IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Ways Princess Diana broke royal traditions, redefined kindness

Princess Diana | Image: Screengrab from YouTube/Associated Press (AP) Archive

Princess Diana’s presence in the British royal family was not just a breath of fresh air but a testament that the goodness of the heart encompasses traditions and norms, especially in a world that is bound by standards and rules. Her timeless acts of kindness and refusal to be limited by convention have inspired the world since then and have continued to do so long after she was gone .

Giving birth to the terms “People’s Princess” and “Royal Rebel,” Princess Diana showed that she was more than just a title and her name, as her trailblazing spirit lived in the legacy she left behind by the acts of compassion and boundary-breaking moments that people will always remember her by. 

As we celebrate her birthday, here are the memorable times that Princess Diana broke the norms, not just to stay true to herself but to raise awareness about the issues that matter to this day.

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Breaking free from marriage stereotypes

The royal family has always had their engagement rings custom-made. However, Princess Diana made the somewhat unconventional decision to select her own ring—she did so by looking through a catalog, which was eventually been passed on to her son Prince William’s wife, Kate Middleton.

Princess Diana also defied convention when she made a slight yet significant change in her wedding vows. Typically, vows said during a royal wedding contain commitments to love, cherish, and obey. Princess Diana, however, found the term so submissive that she chose to eliminate the word “obey,” which was done as well by Middleton and her youngest son, Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle.

HIV/AIDS awareness: touching people’s hand without gloves

Princess Diana with an AIDS patient. Screengrab from ITV News video. Courtesy ITV News

In 1987, at a time when HIV, AIDS, and leprosy were taboo topics and were even more so with royals, Princess Diana showed compassion by becoming the first member of the royal family to touch a person suffering from HIV or AIDS without gloves. The act surprised everyone and touched many hearts as she held the hand of an AIDS patient amid the assumption that the disease could be transmitted via physical contact, along with the stigma that they carry.

“HIV does not make people dangerous to know. You can shake their hands and give them a hug,” said the princess at the time. “Heaven knows they need it.”

John O’Reilly, a nurse at the United Kingdom’s first unit dedicated to HIV and AIDS—which Princess Diana herself opened—explained, “There was a lot of AIDS phobia, a lot of homophobia. Princess Diana demonstrated that she cared because she took everybody’s hand.”

Gavin Hart of the National AIDS Trust also told the BBC after the princess’ death, “In our opinion, Diana was the foremost ambassador for AIDS awareness on the planet, and no one can fill her shoes in terms of the work she did.”

Openness to discuss personal life, mental health

Despite the royal family’s protocol to be guarded and to keep certain things private, Princess Diana openly discussed her personal struggles with her mental health and her fight against bulimia, challenging the stigma surrounding mental health that people still suffer from to this day.

In her infamous Panorama interview in 1995, the princess weighed in on the “isolating experience” of being in the limelight and revealed she’d suffered from post-natal depression, self-harm, and eating disorder alongside the challenges of her marriage to Prince Charles.

Physically advocating her philanthropic and charitable work

Princess Diana made many gestures that got imprinted into the hearts and minds of the people, including the image of her stepping out onto an active minefield. In 1997, she visited the Huambo Province of central Angola, where she met with the HALO Trust, a charity working to clear mines left during the Angolan Civil War. She met with children who had survived landmine explosions; an image of her and a young girl with an amputated leg helped put the spotlight on Angola and the campaign against landmines.

Setting aside poise to embrace real fun times

Despite being an icon of elegance and fashion, Princess Diana knew when it was time to lose her high heels and stockings and embrace her free-spirited side. Being a hands-on parent, the princess tried to give her sons a normal childhood by sending them to public school and allowing them to engage in ordinary activities. 

In 1991, attending Princes William and Harry’s pre-prep school’s annual Sports Day, the princess made headlines after setting aside royal decorum when she abandoned her shoes to run barefoot and sprint for victory.

Princess Diana also made some fashion rules of her own quite a few times when she wore her infamous black “revenge dress” after the televised admission of adultery by her husband Prince Charles with Camilla Parker-Bowles, now his wife.