I came across an article written by a young woman who mentioned that she's uncomfortable with breastfeeding in public. This young woman also compared breastfeeding to women wearing low cut shirts and celebrities who post nude photos.
Comparing breastfeeding to any of those things is just outright ridiculous.
When women breastfeed, they're feeding their child. They aren't whipping out their breast for you to gaze upon. They aren't doing it to seduce you. They aren't doing it because they want your opinion. They are doing it for the sole purpose of feeding their child breastmilk.
What is a mother supposed to do when their child is hungry and they're in public? Let the child starve? Most people say the woman should excuse herself with the child and go to the restroom or to the car and feed there, but why?
Let's say a mother and her child were grocery shopping. Say they had a cart full of groceries and they're grabbing their last few things and the child is crying because they're hungry. Is the mother supposed to just abandon the cart to go to her car or to the restroom? Some mothers don't pump in advance, so sometimes milk isn't readily available. Similarly, some women do not believe in formula-feeding, so what is a woman to do? (Yes, I'm sure it's very difficult to breastfeed a child while pushing a cart/shopping, so bear with me with that example)
A woman should not have to let her child go hungry because you're uncomfortable with her breastfeeding in public.
A woman should not have to excuse herself to a private place to feed her child (unless that's what they prefer) because you're uncomfortable with her breastfeeding in public.
It's almost 2019. Stop sexualizing breastfeeding. It is not a sexual thing. It is LITERALLY feeding a tiny human being.
Let mothers do whatever they want. If they want to breastfeed in public, let them. If they would prefer to do it in private, fine. If they cover up, great. If they don't, wonderful.
Mothers already have a hard enough job, you know, being a mother and all, so the last thing they need is someone judging them for using their breasts for a natural and their intended purpose.
