Two days ago, Amber Heard announced that she has become the mother of a daughter named Oonagh Paige Heard via surrogate. In her announcement, months after the baby’s birth, Heard said: that baby Oonagh is ‘the beginning of the rest of my life’. And the backlash was immediate.
Now, there’s an article titled: Becoming a mother isn’t all about you, Amber Heard. In it, author Amanda Platell calls Heard to task, saying:
“Sorry, what? How about the beginning of someone else’s life? Having a child, Amber, is not about you. It’s about the tiny, helpless person you have chosen to bring into the world. Becoming a mother is the most selfless thing a woman can do. Forgive me if I have my lingering doubts that Amber understands that.”
And many Twitter denizens tend to agree. “Her post was compete all about her,” writes one sceptic. “She can’t hide her narcissism.”
“Me, me, me Heard,” says another.
One Twitter denizen is quick to point out that although the baby was born in April, Heard still hasn’t updated her twitter bio. As of this writing, Heard’s bio says that she’s a(n) “Actor and activist, semi-professional disruptor, ice cream advocate and shameless teacup Yorkie-lover.” Not a word about being a devoted mommy to a sweet little angel.
They get that Heard might have wanted some private time with baby Oonagh before making an announcement to the world, but she’s let the cat out of the bag now, and still not a word in her Twitter bio about her overwhelming joy at welcoming her new bouncing bundle of joy.
Likewise, there’s no category for Heard being a mother on her Instagram account. Just the same tired old categories that have been up forever.
One might argue that she’s too busy to bother with such trivialities, but she hasn’t been too busy to post pictures of herself, or to post the announcement itself.
One might, then, wonder where Heard’s priorities lie.
The day Oonagh was born, Heard posted a video of herself crawling around on the beach in a flimsy sundress, babbling about death threats. One Twitter user was quick to say: “So much concern for her new baby and the woman who actually birthed it.”
Another posted the video from that day with the caption: “The day her baby was born. On the beach Not with her child or surrogate.”
Overwhelmingly, the majority of the comments on Twitter show concern for a baby being raised by someone with a history of and arrest for domestic violence, posting the hashtag: #SaveBabyHeard.
While this concern is touching, Heard’s history of violence is against adults. She has no public record of a history of violence against children. And, while having a newborn can be a stressful and trying time, it’s almost certain that Heard has a network of nannies and family upon whom she can lean to do most of the heavy lifting. After all, Heard is in London, reportedly filming right now, and there’s no evidence that the baby is with her. There have been lots of photos and videos of Heard out and about in London, but none of them show evidence that she’s got the baby along for the ride. So somebody’s looking after little Oonagh.
So, not to worry. There are probably enough people in baby Oonagh’s life to ensure that she’ll grow up safe and happy. Let's all wish little Oonagh the very best that life has to offer.