Today marked a nationwide nurse-in at national retailer Target.. an effort driven by a nursing mother being asked to use the dressing room at a Houston, TX Target and then being made to feel humiliated by the store employees after declining. This nurse-in has ellicted an enormous amount of debate from both sides of the discussion.
Myself, living in Washington state, the right to nurse in public is sanctioned by state law. The law deems that any place that a woman is allowed, she has the legal right to nurse there as well. Having nursed four children I can personally attest to having nursed in malls, restaurants, parks, coffee shops, churches, airports, to name a few. My nursing experience has spanned over thirteen years and I have been incredibly fortunate to never have been on the receiving end of a negative comment.
Shouldn't nursing mothers cover up? Opponents claim that nursing is "ok" only when done in private or when a mother is covered. One point is "why should they have to?". State law does not include this provision and many nursing babies will not tolerate having their heads covered. If we apply this same logic, that a show of breasts is indecent, why then can my children see billboards for Victoria Secret's models with more of their breasts showing in small lingerie than most nursing moms show? Why is it then Ok and acceptable for ads such as these to be marketed in general public areas, but not socially acceptable for a fraction of skin to be seen on a nursing mother?
You can breastfeed in the bathroom/car. Would you like to eat your lunch in a public restroom? I know I wouldn't. I try to avoid them whenever possible as they tend to be fairly gross. Should my child have to eat that way? No, of course not. I prefer not to have my meal next to someone who is voiding their bowels or changing their tampon. Dressing rooms can be a great option... for myself, if I happened to be out with any other children, this option was not reasonable. Could you picture me in small dressing room, baby on the breast with three other children crowded into there as well? Pretty laughable.
How about the car? Not everyone owns a car or sometimes weather conditions make car nursing unfavorable (too hot/too cold). It's not feasible to leave a car running for 30 minutes with the A/C or heater running when one could be inside instead.
Feed your baby before you leave home. Good try on that one. Many Moms *do* feed their babies before leaving the house. Does that mean that said baby isn't going through a growth spurt and needing to nurse more often? Does that mean he or she may not get hungry before the trip is over? Babies, when hungry, need to eat. They do not understand waiting and their needs deserve to be met. It's fairly simple. I get hungry sometimes while out running errands... and you know what? I grab a snack.
Don't leave home. In who's reality is this in?? This isn't the 1950's and I have no desire to be cooped up. Sometimes I have errands to run that cannot wait.. prescriptions to be picked up, groceries, doctors appointments, so on and so forth. Sometimes, like anyone else, I like to get out of the house "just because". It's healthy and can be refreshing. Life happens and continues, babies are part of life.. eating is part of life.. one can then assess that babies eating are part of life. You get the picture.
Bring a bottle/pump milk to bring with you. I know some mothers who weren't comfortable with public nursing and this was a great option for them. Other Moms, like myself, are another story. My children would not take a bottle. Ever. At all. Not to mention, had they been willing, if we had to be out for an extended period of time and I provided a bottle in lieu of nursing, I would have experienced pain and engorgement from the missed nursing session. Especially in the beginning, when supply is being established, this could be detrimental to some mother's milk supply. With my first baby, this would have resulted in a blouse soaked in breastmilk (yes, even with wearing nursing pads). Which is more embarassing?? Nursing or me participating in a "wet t-shirt contest"?? Or how about my nursing in a public area versus not and subsequently developing mastitis, becoming incredibly ill and not being able to adequately care for my children while I recover from the world's worst "flu"? I personally will elect for the former and risk offending someone as a result of concern for my health, as well as my child's.
Women who nurse in public are selfish/only want attention/are disrespectful of others. In short, get over yourselves. When Moms nurse their babies, in public or elsewhere, they are doing it for the benefit of their bub. In an ideal society, nursing would be so normal that no one would even bat an eye at seeing a nursing mom and baby. The last thing most women want is to draw attention to themselves... regardless of this, they also recognize the needs of their child to eat supercede this and that attention may be drawn in some way. I was always Ok with this. My child comes first...his/her needs and physiological needs are more important than the potential of unwanted attention or the fact another may be uncomfortable about my child's method of eating. I may be uncomfortable with seeing 300 lb men with their shirts off at the lake, but hey- I just don't chose to look. Whatever.
There are many, many more arguments that have been put out there, but that's the sum of it.. put simply, however, is that regardless of one's opinion on whether or not women *should* nurse in public or *how* they should do it or an opinion on what an acceptable arbitrary age may or may not be, the fact of the matter is that the LEGAL right to is protected by state law in many states, such as Washington and Texas. That simple point is not up for debate and opinions on the should's and should not's are moot in these cases.
How about this? In a nation where diabetes and obesity are astronomically on the rise, especially in our young children, why wouldn't we want to support Moms out there who work to give their children what's both nutrionally normal and best? Kudos to every Mom out there who does this... and to those who continue to fight for the rights of other mothers and children.
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