‘High treason!’: King Charles infuriates racist conspiracy-mongers with knighthood pick

The new year honours list often draws controversy and this year is no exception, with the decision to include the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on the list resulting in an international outcry.

The list recognizes and rewards the achievements and services provided by individuals across the country – this year saw names like Stephen Fry and Gareth Southgate receive knighthoods alongside Khan. The honors were awarded by King Charles, although it’s worth pointing out it isn’t Charles who chooses who gets put forward for a knighthood, often the individuals on the list are recommended by either the Prime Minister or government ministers.

Anyway, the idea that Sadiq Khan should receive a knighthood has a few people’s backs up. Some knuckle-dragging, racist conspiracy-mongers, the kind that would vote for Reform UK, have taken to X to express their disappointment and anger that Charles would award the mayor who, in their opinion, has only made London a worse place to live. It seems they think they could do a better job.

Some have even gone as far as to call King Charles’ decision to give out the knighthood an act of treason.

It’s odd and quite frightening to see how quickly people, who are supposedly so proud to be British, turn around and trash-talk the head of the royal family as soon as the monarch does something they disagree with.

A lot of what was shared on X I won’t share here, due to how offensive some of the posts are. Let’s just say that a lot of the complaints tend to focus unnecessarily on Khan’s ethnicity and religious background.

There’s a narrative amongst many who hate Khan that there is some kind of pro-Muslim agenda at play here – that the mayor is being controlled by “Islamist extremists” and it’s all one big conspiracy. Now they seem to believe that the royal family is in on it too.

By knighting Sadiq Khan King Charles indicates where he stands in the repidly escalating civil conflict breaking out across the UK. pic.twitter.com/ou0694SW63

— Orson Seingalt (@Orson_Seingalt) January 2, 2025

Notorious racist Tommy Robinson’s name came up a few times as well with people still crying for his release.

But Tommy Robinson is in solitary for speaking truth. And King Charles gave Sadiq Khan a knighthood. What is going on?

— La Marquise Americaine 🐿️ (@Plantagenny) January 2, 2025

Of course, not everyone who dislikes Khan does so because they are racist, but it’s hard to deny that him being Muslim has resulted in much more negative coverage of his mayorship. he has had a target painted on his back for as long as he’s been mayor of the country’s capital. It often feels like every single thing he does receives a ton more scrutiny, like people are waiting for him to slip up and make a mistake so they can justify their hatred.

There are plenty of valid reasons to disagree with Khan’s policies, but it often seems like the good things he’s done get glossed over. For example, he rolled out free school meals to primary schools in London. Also, he has successfully made London’s air a lot cleaner, though at the expense of those commuting in gas-fueled cars.

He may not always have the perfect solution, but does anyone? At any rate, Londoners seem to like him, as proven by him being elected for a third term in 2024 in a landslide victory.