Women and babies will gather at sites around the world for the 9th annual Breastfeeding Challenge! The Quintessence Foundation sponsors the global event:
On October 3, 2009 at 11:00 am mothers and children at sites across Canada, the United States and other countries will compete to set the record for the most children breastfeeding at one time. The winners of the competition will be the site with the most children breastfeeding at one site, the country with the most children breastfeeding at registered sites and in North America the region (province or territory or state) with the most children participating as …read more

Generally we think of “nursing in public” as nursing anywhere besides the privacy of our own homes. However, the laws that protect nursing in public do not apply in the privacy of someone else’s home. Sometimes, the people who should support a nursing mother the most — her extended family and friends — are the ones who are uncomfortable seeing her nursing. In the comments for the last Carnival of Breastfeeding on Nursing in Public, Jenny raised this very issue:
Unfortunately, I have been faced with the choice of covering up/leaving the room to nurse or starting a big fight–especially …read more

Welcome to the discussion of Nursing in Public for the June Carnival of Breastfeeding! If you are new here and/or have not yet joined the Facebook group I created in support of the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009, please consider doing so!
Lots of carnival participants have shared their own stories and advice about nursing in public (see links at the end of this post), but first I would like to discuss the issue of whether women should or should not cover themselves with a nursing cover while breastfeeding in public. At first it might seem like a non-issue. I think …read more

This breastfeeding photo shows a mother nursing her baby in a sling, although you wouldn’t know it unless you read the title and captions!
Here’s the best part of this photo of a woman nursing her baby in a sling while they both rode the train in South Africa — the comments by the wife (the woman shown) and husband (the photographer).
Wife: “Home made sling, home made baby, home made food.”
Husband: “Technically, *hotel* made baby ”
Thanks for the laugh guys, and thanks for showing how comfortably breastfeeding can be done while babywearing.

The June Carnival of Breastfeeding topic is “Nursing in Public.” I have written a lot about nursing in public in the past, and now it’s your turn to share a story, advice, a photo, or other piece on the subject.

Have a story or tip you want to share in a carnival post on your blog? Email me your submission by June 15, 2009, for consideration for the carnival on June 22, 2009. As a reminder, here are the guidelines that will increase the chances a post will be selected for inclusion in the carnival:
– A well-written, grammatically correct post
– Thoughtful …read more

The debate rages on about breastfeeding in public and whether or not nursing mothers need to be “discreet.” Jennifer B. wrote in to share her concern:
“In the latest issue of Parents Magazine (May 2009), on page 106, there is a blurb about nursing in public. It really made my hair curl! The paragraph, part of the Manners section, asks the question, “It is okay to nurse my baby in a restaurant?” Jana Banin, the etiquette columnist, says, ”Yes, as long as you’re discreet: Think scarves, shawls, dark booths, or quiet corner tables. No doubt you crave brunch as much as …read more

Here is a reminder that the new Rhode Island law protecting breastfeeding in public takes effect today, March 1, 2009. This law is in addition to the existing Rhode Island laws excluding breastfeeding mothers from disorderly conduct laws, and requiring employers to provide a safe, private place to breastfeed or pump.
The entire text of the enacted bill reads:
23-13.5-1. Breastfeeding in public places. – A woman may feed her child by bottle or breast in any place open to the public.
23-13.5-2. Remedies. – In any civil action alleging a violation of this chapter, the court may:
(1) Afford injunctive relief against any …read more

Listen up people! There has been another sighting of Bottlefeeding In Public (BIP)! Some customers complained to management, but management said BIP was protected by law. So it’s time to get personal. It’s time to launch the Anti-Bottlefeeding Coalition Denounces Eating Freely Campaign (the ABCDEF Campaign for short). Modern society cannot tolerate babies eating from bottles in public! Whether you breastfeed or bottlefeed in the privacy of your own home, in the name of all that is decent, modest, and right, prepare yourself to make the following arguments against BIP:
BIP is unsanitary! You don’t know what’s in that bottle! It …read more

Crystal Everitt was breastfeeding her 1-year-old son in a Denny’s restaurant when she was asked by a manager to cover up. When Everitt declined to do so, the police were called and she was told that she would have to leave or be arrested for trespassing. The Denny’s in question is in Asheville, North Carolina. The manager told the Asheville Citizen-Times:
In this particular case, this guest was exposed in a manner that was causing discomfort toward other guests to the point of them complaining to management and leaving the restaurant.
The manager clearly needs an education in the North Carolina indecent …read more

On January 9, 2009, the governor of Massachusetts signed into a law “An Act to Promote Breastfeeding.” The law becomes effective in early April 2009, 90 days after January 9.
The law essentially says that a mother may breastfeed her child in a public place or private place open to the public and where the mother and her child may otherwise lawfully be present. It also excludes from indecency laws any exposure of the breast incidental to nursing. The full text of the law is published below.
My thoughts on the law? It’s wonderful to see any breastfeeding in public law in …read more