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I posted about this on my local board too, but I thought it might be relevant here as well. There will be a nurse-in this Saturday, Sept 8 to support breastfeeding mothers. The purpose of a nurse-in is to bring to the attention of the public issues surrounding breastfeeding in public. North Carolina, as well as many other states, has a law which allows a mother to breastfeed her child anywhere, public or private, where she is otherwise authorized to be. We would like to educate the public on the existence of this law and encourage businesses to create policies that support a mother breastfeeding in their store.
There will be nurse-ins nationwide this weekend at over 60 locations in over 33 states, and this event will likely be the largest of its kind to date. We will be having an event here in Raleigh as well. I will be there and wanted to invite you all. You don't have to be a nursing mom - anyone who supports breastfeeding is encouraged to attend.
The location of the event will be:
7831 Target Circle
Raleigh, NC 27616
This will be outside of the Applebees near Triangle Town Center mall.
It will begin at 11:30am on Sept 8.
Feel free to PM me for additional information if you would like.
I know Americans are uptight about the human body but... breastfeeding? I'm going to forward this article to my mommy friends and I'm happy that this lady is standing up for her right to feed her child.
This isn't going to be a popular response to this post, but here it goes.
First, I nursed all three of my children-and did so in public without hesitation. But, I did cover myself ALWAYS. Frankly, I don't think that's so much to ask of me or any other mother. It's not something to be embarassed about, but there's certainly something to be said for modesty. Listen, would it have killed her to place a large restaurant napkin over her breast??
I also find it a bit strange that the "soft-spoken" mom in this incident happened to have on hand a copy of the Kentucky law allowing public breastfeeding to give to the restaurant manager. I don't know about you all, but I never kept copies of my state laws on breastfeeding in my diaper bag!
I keep copies of my state breastfeeding law on me at all times. This is because when my baby was about 5 weeks old I was told not to breastfeed her in the Sharper Image store. At the time, I knew there was a law protecting me because when I gave birth the hospital gave me a little card with the law printed on it and made sure to let me know that it was legally protected. However, I didn't have that little card with me on that day, and the store manager said "I've never heard of any such law." You better believe that I always have a copy of it since then (though I've never had to use it). And considering that the hospital is giving out these little cards, I wouldn't be surprised if lots of other moms have them laying in the bottom of their diaper bags too. The Kentucky law was new, so maybe she had the card specifically because people may not have known about it. Who knows, but I don't find it strange at all that she had it. Besides, whether or not the mom is "soft-spoken" really has no relevance as to whether Applebees is allowed to ignore the law.
Regarding the blanket, if you want to cover your baby's head with a blanket in the middle of summer because it makes you feel more comfortable, be my guest. If someone else doesn't want to, and she is specifically protected by a law that says she doesn't have to, then Applebees has no right to interfere.
I don't know, maybe because I nursed 3 children and never had a problem that the whole card carrying thing seems strange to me. Then again, I was always discreet. I was proud to be breastfeeding, but never felt I should expose myself to those around me. What's wrong with respecting others feelings? No one told her she can't breastfeed. Refusing to cover yourself is like having a cigarette next to a non-smoker and blowing the smoke in his face just because you can.
I do hope there's a great turnout at all the Applebees, though!
I was being discreet when I was approached too, as it sounds like she was. You don't have to have a blanket over your child's head to be discreet. In my case, I was wearing a nursing shirt specifically designed not to show anything while nursing. In addition, I had a blanket covering the top part of my breast that might have peeked through. I did NOT have a blanket covering my child's head though, so that's considered indiscreet? Sorry, but it was the middle of summer and quite hot and I wasn't about to put a blanket over her head. Also, I like to see my daughter while she is nursing, and she likes to see me. Not only that though, she was still so young that I NEEDED to be able to see her latch to make sure it was right. When babies get a little older, they usually won't stand for having a blanket over their heads either and they just pull them off anyway. Anyway, what I'm saying is you don't need to cover the baby's head with a blanket to be discreet. Though when you start talking about requiring discretion, it begs the question, who gets to define discreet?
I really don't like the cigarette analogy either, because smoking is an unhealthy behavior that inflicts negative health effects on the smoker as well as on the bystander. Breastfeeding is a healthy behavior that is supposedly encouraged in our society and has zero effect on the bystander, while smoking is the opposite type of behavior.
Frankly, I don't think that's so much to ask of me or any other mother. It's not something to be embarassed about, but there's certainly something to be said for modesty.
I second you on that. Breastfeeding your child is one of the best things you can do, and nobody should ever be allowed to refuse you the right to do it, BUT whatever happened to modesty? I thought everyone covers themselves up when breastfeeding .. Isnt it a little embarassing to just..I mean feed your kid uncovered for the world to see.. You need not really stifle the child under a thick blanket you know , a big enough napkin that covers you should be enough to do the job !
Of course I was not comparing smoking to breastfeeding. Merely making the point that there's nothing wrong with some courtesy. I'm a proponent of nursing, which I've stated quite a few times.
Who decides what's discreet? I think common sense can guide us there. I just never exposed my breast at all. It's very simple to make a little tent over your baby's head to see her. Did I mention I've nursed 3 kids? Anyway, not here to have an argument. More power to you and those who are going to take the time to protest!
For those that are interested, you can also email the corporate offices of Applebee's and state what you think of the situation, or more specifically, how they decided to handle it.. I did.
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You need not really stifle the child under a thick blanket you know , a big enough napkin that covers you should be enough to do the job !
