the great debate goes on.
Yesterday, a Facebook friend posted this article.
Of course, being a breastfeeding mother and believing that mothers should be able to breastfeed in any place they need to, I was interested to see what this write up had to say.
First of all, a mother breastfeeding shouldn't even be an issue. WHY do people care? WHY are people SO concerned with not seeing a breast?! It's like people are overly concerned with mothers covering up but WHY? are they THAT conservative? are these people THAT modest?...i don't think it's about that. at all.
People say that mothers should breastfeed discreetly, but I have never ONCE in my whole 25 years of life EVER seen a mother breastfeeding non-discreetly, even if she wasn't fully covered. There are not women running around with their breasts out exposing nipples and all, all over the place. It just doesn't happen. If there has been a mother who purposely breastfed her baby and also let her breasts be exposed for all to see, she was probably of a different mindset than most other breastfeeding mothers.
When I breastfeed in public, I get my son latched on as quickly as humanly possible so that he quiets down, calms down, and feeds peacefully. I don't expose my breast and take my time and let my nipple show and whatever else people think breastfeeding mothers are doing. But what is it all REALLY about? What are the TRUE feelings behind all of this? I can't accept that the true real feelings are that people are so extremely modest that they do not want breastfeeding mothers to expose any part of their breast, ever. For some, it is about modesty. But there is something else behind these comments about "you should cover up" and "i don't want to see that".... which by the way no one is forcing others to look at breastfeeding mothers. People have control over their own eyes. You don't HAVE to look at anything you don't want to look at in public.
So lets address this article. The title alone is ridiculous since most breastfeeding mothers are as 'discreet' as possible anyways. they are not trying to be 'loud' about it.
Also, I hate when people say: 'you NEED to.'.....i don't NEED to do anything that someone else says I should.
This quote: "And while I get what she's saying and agree that breastfeeding moms need to be able to nourish their children whenever and wherever they happen to be -- there really are a few places where it seems a bit out of place.".....Last time I checked, feeding a baby is never out of place. A baby needs to eat, a lot. And no one says that bottle feeding is out of place, do they?!
And this: "...either by covering up or moving to an area where there are fewer people." Again, people do not HAVE to look. No one is forcing you to stare at a breastfeeding mother. And covering up is a hassle. plain and simple. A squirming baby, plus trying to move clothing, plus trying to get the baby latched, plus how hot it gets under the blnket where they baby is.... it actually draws more attention when you are fumbling around with a blanket than when you just hold you baby and let them eat without all the fuss of a cover.
"Whether it's purpose is to feed a baby or not -- a boob is still a boob. Sometimes it's a little uncomfortable to see in certain situations..." - and again, you do not HAVE to look. And this statement just goes to show how sexualized breasts have become. Breastfeeding is not sexual. The breast in a breastfeeding situation is not sexual. People are uncomfortable with seeing a breast in a breastfeeding situation but they are A. OK. with a breast in other situations like Ads in magazines and on TV and other places.
This: "as the mom of a 7-year-old, I wouldn't want him splashing around and seeing a mom sitting near the pool with the top of her swimsuit down. I already shudder at the thought of him looking at breasts when he's a teenager, let alone as a second grader." goes to show that you have not taught your child about breasts being used for feeding babies. This also goes to show that you are teaching your child that breasts are purely sexual and that he shouldn't see them, not even just cleavage- which you see EVERYWHERE anyways.
"I've seen moms feeding their babies in restaurants on several occasions, and I'm fine with it when they're wearing a coverup.." - If you support breastfeeding, you support it completely without any stipulations like "as long as they do this" or "its okay, but only if this"..... Not to mention that while out to dinner at a restaurant, you are usually there for an hour or more, and unless you time it perfectly, the baby will probably have to eat.
I went out to dinner with my family on Sunday evening and my son slept for the first half of dinner and then woke up fussy as he was hungry. So, I pulled my tank top down and pulled by shirt up and latched him on, and he breastfed right there while we all sat at the table. Did people see me, sure they did! But would they have been more okay with a crying baby while they tried to enjoy their dinner, I doubt it. People do not want to see a woman openly breastfeed but they get annoyed with crying babies too...so what do they want?!
"I'd probably ask the flight attendant to seat me in a row of women if I was a breastfeeding mom."...What difference does this even make?!!!
"Kids' sporting events -- Again, there are just too many children running around, and it's probably not a good idea for them to look to the sidelines and see breasts staring back at them. I just keep thinking about my own child and what he'd think (or say out loud) if he were to see too much skin."....GASP! TOO MUCH SKIN?! Like there are not women with lots of cleavage or short shorts around your kid?! This is INSANE. And, once again, parents should teach their children that breasts are more than sexual. AND: women do not just let their breasts hang out for hours on end! Breastfeeding mothers don't just sit there topless!!!!
This is the only one I do agree with: Church. Because of my own personal feeling about being in church and exposing my body in that particular situation.
Again, I do not even know WHY this is SUCH an issue for people. I do not understand why people feel SO strongly about mothers covering up?! And, I would LOVE to know where these people are living where breastfeeding mothers just have their breasts completely exposed for hours on end in every corner of every place. I don't think that happens.
This is THE great debate where neither side will ever "win" and there will never be a happy medium because breastfeeding is just not normalized enough at this point in time and people are far too narrow minded to accept breastfeeding in public. Maybe one day we will get with it and be like other countries where people don't think twice about a breastfeeding mother in public.
Of course, being a breastfeeding mother and believing that mothers should be able to breastfeed in any place they need to, I was interested to see what this write up had to say.
First of all, a mother breastfeeding shouldn't even be an issue. WHY do people care? WHY are people SO concerned with not seeing a breast?! It's like people are overly concerned with mothers covering up but WHY? are they THAT conservative? are these people THAT modest?...i don't think it's about that. at all.
People say that mothers should breastfeed discreetly, but I have never ONCE in my whole 25 years of life EVER seen a mother breastfeeding non-discreetly, even if she wasn't fully covered. There are not women running around with their breasts out exposing nipples and all, all over the place. It just doesn't happen. If there has been a mother who purposely breastfed her baby and also let her breasts be exposed for all to see, she was probably of a different mindset than most other breastfeeding mothers.
When I breastfeed in public, I get my son latched on as quickly as humanly possible so that he quiets down, calms down, and feeds peacefully. I don't expose my breast and take my time and let my nipple show and whatever else people think breastfeeding mothers are doing. But what is it all REALLY about? What are the TRUE feelings behind all of this? I can't accept that the true real feelings are that people are so extremely modest that they do not want breastfeeding mothers to expose any part of their breast, ever. For some, it is about modesty. But there is something else behind these comments about "you should cover up" and "i don't want to see that".... which by the way no one is forcing others to look at breastfeeding mothers. People have control over their own eyes. You don't HAVE to look at anything you don't want to look at in public.
So lets address this article. The title alone is ridiculous since most breastfeeding mothers are as 'discreet' as possible anyways. they are not trying to be 'loud' about it.
Also, I hate when people say: 'you NEED to.'.....i don't NEED to do anything that someone else says I should.
This quote: "And while I get what she's saying and agree that breastfeeding moms need to be able to nourish their children whenever and wherever they happen to be -- there really are a few places where it seems a bit out of place.".....Last time I checked, feeding a baby is never out of place. A baby needs to eat, a lot. And no one says that bottle feeding is out of place, do they?!
And this: "...either by covering up or moving to an area where there are fewer people." Again, people do not HAVE to look. No one is forcing you to stare at a breastfeeding mother. And covering up is a hassle. plain and simple. A squirming baby, plus trying to move clothing, plus trying to get the baby latched, plus how hot it gets under the blnket where they baby is.... it actually draws more attention when you are fumbling around with a blanket than when you just hold you baby and let them eat without all the fuss of a cover.
"Whether it's purpose is to feed a baby or not -- a boob is still a boob. Sometimes it's a little uncomfortable to see in certain situations..." - and again, you do not HAVE to look. And this statement just goes to show how sexualized breasts have become. Breastfeeding is not sexual. The breast in a breastfeeding situation is not sexual. People are uncomfortable with seeing a breast in a breastfeeding situation but they are A. OK. with a breast in other situations like Ads in magazines and on TV and other places.
This: "as the mom of a 7-year-old, I wouldn't want him splashing around and seeing a mom sitting near the pool with the top of her swimsuit down. I already shudder at the thought of him looking at breasts when he's a teenager, let alone as a second grader." goes to show that you have not taught your child about breasts being used for feeding babies. This also goes to show that you are teaching your child that breasts are purely sexual and that he shouldn't see them, not even just cleavage- which you see EVERYWHERE anyways.
"I've seen moms feeding their babies in restaurants on several occasions, and I'm fine with it when they're wearing a coverup.." - If you support breastfeeding, you support it completely without any stipulations like "as long as they do this" or "its okay, but only if this"..... Not to mention that while out to dinner at a restaurant, you are usually there for an hour or more, and unless you time it perfectly, the baby will probably have to eat.
I went out to dinner with my family on Sunday evening and my son slept for the first half of dinner and then woke up fussy as he was hungry. So, I pulled my tank top down and pulled by shirt up and latched him on, and he breastfed right there while we all sat at the table. Did people see me, sure they did! But would they have been more okay with a crying baby while they tried to enjoy their dinner, I doubt it. People do not want to see a woman openly breastfeed but they get annoyed with crying babies too...so what do they want?!
"I'd probably ask the flight attendant to seat me in a row of women if I was a breastfeeding mom."...What difference does this even make?!!!
"Kids' sporting events -- Again, there are just too many children running around, and it's probably not a good idea for them to look to the sidelines and see breasts staring back at them. I just keep thinking about my own child and what he'd think (or say out loud) if he were to see too much skin."....GASP! TOO MUCH SKIN?! Like there are not women with lots of cleavage or short shorts around your kid?! This is INSANE. And, once again, parents should teach their children that breasts are more than sexual. AND: women do not just let their breasts hang out for hours on end! Breastfeeding mothers don't just sit there topless!!!!
This is the only one I do agree with: Church. Because of my own personal feeling about being in church and exposing my body in that particular situation.
Again, I do not even know WHY this is SUCH an issue for people. I do not understand why people feel SO strongly about mothers covering up?! And, I would LOVE to know where these people are living where breastfeeding mothers just have their breasts completely exposed for hours on end in every corner of every place. I don't think that happens.
This is THE great debate where neither side will ever "win" and there will never be a happy medium because breastfeeding is just not normalized enough at this point in time and people are far too narrow minded to accept breastfeeding in public. Maybe one day we will get with it and be like other countries where people don't think twice about a breastfeeding mother in public.
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