Here we go again! Harry and Meghan have thanked friends, family and fans for wishing a happy birthday to their son, Archie, who has turned two. They have publicly acknowledged his celebration by encouraging people to donate to global vaccination efforts and, more traditionally, by posting an image of Archie in their California garden. He is photographed from behind, a cluster of balloons flying above him. It's a sweet image of their young son that has warmed the hearts of those who wish the young family well and annoyed those who don't.
'Why bother posting this at all?' one social media user writes. The Mail Online noted this disappointment, and pointed out that" 'Archie's face hasn't been visible in an official photograph shared by Meghan and Harry, with their son's head turned into his mother's chest in an image released to mark International Women's Day.' The same story adds that 'the couple's Christmas card this year didn't exactly showcase their baby boy.'
The implication is that the couple is either ashamed - 'showcase' is very loaded - or, predominantly, that they are not offering what is owed to the public. But the thing is, we are not owed anything at all. The couple have stepped back from their senior royal roles, keeping their titlesbut losing HRH status. This means that they can go about their business as they see fit. They are, of course, pursuing a semi-public life, and they are using their names and faces to make money for others and for themselves. Throughout this whole process of leaving the UK, finding a new home and working out their next steps, they have faced criticism for the way they have balanced private and public. In truth, they are clearly still learning, still seeing what they are and are not comfortable with. But one thing has been clear this whole time: Archie is not a piece on their tactical chess board.
Harry and Meghan may be open to selling books, getting standing ovations at charity events and conducting interviews with Oprah Winfrey or James Corden - they cannot live on air: their fortunes are vast but would run dry in time - but their son's face is his own. Those screaming that they should be showing him off on his birthday would have been shouting 'I thought you wanted privacy?' if they had posted an image of his smiling face. What do you want? A range of Archie tea towels? A Malibu Archie doll available on QVC?
Meghan has made her stance completely clear before, with a very simple analogy that her critics ignore daily. 'If you’re at work and you have a photograph of your child on your desk and your coworker says, "Oh my gosh, your kid’s so cute. That’s fantastic. Can I see your phone so I can see all the pictures of your child?" You go, "No. This is the picture I’m comfortable sharing with you."'
We are not owed pictures of Archie. We do not pay for his security, or for his parents' income. He is a private citizen who happens to be the son of two very famous people. Whether or not you think they are getting the balance between their own public and private lives right is your opinion, but in the case of Archie it is wholly irrelevant. Harry and Meghan have moved mountains to make sure their child can have something approaching a normal life. You cannot rage against that just because they are embracing the benefits of their own profiles.
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