What to Know
For many members of the royal family, there’s always been a humanitarian aspect, so you don’t even really think twice when you see them greeting sick patients in the hospital or traveling overseas to help out at a non-profit organization. This has been happening for decades, but if you’re Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, there’s always backlash, even when you’re out on your own time helping a community. While on an Australian tour, Meghan and her husband are facing criticism for seemingly always being up for taking a photo opportunity with other kids, just not their own.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are currently on an Australian tour, which you think would please people. No such luck, though.
The thing to remember about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry is that they’re not going to please everyone, certainly not in this political climate. There are a lot of people out there who are just haters to their core, so they’re always going to find something to criticize.
Off on an Australian tour, which most royals take throughout their careers, Meghan and Prince Harry recently greeted dozens of families and children at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital. They could be seen chatting with and taking photos with patients who are likely fighting through all sorts of ailments.
This is all rather typical for members of the royal family, right?
Well, its turns out that some people doubt their philanthropic motivations. Some are dragging Meghan and alleging that she visits with sick children just to get a photo op to help her image.
Sometimes you just can’t win, especially when you have a public image that’s been dragged through the mud so many times.
One individual shared a series of photos from Meghan and Harry’s recent hospital visit on X and was shocked to see that this “wasn’t even a private hospital visit,” as it seemed like quite the circus with “people, security, photographers, and reporters” all gathered together in one place for them.
A person in the comment section did not hold back when questioning what Meghan and Harry are really doing there. “Those kids know they are being used for publicity. I was watching it when it came on at 12pm our time (while they were there) and I just felt terribly sorry for those poor little kids, paraded out there for the two,” they shared. Now, that’s a rather cynical point of view, isn’t it?
Another individual pointed out that this might not be the best idea for a group of young patients with such compromised immune systems. “So having immune-compromised kids wheeled out for h&m pr stunt is disgusting, the hospital should be ashamed,” they wrote. Honestly, that is a fair point. Many of those kids cannot afford to get sick.
Some people in the comments took things one step further by pointing out that Meghan and Harry never seem to share much with their own kids, yet are totally ok with being photographed with other kids during their tours.
Why does this couple shield their own kids but never seem to shy away from snapping a photo with someone else’s children?
When you get into the meat and potatoes of the criticisms here, you can start to see that what a lot of people don’t appreciate from the royal couple is this sense of hypocrisy, or what they feel is hypocritical behavior.
One person in the X comments went right for the jugular. They wrote, “And it’s this kind of BS that – in her mind – allows herself to be called a humanitarian. She is NOT. She is exploiting sick children to advance a narrative that she is a humanitarian who cares about sick children. Why doesn’t she exploit her own children like this????”
Another person called this kind of display “pathetic.” They shared, “How is it ok now to show the faces of these very ill kids all over the world when they aren’t prepared to show their own kids faces. I suppose when money exchanges hands. It’s pathetic!!!” Yikes.
Yet another comment brought things right back to her kids again. “Has no issues using other peoples children for PR but hers should be hidden in case someone might see their whole face,” they wrote.
We can sort of see people’s point here when it comes to PR opportunities that may not sit right with some of the public when they routinely involve vulnerable kids, but Meghan and Harry’s children will always be put through a different level of protection because of the danger and safety issues that comes along with being a royal family member. As a parent, you have to be able to understand that point of view.
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