When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle used their son Archie’s photo to host a fundraiser event on his birthday, they allegedly violated the privacy laws they set up for him.
According to a royal expert, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle can’t argue they want privacy for Archie and then put his image on the Archewell website.
Despite promising to keep their son out of the public eye, Angela Levin accused the pair of exploiting Archie for “commercial gain.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, according to the royal expert, want privacy when it comes to their family. They do not want pictures of their two-year-old son to be circulated in the newspapers. She pointed out that they are, ironically, doing this themselves.
“There’s a distaste for me to use their little boy Archie for who they were so keen to keep private and out of the public eye that they are using him to earn a lot of money,” Levin said to The Sun Online, adding, “I would have thought that was breaking his own privacy because he will have an image that is not actually his own.”
On Archie’s birthday earlier this month, the Sussexes posted a sepia-tone photo of him clutching a large bouquet of balloons with his face turned away from the camera, and they urged the public to donate to vaccine equity in his honor.
Russell Myers, the royal editor of the Daily Mirror, told podcast host Ann Gripper on Pod Save the Queen that he wasn’t sure how he felt about the new portrait.
“I don’t know how I feel — if you’re trying to protect a child… they’re not members of the Royal Family, so why are they putting out pictures of Archie on his birthday if they want to protect his privacy?” he said.
“Kate takes the pictures of the kids on their birthdays, that’s really accepted — lots of royal fans wait for those moments.
“They’ve corned that market, which is really sensible and she does a great job of it.
“So why take a photo of the back of your child’s head?”
The royal couple held a fundraising drive in honor of their son’s birthday, urging people to donate at least $5 to aid in the worldwide delivery of COVID-19 vaccines.
They also encouraged well-wishers to donate to GAVI, a foundation that assists in the delivery of coronavirus vaccines around the world, on his special day.
They have issued a joint statement on their Archewell foundation webpage, thanking all who have donated money to charitable causes, volunteered, or raised funds on their son’s behalf.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also purchased 200 hats from Make Give Live.
Prince Harry, 36, and Meghan, 39, contacted the Auckland-based organization – which operates under a buy one, donate one scheme – to purchase the items in their son’s name for his birthday last week, allowing 400 hats to be delivered to families in need next winter, according to the organization’s Instagram post.
The royal couple has previously sponsored Make Give Live, having bought 100 hats from the organization during the Christmas season.
Ms Levin, a longtime critic of Meghan Markle, even said that naming Archewell after their son ensured that he would still be associated with the foundation and its causes, even after he grows up.
She also mentioned the couple’s latest decision to purchase 200 beanie hats in Archie’s honor from New Zealand social enterprise Make Give Live on his birthday.
The pair have posted a photo of their baby Archie sporting a mark hat while being kissed by his father last year.
“His name is always there,” Ms Levin added, “and I don’t think that’s really fair on him.”
“As he gets older he has already got an image which is chosen by his parents.
“Actually what they said at the beginning was that they could get away from the Royal Family so that he could be free and he could be private.
“They don’t have to use him for commercial gain, just as they shouldn’t use the Royal Family for commercial gain.
“Even the book was to do with Archie and Harry, I don’t think you should be using him in all these PR exercises or for making lots of money.”
Harry and Meghan received criticism for marking Archie’s second birthday with a charitable drive. The rich couple was also dubbed “crass” by one netizen for using their son to make money.
