Meghan and Harry’s Canada move is all for Archie
Just like every other baby, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor deserves to be raised in a healthy and stable environment, not one where his mother is blamed for everything, writes Nama Winston.
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The world has seriously underestimated the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
When they announced their ‘Megxit’ last week, opinions were divided into two camps; those who blame Meghan for taking Harry away from his family, and those who see the couple as united in rejecting the intense bullying they’ve experienced.
But at its core, Megxit isn’t about either of those things.
Yes, the Sussexes have had enough of the accusations against Meghan; gold digger, social climber, status-conscious, superficial. They’re also sick of the outright racism Meghan has suffered (and yes, it’s been undeniable racism).
Of course, the cruel media scrutiny and the ugly headlines have had an emotional impact on the couple.
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In ITV’s special documentary, Meghan and Harry: An African Journey, we saw a new mum who’s nervous, sad and exhausted. A woman who is forced to realised she simply cannot do anything right in the eyes of the world because she’s not good enough.
“I never thought that this would be easy, but I thought it would be fair … that’s really hard to reconcile,” Meghan said.
Harry knows he’s married to the most controversial woman in Britain right now, and Meghan knows that’s exactly what she is. But to think they’re fleeing the country just for their own sakes, to save themselves from all this … Come on. They’re made of tougher stuff than that.
They aren’t ‘Megxiting’ for themselves; they’re doing it for their son.
Just like every other baby who’s ever been born, Archie Harrison Mountbatten Windsor deserves to be raised in a healthy, stable, happy environment. Instead, he’s been living in a world where his mother is blamed for everything from the downfall of the monarchy to the state of climate change every time she hops on a plane.
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The Sussexes moving to Canada is about Archie’s future: it’s what any parents in the same situation would do. This is about giving Archie the fair go his mother has been denied.
Would you want your son growing up seeing inescapable, toxic headlines about their mother every day?
Would you think your son has a chance at happiness being raised in an environment where half the country is vocally against his mum?
The answers are obvious. No and no.
The choice for distance and independence is more about the environment Archie is being raised in than anything else.
Prince Harry is traumatised by his past. He knows what it’s like to be raised hearing horrible news about his mum. But the saving grace for him was that much of it was before the digital age, and the information was at least sometimes avoidable.
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Little Archie won’t get that protection. Online, and on social media, his mother will be the fodder of the merciless British media for years to come, and Archie will grow up on a diet of it just like everyone else.
The attention may be something the couple could endure; but they’re not standing for it for their son.
Sure, the Sussexes won’t be immune from negative attention in Canada, but it also won’t be as regularly hateful and racist from a distance. The impact on Archie, and the attention he receives, will also be different over there, especially if he’s not only defined as the seventh in line to the British throne. Especially if he can just be a person.
If the only way to achieve some hope for Archie’s future is to ‘quit’ being royal, aggravating millions of people and even the Queen of England, well, as parents, that’s just what the Sussexes are prepared to do.
Meghan isn’t taking Harry away from his family, she’s giving hers a future.
It’s basic human instinct: as a mum, you’d will stop at nothing to give your child the best chance possible. And, as a mum, you’ll realise when you’ve been put in an impossible situation where you really have no choice.