ on the occasion of World Mental Health Day, the former co-host spoke about almost succumbing to her depression.

She said, “Four years ago I was finding things very, very difficult, and I've been medicated for 28 years. I tried to take my life, and it wasn’t for attention. I just couldn’t bear it.” Osbourne, who has been married to rocker Ozzy for almost four decades, also mentioned two girls whom she met at a facility when she went there to seek help. The duo had lost their mothers to suicide and struggled with drugs and alcohol. She explained how the encounter changed her perspective.

She continued, “The one thing that shocked me into like, 'come on missus, you've got to get this together', were there were two girls there with me. They were in there because they were drinking and using drugs and they told me they were drinking and using drugs - they weren't even related - young girls, and both of them their mothers had committed suicide.”

“It messed them up so bad that they couldn't cope with their lives. And that shocked me into, 'Come on, am I gonna do this to my family? To my babies? No way.'... It was like an electric shock, and it was like, 'Get it together,' " Osbourne added, who has three kids - Aimee, 37, Kelly, 36, and Jack, 35.

The former ‘X Factor’ judge also told The New York Post in a 2020 interview how she tried to end her life in 2015. She said, “I took a whole bunch of pills. I did. I have to admit, the first two [attempts, also with pills] were a cry for help. But not the last one. People think because you work on TV or film or whatever it is, and you’re a known personality, ‘Well, they don’t have problems.’ We have the same problems as everyone else. There are only a handful of problems, and they go around and around and around. It’s something people don’t understand, the voices in your head … the repetitive thoughts in your mind. You try to sleep at night, but you can’t, because there’s that voice over and over again — and you’ll do anything to make it stop. But it won’t.”

She also went on to say, “I didn’t want to be here. But I learned so much about coping mechanisms while I was in treatment. I talk to my therapist as often as I can, and I’m in a really good place now. It’s important to talk about it. However bad the situation is at the time, however dark your life might be, things change, situations change. You just have to get that moment of clarity … to pick up the phone and reach out for help.”

“I don’t want people to do what I did and feel like, ‘There’s something wrong with me. Why aren’t I like everybody else?’ Believe me, there are millions of people all over the world who feel the same way. They’ve just got to go and get help. If you had a bad leg or a bad arm, you would go and get it fixed. This is your brain, and it’s not firing the way it should, so you go get it fixed. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. It hurts me that there are people living with this and don’t know where to go, how to take that first step and call a helpline,” Osbourne had said at the time.

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, the toll-free National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also speak with a trained crisis counselor 24/7 by texting HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.