It’s been almost a month since devastating wildfires swept Los Angeles, forcing almost 180,000 people to evacuate their homes. The original blaze, which broke out in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood, has been described as the most destructive fire in the city’s history.

In the weeks since, Meghan Markle, who lives down the coast from LA in Montecito, has been visiting those affected by the fires. Recently, she took to Instagram with a teary video outlining how she helped one of the young victims. In the video, Meghan explained she reached out to a mother and her 15-year-old daughter whose home was ‘left in ashes’ by the blaze. Among the items destroyed was a Billie Eilish T-Shirt, which had been left in the washing machine.

‘All that she’d been looking for in her home was the T-shirt from the Billie Eilish concert she’d just gone to. And of course, they now see their home and the washing machine, their dryer, are ash. They’re not there anymore,’ she said. ‘I said, “Well, I don’t know, Billie Eilish but I’m going to figure out how to get you this shirt.”‘
Meghan went on to explain how she reached out to everyone she knew to get the message directly to Billie. Later, Meghan reveals that Billie had signed a box full of merch for the teenage girl.

‘You guys, I don’t even know what all this stuff means but it’s signed for her,’ Meghan said as she showed the unique merch designs to the camera. Holding up a blue lunchbox with a gold star drawn on the front, she asked, ‘Is that a thing?’ After joking that she felt ‘really old,’ Meghan sent a ‘huge thank you [to] Billie Eilish.’
‘This is going to mean so much to her,’ she said, before thanking Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine and his wife Behati Prinsloo for their help in getting ‘this over the line.’

She added: ‘To everyone who is showing up for people in big and small ways to get through what’s happened in California. Just thank you so much. I’m going to go and email her mom now. Just wanted to share that with you guys.’

However, the video has predictably attracted unfair backlash from people online. Some social media users have taken to X to suggest the video is ‘all about herself’ and that it’s ‘tone-deaf.’ ‘Meghan Markle made a whole IG post just to brag about sending a voice note to get a Billie Eilish T-shirt for 15 yrs old girl—like she just solved world hunger. Imagine if she donated $5 million like other celebrities; she’d probably demand a global holiday in her honor. The desperation is unreal,’ wrote one user on X. Others were more generous, pointing out how she ‘made a wildfires survivor’s day.’

This comes just two weeks after Meghan and Harry were criticised for using the wildfire crisis as a photo opportunity after they were pictured helping out at a food distribution centre for victims of the fires. It’s believed that they also donated money via their Archewell Foundation, as well as other essential supplies. The city’s mayor, Victor Gordo, praised them, saying, ‘This is their second visit today. We were here earlier today, and they were serving food, anonymously. No one knew they were serving food, with masks on. They didn’t come out here for publicity. They came out here to work.’ 

But nonetheless, their support riled the anti-Meghan brigade and they were branded ‘disaster tourists’ and ‘opportunistic.’ What, then, could they possibly have done? If they’d stayed silent while a disaster affected innocent people practically on their doorstep, they would have been lambasted for turning a blind eye. If they had donated without making an appearance at all they would have been accused of hiding away in their mansion, afraid to get their hands dirty.

This is just another way that Meghan can’t do anything right in her critics’ eyes, with her charitable endeavours becoming just another prong of attack. Even if this latest video was a response to the previous attacks, is she not allowed to send a message to show she does really care? She still went to the effort of tracking down the T-shirt, which she didn’t have to do. If some construe the video as a humblebrag about how well-connected she is this seems far-fetched – it’s not exactly like she needs to remind us she’s a big deal – she’s married to Prince Harry; they’re as A-list is it comes. And it’s better she uses her connections to help people.

A source at the time said ‘Meghan and Harry are stunned and appalled at the criticism they’ve endured over all this. It confirms what they already knew to a big extent, that they can’t win, no matter what they do,’ continuing ‘Their haters will always be out in force, finding any way possible to tear them down. For Meghan, especially, it cuts extremely deep and touches a major nerve. This is her home city burning to the ground, she wants to help.’

All this comes just a couple of weeks after Meghan delayed the release of her new Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, due to the wildfires. The show will now air on March 4, two months after its original premiere date.