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An unusual protest – mass breastfeeding – was staged by a group of women outside the London hotel Claridge’s. The reason was the way the young mother was treated in the hotel restaurant: when she began to breastfeed her daughter, the employee demanded that the woman cover herself. Why is the sight of a breastfeeding woman in a crowded place natural for some, but ashamed for others?
The indignation of mothers of babies was fueled by one of the British politicians, Nigel Farage. In an interview on the radio, he said that it is not at all necessary to feed the child in public so defiantly. “I don’t really care, but I know that many people feel very uncomfortable when they see a woman breastfeeding,” said Farage. “You can ask her to go to the toilet or, in the end, find a place somewhere in the corner so as not to embarrass others.”
Read more:
- Whether to breastfeed?
On a frosty and windy December day, about forty moms with babies from London and the suburbs gathered outside the entrance to Claridge’s and staged mass breastfeeding to express their protest and outrage at the act of the administration and once again show that breastfeeding – at home or in a public place – is the most natural thing in the world.
“I came here because a woman was accused of indecency for breastfeeding her child,” said Emily Slough, 28, mother of Matilda’s XNUMX-month-old daughter. “The administration of Claridge’s had no legal right to do so. Every time something like this happens, many women, out of fear and shame, refuse to breastfeed. We came here to support breastfeeding mothers, to tell them once again that it is natural and normal to breastfeed anywhere.”
British Prime Minister and father of many children David Cameron expressed unequivocal support for the protest: “It is completely unacceptable to make mothers feel uncomfortable when they breastfeed in public.” In the UK, by law, no one can prohibit a woman from breastfeeding in a public place – be it a restaurant or parliament.
In Russia, there is no special law stipulating such a right for a woman – it is taken for granted. Nevertheless, seeing a nursing mother in a crowded place in our country is a rarity. One of the reasons is that, according to statistics, almost all newborns in our country receive artificial feeding, although WHO recommends breastfeeding for at least six months or a year.
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- How to talk to babies
It is interesting that in different countries** the attitude towards a woman breastfeeding in public is different. For example, in the USA, Germany and Brazil, she is treated kindly and calmly, mothers do not feel fear or embarrassment exposing their breasts to feed their baby in a crowded place. In China, Turkey and France, most residents agree that this is a natural process, but feel shame if they have to feed in public or watch a woman breastfeed.
What do you think?
* See http://www.dailymail.co.uk/ for details
** http://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/how-breastfeeding-is-viewed-around-the-world-1760/