The Duke and Duchess of Sussex continue to do the MOST on their Instagram account, @SussexRoyal. It’s pretty clear that they operate it in conjunction with their communications team, and it’s clear that they’re using the Instagram platform to highlight certain causes and charities which might send some people into a tizzy. On the first day of June, the SussexRoyal account posted a Happy Pride Month message, writing in part:
“For the month of June we “proudly” shine a light on PRIDE. This month we pay tribute to the accounts supporting the LGBTQ+ community – those young and old, their families and friends, accounts that reflect on the past and are hopeful for a deservedly more inclusive future. We stand with you and support you…Because it’s very simple: love is love.
The message was liked and commented on by accounts like It Gets Better, the Matthew Shepard Foundation, the Human Rights Campaign, the Trevor Project and Tom Daley’s personal account. Those comments were overwhelmingly positive, because it’s 2019 and love is love and being gay isn’t a “political issue.” If you think gay rights are a political issue at this point, that’s your problem, not Meghan and Harry’s problem. But of course, people did try it. The Daily Express ran a story promoting the few negative comments on the IG, with people issuing complaints like “What happened to the Royal Family doesn’t endorse political beliefs/controversy beliefs one way or the other?” Again, gay rights are NOT controversial in 2019. The only people who think LGBTQ issues are some taboo subject matter are people like Mike Pence and Donald Trump.
Here’s an interesting thought exercise: imagine how different the response would have been in the Cambridge-operated KensingtonRoyal Instagram account had been the first to do a Pride Month IG. Imagine all of the royal reporters falling all over themselves to declare that Future King William and Future Queen Kate are truly so modern and keen and gay-friendly. Another thought exercise: do the other royal social media accounts look bad if they don’t also mark Pride Month now? LMAO.
Sidenote: I only recently – like, in the past year – learned why we celebrate Pride Month in June – it’s because the Stonewall Riots were in June (1969), and after that, LGTB peeps began marking the anniversary of Stonewall, and from there, the anniversary became a month long Pride celebration, with Pride parades and Pride events and more. That’s why most cities schedule their Pride Parades in June. The more you know, LGBTQ rainbow-shooting-star.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Avalon Red and Backgrid.
With the exception of the baby feet photo, I really like what they’re doing with the Sussex Royal page.
Get ready for when they show his hands on Father’s Day. 😂
Swinging on my porch and fell off the swing laughing at ‘wait until they show his hands on Father’s Day’.
I feel the Sussexes definitely know how to use instagram to influence. I felt a glow when the embraced Pride. So wonderful. Such a simple thing to do but held such significance. Two claps and a cheer. 🙌👏🏿🎉🌈
Yayyyy!!! As a gay man I’m beaming.
What? Color me surprised, Nev! It’s amazing how different we (cele)bitches are and yet, we all make a wonderful, cohesive group. I love this site.
Hahaha WORD!!!
As the Mom of a Queer teen, I’m loving it too!
As a bisexual woman, I love that they weren’t afraid to be seen as ‘getting political’ in doing something like this.
*in my Whoopi Goldberg voice* You in danger, girl.
That being said, I’m glad they did that. It’s ridiculous that this is still an issue in 2019.
I don’t want to say “eh,” but abortion and birth control are still, treason has become and the idea of locking up immigrant kids is suddenly political. Lots of things that shouldn’t be political because duh most definitely are.
Love pride month! We always take our kids to the pride parade in whatever city we are living in at the moment (we move a ton). Everyone should understand love is love and that’s just a great thing!
Good for them! Diana would be proud.
Yep. & just like that Harry has appropriated ALL of his mothers heritage.
“Appropriating” his mother’s “heritage”? How does that even work? She’s his mom, her legacy is as much his as anyone else’s – maybe more so.
He hasn’t “appropriated” anything “just like that”. He is an organic part of his mother, and it wasn’t her “heritage” that made her a supportive and sympathetic patron of the gay community, it was her desire to treat everyone fairly and respectfully.
Your choice of words make no sense whatsoever.
“Assumed the mantle”, I would say.
If the Cambridges did that, they would be hanged.
Great the Sussexes have done this, but I am sure the Cambridges would have been severely punished for it.
I highly doubt that.
Many members of the RF including the Queen have spoken out on LGBTQ rights.
If anything people would be pleasantly surprised the Cambridges were showing any type of social awareness.
I doubt they’d be called out or punished in any way. If anything, people would credit them for carrying on Diana’s legacy.
I’m a big fan of the Sussexes, but have to give PW credit for appearing on the cover of the gay magazine, “Attitude” in 2016:
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/jun/15/prince-william-gay-magazine-attitude-duke-of-cambridge
Severely punished by ??? The Queen, Courtiers, Charles, tax payers, government ????
IKR–punished by whom? The OP’s comment is so overwrought. Doubt she could name one incident where any of the current royals (like Andy) messed up and were “punished”.
So happy to see this! Simply awesome.
There are still so many who hate/deride Pride month despite it being 2019, so I applaud the bravery of the Sussexes in showing support.
Absolutely LOVE this!! Keep in coming @SussexRoyal!
I love this! There’s a big ol’ pride flag hanging in the departures terminal here in Key West. I wish we could keep it up year round instead of just for June. The response from passengers is overwhelmingly positive, which makes my heart happy.
Conservatives are the most judgmental people EVER!
On Sussex Royal Instagram, a few people said they were unfollowing, the response from others was, why announce it, just unfollow.
As King George 111 said in ‘Hamilton’ they will be back, because they’re waiting to see Archie’s face.
So many people on that post are moaning about the pic of Diana. They clearly have zero concept of what she did to fight against the stigma around AIDS, which, considering how the LGBTQ+ community was treated and blamed for the disease, is a very appropriate picture for Pride. It’s sad how they just want something to bitch about.
I doubt the people who announced they were unfollowing were following Sussex Royal from the start.
The haters follow it obsessively so they can screenshot and criticize it.
Agree, nota. The Me gxit hoard and basic haters religiously follow their account. Meghan hasn’t been in the public eye for several weeks, but there are daily postings and discussions on various sites about her being an attention w*ore, a manipulator, a schemer, an embarrassment to the BRF, and on and on. The hate is mindless, and is continuously fed by RRs making up disparaging stories.
I think it’s awesome, but be honest – if the KP account used a pic of Diana in a collage, it would be torn to shreds here.
It’s Pride month. Diana supported the LGBTQ+ community. She held AIDS patients’ hands. Literally what that picture is about. It’s appropriate for the post.
And if W&K posted about it, the media would be fawning over how “modern” they were.
If anyone criticized the KP Instagram doing that here, it would be because Will and Kate have done absolutely nothing to further the idea they are involved in any such issues beyond a photo collage with his mother, not the presence of the photo itself. H&M actually work.
What Maria said!
What? You are quite mistaken. Despite William’s well documented petulance he has also been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights, making it part of his presentation at the Commonwealth day speeches in addition to appearing on the cover of a gay magazine for men. And in this case we cannot over emphasize how the connection between mental health and personal identity often clash at its intersection and that is something that William has specifically been speaking about, especially how men should not be afraid to ask for help when it comes to mental health issues. This is huge with in the gay community as a source of psychological and situational conflict.
An occasional speech and a magazine cover. These are fine, but what else has he done? Keep in mind, people like Edwin Sesange have criticized him for making speeches but not realizing the effect British colonialism had on countries such as Uganda (and the laws against homosexuality instituted by the British) and ultimately not doing enough. The magazine is good – but what else has he done besides saying he will support those rights in the future? He has treated the issue as if he were a celebrity. He is not, he’s second in line for the throne.
Meanwhile Harry’s out there inviting trans groups to cooperate with Heads Together, and Meghan and Harry were talking about initiatives for LGBTQ people before they even got married.
I have never seen or heard William do anything other than “raise the issue”, in his words.
If he’s as committed as you say, why HASN’T he marked this month with a post? They have NINE posts on Kate’s garden, and nothing for this?
Maria
So glad you see this as a competition. I do not. You said William has done nothing. I corrected you. Anything that people with power choose to do to support the LBGTQ community is important and necessary.
The biggest thing William has done for LGBTQ rights is the magazine cover -that was two years ago. He will be King one day. What is he doing now, with his perks and free time, to justify that he has taken up anything of Diana’s legacy?
And frankly, I stand by my original statement.
As far as a “competition”, you are the one who implied such a thing, not me. Stating that William does less than Harry in this regard is not creating competition- it is a fact. And that is why he would be criticized if he attempted to refer to his mother – which was the original point, and one you completely strayed from.
You didn’t answer my question as to why William has been silent about Pride on one of the main social media accounts representing him, not just this year but always, if he is as committed as you say.
Furthermore, I have never seen him make any type of connection between LGBTQ initiatives and the need for mental health within them. The furthest he’s gone for mental health is to talk about losing his mother, or feeling sad about his air ambulance job (which he was rarely at, in any case).
I’m genuinely asking. What are these LGBT initiatives they were talking about? And at this point “talking about” is the same as raising awareness.
“Meghan and Harry work” What work? Until now there’s nothing concrete with Heads Together or anything else,and posing on a gay magazine cover and really be a testimonial with great mediatic attention is more than what M&H have done.
Vio – the first Pride month with their new IG literally just started, and they began with a bang (you notice that photo collage included not just Princess Diana, but Muhlaysia Booker, shining a light on actual victims of LGBTQ violence).
My statement on Harry and Meghan was meant to indicate they work much more in general than the Cambridges. But to examine their involvement in LGBTQ issues- the difference is that William and Kate have had 8 years to do more than “raise awareness”. Harry and Meghan, as a team, have not, but I would say the Mermaids meeting is promising (which was only a month and a half ago). We will see how they do. Given their professional histories, and William and Kate’s – you can judge for yourself, I suppose.
Maybe because it isn’t Pride month in the UK
Fenella – June is Pride month. LGBT History Month is not the same thing as Pride. LGBT History Month is not June in the UK or US.
@Maria Sure,he can take over a good initiative and I will be the first to acknowledge it. But the point is that Harry has not done more than William in that regard,and generally in terms of his “public work”,if his numbers are any indication. As far as William’s work with mental health goes, I think his last initiatives with the FA specifically about male mental health (with a focus on issues about suicide) are very good. The documentary withe the BBC looked very well done. I’ve just seen a snippets here and there,but that was the general consensus.
Also,some people tend to remark how he lacks empathy and such,but his speech in New Zealand,that also touched his personal loss,was very heartfelt and touching. Overall he did a great job there,as far as his role is concerned.
Pride Birmingham was in May, Pride Edinburgh is June, Pride London is July, Brighton, Manchester, Cardiff and Glasgow Prides are in August. I can’t see how it is Pride month in the UK and think this is maybe more of an American thing.
Fenella – the parades themselves fall on different dates. Many places including the BBC acknowledge June as Pride month in the US as well as worldwide, however.
Strictly speaking, it is mostly a US thing. But not entirely. My point regarding it, that KP could also make a statement if they wanted on Instagram or elsewhere, still stands.
Vi – I don’t think Wills lacks empathy necessarily, but he does lack work ethic. Harry does more work in general, was my original point, when I stated that “Harry and Meghan work”. Because they do work. I never mentioned Harry’s numbers on LGBT issues on his own, because you are right, they’re not much larger than William’s. But the focus of Meghan and Harry as a team is promising, with their Pride post and what they’ve initiated so far, versus the general silence of the Cambridges as a team over the years.
I haven’t seen the documentary on mental health. I think William’s numbers and effort in this area are stronger than those on his LGBT work (I mentioned them only to point out I’ve never seen him link the two issues). But I could be wrong.
Why would they though? In the US Pride marches are in June and it is Pride Month. In the UK only one major city has a march in June with the majority marching late July/August. Pride month is not really a thing here.
Harry and Meghan don’t “work much more in general than the Cambridges” though.
There are 21 Pride events in the UK in June. This includes Oxford Pride, the London Pride 10k, Cambridge Pride, and Edinburgh Pride. Plenty of reason to make a statement.
ytmer- what numbers are you looking at?
Maria- What numbers are *you* looking at?
Right at the moment, the Court Circular for the first half of 2019.
In particular, Kate and Meghan are neck and neck, and Meghan went on maternity leave three months ago, so that’s illuminating.
There are 27 Pride events in July and 3O in August including in 3 of the 4 British capitals and almost all off the large cities. Not really sure what your point is? That there are less in June than the other summer months? Or that the UK should just accept that things happening in America are really significant to us despite all evidence to the contrary?
Fenella- if June is the kickoff month for the start of the largest of these festivities, it makes sense to acknowledge it. My point was that *unlike* what you said, there are plenty of major cities celebrating Pride in June in the UK. It is significant whether you like it or not. Lots of places celebrate the beginning of Pride in June, even if it’s largely American – I’m sorry you seem to be offended by that fact but it is a fact.
And I have lived, worked, and paid tax in the UK so I’m not exactly totally ignorant of how June proceedings go.
It’s not an exact science. If you count in 2019 up to Meghan’s last engagement 22 March, you get 14 entries for Meghan and 12 for Kate, but after that Kate took time off for school holidays. There are some irregularities like the Anzac Day service that’s counted for Harry but not for Kate, William’s investitures or time with MI6 or whatever not counting etc. They also have entries for air travel for some reason. Last years numbers can also be misleading because Meghan wasn’t officially royal until May and Kate had a baby. All in all, Cambridges were ahead last year according to published numbers in the Times.
My point is that the numbers, taken with the margin of error, doesn’t support the assertion that the Sussexes work “much more” than the Cambridges.
Ytmer- numbers really are up to the person looking at them, I suppose – since things get left off, or put on, and different tallies are for different things.
I didn’t choose to count numbers for 2018, given Kate’s maternity leave, Harry’s wedding, etc.
2019 seemed a fair start for counting, since this is the first full year of Meghan’s royalty and Kate had a baby last year. In fact I didn’t choose to count the engagements of the year of Kate’s pregnancy, but still counted them for Meghan, so I gave Kate extra leeway.
The fact remains that on the court circular Harry and Meghan are still outpacing William and Kate for 2019 and they just had a baby. And things like the Invictus Games – there is no comparison to anything William has done.
Since we are discussing it, there is the question of quality vs quantity as well. The preparation and work Harry and Meghan do for each engagement and tour is much different than how William and Kate engage.
And I’m sorry, but the future Queen Consort of Great Britain “taking time off” for school holidays is laughable. We’ll have to agree to disagree about that.
It’s wonderful to see equality normalized. But I wish Harry was also supportingThe community by refusing to lunch with the big fascist.
To do that would be considered taking a political stand and the Royal Family are not allowed to do that. They have to appear apolitical. Unfortunately that just means it looks like they support or at least tolerate him/his policies, even if they don’t.
Agreed, I’d love to know who thought this was a good idea. The couple seem committed to a progressive platform and this is a badly mixed message. Pictures of Harry and that POS could easily be used by their critics in the future.
The UK government, the ones who tell the royals when to show up and smile no matter what. The royals are not in charge, the UK government is.
It’s great that Meghan doesn’t have to be present for that. Every little reaction, gesture, or facial expression on her part would be dissected and people would find all kinds of reasons to make it seem like she was being a nasty Hollywood diva toward Trump (because Goddess forbid she look down on someone like Donald Trump).
Ok. My cynical heart just got a bit mushy with this one. A friend of my daughter’s just came out as trans and is starting the whole journey. This is the kind of work the Royals are good for. I know people pay attention to what they fight for so thanks Sussexes.
I never liked a photo so fast in my life. This means the world to a lot of people and I’m glad this royal couple is *actually* modern.
I loved the post. I laughed at all the people up in arms over the account being “political.” There is a difference between taking a stand and being political.
At first, with the whole “changing who we follow every month” – I was confused and didn’t get it. But now it makes more sense. I don’t have to find the specific post at the beginning of the month highlighting the charities. I can just click on their profile to see who they are following and go from there.
Overall, I am a fan of the page. But one constructive critique: they need to edit their word salad captions. It’s too verbose and laden with run-on sentences.
I love that they did this message. Pride is very political for many of us in the LGBTQ+ community. Good for them for sending out a message of inclusivity and love. 🏳️🌈
Yes, Stonewall is very important! This (2019) is actually the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, so it’s a significant year. I am a member of and serve on the board of directors of an LGBTQ music organization and our entire season has been commemorating Stonewall. Our jazz band just played an AMAZING and poignant show this past Saturday night featuring photographs and quotes from those who were there read by members of the band. We also had a group of chamber ensembles perform at the end of January recognizing Marsha P. Johnson. Apologies if someone commented on all of this above me – I’m at work and won’t have time to read all of the previous comments until I get home tonight but it’s very important and not many people know a lot of these things. I was floored from excitement seeing their Instagram post! Happy Pride!
*typing a little haphazardly with jet lag* About an hour ago, I walked into my house after 12 days of travel to and from/touring, hiking, walking, climbing stairs and generally in awe on the second-and-first-real-visit to Barcelona. On Saturday, June 1, I and four friends were collapsed into our chairs in a cafe fronting a delightful plaza, getting mildly drunk. Near us was a group of about 20 guys who’d clearly been celebrating for a while. Their merriment was infectious. We determined it was a bachelor/bachelorette party*. There was a troupe of (gorgeous, male) gymnasts performing for and with them. We toasted them all from our exhausted slumps.
Side comment: Barcelona, which is very Roman Catholic, seemed pretty openly accepting of PRIDE month. Symbols and souvenirs were everywhere. There’s much to love about Barcelona. That was a happy, and reassuring, realization.
*Adorable guy wearing a pink sash and a rainbow-sequined boa allowed the gymnasts to leap over him numerous times. I think I’d have to be more than mildly drunk for what I saw.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been up all night with a stomachache or maybe it’s just because, as a 24 year-old gay guy from Oklahoma, I still am often surrounded by people and public figures who think gay rights are a controversial issue, but this post made me cry. This and “…if you think gay rights are a political issue, that’s your problem…”
Thank you Kaiser!