Leave the Royals Alone!

Harry and Megan deserve privacy, but not at our expense

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle plan to move to Canada hoping to escape the media and pressures of royal life. (wiki.commons)

Truth be told, I never cared much about the Royal Family. Every time I see both Harry and Megan on the cover of HELLO! Canada for the 900,000th time, I groan. I fail to grasp the importance of the Royals in the wake of far more significant and influential matters, like the Australian wildfires or the looming threat of WW3.

Recently, Harry and Megan decided to forsake their duties with the Royal Family and move to Vancouver Island. As for why exactly they chose to live here, I’ve no clue. All I know is that with the couple’s recent announcement, the island is getting a lot of attention.

While I don’t have any particular interest in the couple, I can say with certainty that, when the two finally do purchase their home and settle in, they deserve some privacy. Lately, Prince Harry came forth and called out the parasitic, lifeless entities known as the paparazzi about how they’ve stalked and taken pictures of him and Megan without their consent. Being born royal comes with the wonderful perk of having your privacy constantly violated.

Because Harry and Megan’s decision somewhat strips them of the heavy layers of protection that guards the Royal Family in the U.K., they are putting themselves at risk. Whether that means facing harassment from the paparazzi, being ogled at by regular citizens, or something more serious, the royal couple will probably find themselves experiencing problems throughout a lot of their social encounters. Since they seem to be featured in every single magazine, they’re recognizable enough that they may never have a normal anonymous interaction in public again.

That being said, the chance to start fresh and engage in regular human activities without being grossly pampered sounds like a promising endeavour, even from a prince’s point of view. It’s easy to forget about the little things, like stopping to smell the roses. Maybe that’s why Harry decided to escape from the royal life. His decision might stem from stress and a feeling of obligation.

As outsiders, it’s easy to dismiss the pressures that Royal Family members go through. Harry and Megan are no exception. If the rumors are true, the snide attitude that the Queen shows towards Megan was the tip of the iceberg, and the responsibilities that Harry and Megan shoulder are enormous in scale. Who wouldn’t want to live a quiet life on an island, away from the pressures of family expectations and the bullshit politics within the monarchy?

Now, while I feel that Harry and Megan would make for a great addition to Canada, they should pay their own way. Many Canadian taxpayers don’t know how their money is spent, and if they figured out that it’s being used to provide a free ride to two outsiders, a lot of them would be outraged.

That being said, even if the couple is beyond the Royal Family’s jurisdiction, they won’t be coming in broke. More than likely, since they’ve already purchased a spiffy mansion on the island, they have money. Their net worth is about $30 million, after all.

Even though I personally do not care about the royals, I do hope that when Harry and Megan finally settle into life on Vancouver Island, their influence can bring positive change to Canada.