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People Are Shaming Kate Middleton For Her Pregnancy & It's Actually So Offensive
Proving yet again that women can be ridiculed for literally anything they do, people are shaming Kate Middleton for her pregnancy and making jokes about how she should "get on the pill." Yes, really, social media has managed to turn this great news — who doesn't enjoy looking at cute little royals? — into a reason to be downright cruel to the 35-year-old woman just trying to live her best life.
Seriously, can a woman ever win? Middleton, in case you didn't hear, announced that she is pregnant with her third child on Monday. She is already the mother of 4-year-old George and 2-year-old Charlotte, which, now that I think of it, means that they're all going to be perfectly two years apart. How sweet, right?
Yet on Twitter, instead of rejoicing about yet another little heir, people are writing things like, "get on the pill you slag" and likening her body to a "conveyor belt."
This is offensive on so many levels, it's hard to pick just one. But in the name of starting somewhere, let's just point out that every woman has the right to have as large a family as she and her partner choose. If William and Kate want 10 children, so be it. It's akin to slut-shaming, which is wrong to begin with.
But even more wrong in this case since she's not even sleeping around, although if she and William are into that, so be it. Kate is being shamed for having sex with her husband. Will people ever be satisfied about a woman's reproductive rights and sexual behavior? Obviously not. Let's go through these one by one.
Ah, Yes, The "Reproduction Machine" Jab
When a woman has "too many" children, her body is no longer something a man can sexualize. Sorry, not sorry, men.
The Good Ol' Prude Insult
Why do we need to cover our monkey eyes because a woman is choosing to have a third child? Socialized to think sex is shameful much?
This One Is Just Lovely
"Slag" is a derogatory slang term used to call a woman a "whore." Not only is that slut-shaming (sex is good and fun to have for most people!), but it's also just not factual. Kate is sleeping with her husband. How does that make her promiscuous? Why should women worry about having "too much" sex anyway?
Why Does This Bother You?
No, really, why?
And Back To The "Sex Fiend" Thing
First of all, I'm pretty sure you shouldn't call the Duke of Cambridge's genitals "junk," but also, why is it just assumed that a woman can't want to have sex with her husband? Let's just say this altogether one more time: HER HUSBAND. Also, Kate has lots of documented hobbies in addition to the full-time job of being a public servant.
Scrolling through these nasty comments, it's hard not to imagine that these are the same types of people who would be downright scandalized if the Duchess of Cambridge say, terminated her pregnancy. Or the kind of people who protest same-sex marriage, claiming that the whole point of marriage is to reproduce. Which is it, people?
Worse, can you even fathom the level of extra people would get if Middleton couldn't have children? Or the national tragedy that would play out in the British tabloids if word got out that Middleton didn't want children at all? The horror!
During her past pregnancies, Kate has also been shamed for her body. Not that she got "too big," but that she was "too skinny." Then, her bump size was never good enough for people. She was ridiculed for being "dramatic" about her morning sickness, which she was once hospitalized for. (In fact, she suffers from Hyperemesis Gravidarum, which is a very real, very severe problem for some women.)
Hopefully, Middleton has learned by now to just block out the haters and be excited about her third child and keep on building her family in way she wants to.
Although, I do have one complaint about her pregnancy news and it's this:
I mean, that is just super rude.