A photo of Prince George has Twitter users declaring that the 4-year-old is a gay icon. The move sparked a row that pushed a politician to file a complaint and cited a news outlet for compounding on the issue.
According to BBC News, Jim Allister of the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) party called out the LGBTQ site Pink News for publishing the story on Prince George as a gay icon based on one photo. In it, Prince William and Kate Middleton's firstborn son posed with both his hands on his smiling face.
Allister said that the publication sexualized the young boy's image.
"In reality, the photo which prompted the piece shows a four-year-old boy who is smartly dressed and excited about being on a helicopter," Allister stated in his complaint. "To take an image of a little boy and to fantasize about him being an icon for a life defined by sex is outrageous and sick."
Call for removing the story
Pink News ran the story on the reactions from netizens on Prince George’s photo. It pointed out how it could open conversations and raise awareness on why heterosexuality is not a default.
But Allister demanded that the news outlet remove the story from its site and issue an apology. The politician also asked that the Independent Press Standards Organization (IPSO) should look into the matter.
Pink News, however, is reportedly not a member of this press group and thus cannot be sanctioned. The new outlet’s editor, Benjamin Cohen, stated that the story will remain published and not deleted, but it has since been removed from the main page.
Cohen also clarified that it wasn’t Pink News that branded Prince George as a gay icon as the public also joined Allister in calling out the publication.
Rather, it came from a collective reaction from netizens on social media, which the news outlet only reported.
Letting the prince choose his own path
The news outlet also suggested that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge must let the boy choose his own path. His parents must also encourage him to pursue activities that are stereotypically meant for women, such as ballet.
News have it that the 4-year-old prince, who is the third in line to the British throne, will indeed be joining classical dance classes as part of the curriculum at his new prep school. Prince George will attend the Thomas’s Battersea in London in the fall.
Meanwhile, the royal family's second child, Princess Charlotte, 2, will be eligible for nursery school. It's still not known where she will be enrolled.
