Influencer Carl Cunard speaks out after homophobic backlash to boyfriend and surrogacy plans
Content creator Carl Cunard has slammed backlash after revealing his boyfriend and their surrogacy plans. (Supplied)
Luxury-lifestyle content creator Carl Cunard has spoken out about the loss of 17,000 followers and homophobic backlash that followed the announcement that he and his partner were planning to have a baby via surrogacy.
Cunard, who has worked with leading brands such as Mont Blanc and YSL, and amassed more than 1.4 million followers on Instagram alone via his lifestyle content, outfit checks and adorable dog, a Chow Chow named Carter, has always been relatively private about his dating life.
But, breaking the trend for the first time, he took to Instagram on Saturday (11 May) to give boyfriend reveal realness and announce that he and his partner, Matt, were going down the surrogacy route to parenthood.
“I don’t really post or share much about my relationship on here so I wanted to give you a little story time update,” he wrote. “I was single for 12 years then finally swiped right to Matt on Tinder. We have been together now for three years and are currently going through surrogacy.
“We have four little embryos frozen (which is crazy), ready for when we want to take that next exciting step into parenthood. We have our ups and downs like every relationship but I truly feel I’ve found my person.”
The post has garnered more than 30,000 likes and plenty of support from friends and allies, but many homophobes have also responded.
In a subsequent statement posted to Cunard’s Instagram story (which has since expired), he gave examples of some of the comments, including people saying they were unfollowing him.
“I have been out for ages so clearly the people [who] have now unfollowed me didn’t look into my life enough,” Cunard wrote at the time. “Why do people feel the need to… shoot someone down with horrible comments.”
Speaking exclusively to PinkNews, Cunard reflected on the experience of receiving such hostility during what should have been a wholly joyous occasion.
“It’s like I’ve come out all over again,” he said. “I’m a strong person, and it’s not nice to read these comments, but I’m still strong. But the thing that boiled my blood, is [the idea of] people of a younger generation, or who maybe don’t have that strength, going through the same thing.”
He adds: “I’ve never really seen that [kind of behaviour] before, and have always lived my life exactly as I am. It’s just so sad that people would say such incredibly hurtful and disgraceful things.”
Cunard isn’t letting the hate comments ruin the moment, though, and has adopted more of a ‘Don’t let the door hit you on the way out’ mentality towards the 17,000 followers lost since making the post.
“This whole surrogacy thing is such an exciting journey for me. It’s something I really wanted to celebrate and something I wanted to share,” he went on to say. “And I was sad that I felt I couldn’t.
“I really geared myself up to a place where I felt able to do so, regardless of how many people might unfollow, or what people might say. When I read these comments, it was more like: ‘Where does this hate come from? Why are people’s minds so small?’
Cunard then adds: “If you’re gonna unfollow me, then unfollow me. But why stick a dagger in on the way out? Because I would have waved you goodbye – I don’t want you here.”
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