Meghan Markle is facing a wave of backlash after sharing a mirror selfie featuring her four-year-old daughter, Princess Lilibet, on Instagram, just before heading to Switzerland to deliver a speech about the dangers of social media and its harmful effects on children. The Duchess of Sussex, 44, posted the image with the caption “Mama’s little helper,” but the timing quickly drew sharp responses from commentators and royal watchers who accused her of hypocrisy.The criticism was swift and pointed, with several high-profile voices weighing in on what many described as a tone-deaf move from the duchess.
What commentators said about Meghan Markle’s post
TalkTV anchor Samara Gill was among the first to respond publicly, telling The Sun: “It’s tone-deaf. It’s not a good look when you’re lecturing people on keeping children away from social media, using strong words against tech companies, and then doing the opposite.”Royal expert Chris Ship added his perspective, suggesting Meghan simply needs to make a decision and stick to it. “Either don’t put your kids on social media at all, or do it. But if you’re going to do it, that’s your choice as a parent. It’s not your child’s choice,” he told the publication.Journalist Tom Sykes went further on his ‘The Royalist’ Substack page, writing that a woman “about to stand alongside the world’s most senior public health official and talk about the measurable and preventable harms of exposing children to social media has just, voluntarily, for no apparent reason other than self-promotion, exposed her own child to social media.” He called the image “staggeringly tone-deaf,” “boastful” and “vain,” also noting that due to Lilibet’s young age, she “cannot meaningfully consent to having her image broadcast to millions of strangers.“
What Meghan posted and what she was wearing
In the snapshot, Meghan donned a purple coat as Lilibet played at her feet in a walk-in closet. Two pairs of black pumps were visible on the floor, with clothes hanging in the background. The caption read simply: “Mama’s little helper.”
What Meghan Markle said in Switzerland
The Duchess spoke at the unveiling of the Lost Screen Memorial art installation in Geneva, Switzerland, a memorial consisting of 50 illuminated boxes each displaying an image of a child who lost their life as a result of cyberbullying and online harm.“Each name belonged to a child who was loved beyond measure. A child whose laughter once filled a kitchen. Whose shoes once waited by a front door. Whose future once felt limitless,” she said. “Now their faces ask the world questions we can no longer avoid: How many more millions of children will be harmed by products that, while innovative, are still designed without sufficient safeguards?”Neither Meghan nor a representative for the Sussexes has responded to the backlash surrounding the post.
