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Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Just food for thought......

From a recent post from the Lactivist blog:

"In general, when the whole breastfeeding in public debate comes up, we hear a lot of detractors talking about how "gross" and "inappropriate" it is to nurse in public. We also hear lots of accusations about moms "whipping it out" and claims that nursing mothers are simply exhibitionists trying to get their kicks by flashing their nipples in public. Us moms tend to do a lot of defending by making points about it being a natural way to feed our child, by making claims that nearly all moms go out of their way to be discreet and by claiming that children have the right to eat when and where they're hungry.Those are all good points...but I can't help but wonder what the reaction might be if we turned it around a little.What if WE started acting appalled and disgusted by the people that equate breastfeeding with sex. What if instead of defending ourselves, we made comments like"Well I'm quite concerned that the sight of a child eating turned that man on...I just don't know how to react to that."or"Why is this woman staring at my breasts? I don't understand what the attraction is...I mean I understand the attraction for my child, but why is she so fascinated by them?"What kind of world do we live in where we demonize the moms that feed their children and give free pass to the people that equate eating time with "dirty sex"? I have a feeling that if we responded that way, more people might start shifting their tactics away from the "ooohhh!!! naked breast = sex = baaaaaaaaaad" line of thinking and and back toward "well, I'm just uncomfortable" with it which makes it more clearly THEIR issue and to which the perfect response is "well, there are lots of other directions to look."

Personally, I remember thinking, (during the early stage before they start performing gymnastics while eating) if someone is staring at me hard enough to catch a glimpse of nipple, then it should be ME who should be upset, not them!!

1 comment:

ADP said...

It always amazes me when you read about someone reacting bad at the sight of a baby being breastfed. I always think wow, that's great that baby is getting the best food. And I am happy for that baby because too many are fed formula for whatever reason. I fed my children in public here and there and was always discreet, you couldn't see ANYTHING. Except for the time Steph suddenly pulled away leaving my breast exposed in a laundromat. But she was a stinker so I guess that explains that lol.

Really, there is something wrong about our society getting so upset about the sight of a baby being breastfed. It should make us happy and stir warm feelings inside us, instead we get disgusted.