So, of course, I am always interested in stories like this, of a woman being asked to stop breastfeeding her daughter............in Kiddicare. The brave woman refused to leave the shop, and hopefully gave them a good earful at the same time! The woman was feeding her 12 week old daughter in the cafe when a member of the public complained, and a member of staff approached the mother, asking her to either move to a breastfeeding room, or leave. Obviously the member of staff in question was very much in the wrong here, as it should be noted that a mother's right to breastfeed is protected by law in our country.
A similar story here, involving a woman who was told to stop breastfeeding in a swimming pool as no food or drink are allowed in the pool area. That really made me laugh - is she supposed to leave her boobs at home? I love that she told them what they were doing was against the law - she's my type of girl! However, I do see their point that actually feeding IN the water is perhaps not the best idea, and she was told she could feed her baby out of the water on the dry area surrounding the pool.
Now, with my great dedication to breastfeeding, I recently joined a Facebook group which is dedicated to normalising breastfeeding. I thought it would be a great place to be able to find out more about the facts of breastfeeding, and see other mummies from around the world who breastfeed share their experiences. And it is! But, sadly, all too often the posts from this group leave a bit of a bad taste in my mouth - now I know what the term 'breastapo' really means. There seems to be a general consensus amongst the group that breastfeeding mothers are treated exceptionally badly, and that we must unite and show all those non-breastfeeding people exactly how amazing we are, and flatten anyone in our way. Now, I know that I am exceptionally lucky to have never even received a sideways glance when breastfeeding and that many women DO struggle with other people's negative perceptions and opinions of breastfeeding in public. And they have every right to be very angry about that, and be ready to fight for their right to feed their baby.
But, to me, it seems like many women go out actually LOOKING for a fight with someone about breastfeeding. And, to me, that just isn't the way to do it. Other people may disagree, but I just don't find it helpful to "the cause" if breastfeeding mothers are constantly on the defensive; constantly ready to attack at a moment's notice. If I'm honest, I think mothers like this are detrimental to the overall view of breastfeeding. They give off a view that we are all a bit wacko, pulling our tops off and whipping the boobs out at the drop of a hat - just to prove a point.
And that makes me sad. Because breastfeeding shouldn't be about proving any point, it should be about feeding, and bonding with, your baby. It should be about having that knowledge that you are doing what you believe is best for your baby, no matter what anyone else thinks. No, breastfeeding mothers shouldn't be discriminated against or made to feel uncomfortable, but nor should they receive any special treatment that bottle feeding mothers wouldn't receive. You don't see a bottle feeding momma setting up a Facebook group, ready to challenge the world...just in case.
So, this is a bit of a confused post I guess! With one breathe I tell you how proud breastfeeding makes me and how I'd fight to the end for it, and in the next I'm slamming other breastfeeders for saying the same! Maybe it's all in the delivery - I would hate to think that I make anyone who chooses not to breastfeed feel bad for what they do, whereas I'm sure that if many women could read this Facebook group, they'd be horrified at how some breastfeeding mothers relate their views about everyone else.
At the end of the day, let's just feed our babies, expect no hassle about it, but expect no special treatment either.
