Meghan Markle celebrated her 40th birthday by announcing the launch of a new initiative to help women back into work.
The Duchess of Sussex's latest campaign is in response to the pandemic - which has resulted in tens of millions of women around the world leaving the workforce.
"I believe mentorship is one way to help women regain confidence and rebuild their economic strength," Meghan said.
"For my birthday, I have asked 40 friends, activists, athletes, artists, and world leaders to help kick off a global effort by contributing 40 minutes of mentorship to support women re-entering the workforce.
Why do you think Meghan's actions attract such vitriol? Have your say in the comments below
"With this time, I hope they each help someone advance a professional life on her own terms... I hope that they inspire countless others to give 40 minutes of their time as well."
Of course, within minutes of the announcement, Meghan was slaughtered for creating a "woke" project that could "do more harm than good".
Some assumed the initiative was nothing more than a "publicity stunt" - all part of her plans to create a "PR empire" while others called out her hypocrisy for "quitting her job" as a royal - conveniently ignoring her media projects with Netflix and Spotify.
And that's where it all stems from - Meghan's departure from the royal family. Now, all of her actions will be perpetually enmeshed with her reportedly broken relationship with the Queen.
But why are we so begrudging to accept the good in Meghan? Even if you disagree with her California-flee (or more fruitlessly, her penchant for avocados) there is no denying her project could help the lives of thousands.
And it's pretty consistent with Meghan's pre-royal life. We've all seen the Duchess' school graduation video from when she was 14 and cheering on her female peers for becoming "proud and confident young women".
I mean, when she was 11 years old she featured on a Nickelodeon programme to challenge a sexist advert for soap.
"I don’t think it is right for kids to grow up thinking that Mom does everything..." Meghan says. "Just about one out of every three commercials is going to say something that’s going to hurt somebody’s feelings.
"If you see something that you don’t like or are offended by on television or any other place, write letters and send them to the right people and you can really make a difference, for not just yourself but for lots of other people."
It seems bizarre that all of Meghan's past charity work and philanthropy be overlooked and undermined because she chose Montecito over Buckingham Palace.
And even if Meghan is a wolf dressed in sheep's clothing and her project is purely a selfish PR stunt... does it really matter?
We should be able to distinguish the intent from the consequence. Millions of women around the world could get back into the workplace - I doubt those people will care if Meghan has ulterior motives.
Or would it be better if Meghan didn't use her birthday as a platform to help others? Wouldn't she then be complacent, taking advantage of her platform and privilege?
It seems Meghan is damned if she does and damned if she doesn't - so what can she actually do right?
