Should Public Breastfeeding Be a Civil Right?

Babies have to eat and what is the difference between a woman with half her top on feeding a baby or a woman with just have her top on letting them flop. Most mothers do put a blanket over herself when she feeds the baby.

I love boobs. And when they double as fun and a food source, I say hells yea!

Yes, but I think in private establisments, the managers should be allowed to ask the women to cover up, just with a light burping cloth or blanket. Just for decency of children.

A Civil Right, How about a "NATURAL RIGHT", When growing up I've seen lots of Mothers breast feeding their babies in Public with a cloth diaper covering what they were doing. Any one that objects to this is a puritaical moron. If you find it objectionable,You don't have to look. Mind your own business. ( hint, it's what breasts are intended for)

I can't care less however, you say " if you find it objectionable, you don't have to look" the
question I have then is, "Is it okay to stare?"and if you find that objectionable Just cover up.

For crying out loud. Why the heck it has to be a "civil right?" You guys can make the mockery out of anything! Is there anyone who was prosecuted for a public breast feeding? Sheesh. That's the matter of decency and respect to the others. It's not about written laws. Why should it be illegal to ask a woman to cover up in a public place? How about the rights of those who had a good up-bringing? Wouldn't it be the "discrimination" against them? It's a "public place," not a "just breastfeeding women's place." Will the woman that needs to breastfeed a child in a public place die from the poilte request to cover herself a little bit? Heck, no! Will she show the respect to the people who happened to be at such public place and who can be from the different cultural, etc. background if she does? Yes, sure! Those "lawmakers" should really find somehting more useful to do. There are a lot of REAL problems. Stop wasting the taxpayers money for getting the political points for the useless activity!

So the woman who WAS covered up, had found a quiet corner out of the way in Target and with no customers around was disrespectful and the employees at Target were perfectly in their rights ask her to move or get out even though the store policy clearly states that breastfeeding is alright?

I feel that she could bring up the store's policy and that she had been discreet and was in no wrong in doing so. T wasn't saying that that particular woman was being disrespectful, but that the employees, and others in the store are in their rights to politely ask. She does not have to comply as long as she is doing no wrong. Women breastfeeding in public does make some people uncomfortable, and that's just something that both parties will have to deal with in a mature manner.

Problem with that is that the employees and supervisor treated it very immaturely, even mocking her and ignoring anything she said to them. When she did not want to move to the changerooms because she would not be allowed to take the clothes and items she was going to buy with her (a pretty normal rule in case of shoplifting), they really started getting in her face.

I know it is legal to breastfeed in public places already but I think the new law is to prevent this sort of extreme behaviour.

The way she was treated was terrible and shouldn't have happened. But people should still have the right to say something politely. Taking away that right is taking away their freedom of speech, which is threatened enough already, don't you think?

I kind of feel like most people are reading the article wrong (or not at all). Like it's saying "Should breastfeeding remain legal?" When it's really saying "Should it be considered a civil right?" (i.e. Should it be illegal for someone to ask a breastfeeding mother in a public place to be more discreet or move?) Thank you for reading the article correctly. Thank you for recognizing that it would be wrong to give breastfeeding mothers a "I'm sorry, but you can't be offended by me" banner. It takes away someone else's rights to do so. Thank you.

To ask Mother who is breast feeding her baby to move,or cover up is rude, and harassment. And therefore criminal activity, and is not a right! ITS NONE OF ANYBODY ELSES BUSINESS!!!!!!!!!!! If you don't like what you see turn your head.

It's only rude if you're not polite about it, and it's only harassment if you keep asking her after she's said no (or even if you ask again after she's already catered to your request). It's not criminal to ask someone politely to move, neither is it criminal to ask someone politely to cover up. Whether or not it's "anybody else's business" if a woman is breastfeeding in a public place, it's by definition not her own space. She has as much right to be there as I do. I have just as much right to ask her to cover up or move as she does to refuse or tell me to look away. It's a two way street. Taking away someone else's right to say something about it is taking away their freedom of speech, which is unconstitutional to do.

Well I don't care how polite I am if I come up to you & tell you to put a sack over your face because I don't like the color of your face, or your looks. It would be rude and I have no right protected by the constitution to that kind of speech, because your right to be in public without your face covered comes before my right not to see your face. In the case in point the mother right to breast feed her baby in public comes before your right not to see it.

Freedom of speech as written in the Bill of Rights to the Constitution does not delineate what speech is considered okay and what is not. Neither does it say who's rights are more important. Equal rights are meant to be just that: equal. That means that no one comes before anyone else. My right to freedom of speech is as important as a mother's right to breastfeed. As I've said many times already, I have no problem with public breastfeeding, but I do not believe that it should be protected to the point where someone else cannot legally say anything about it. It's already legal in most of the country, like the article said, and this is not a question of whether or not it should be legal or remain legal, but whether or not it should be illegal to say anything against it.

Freedom of speech, Never included the right to injured with you speech. It is a crime to go into wallmart and holler fire. When you are around people, certian right are more importance than other right. To me its harassment and very rude to interfere with a mother breast feeding by telling her to cover up, or move. Therefore would be criminal activity. That's my thoughts on it. It also fighting words.

But rudeness is an opinion. I could ask someone anything very politely and they could see it as rude, regardless of if someone else sees it that way. It's not harassment to ask someone politely once. It's harassment to continue to do so after they have already responded to you, or if they've asked you to stop. It is not and should not be criminal to ask someone something politely. That's as ridiculous as it being criminal to ask someone to move because they are in your way and you need to get by. Whether or not you see it as "fighting words" is also opinion. If I was breastfeeding, and someone asked me to cover up or move and I wasn't going to, I would tell them "no thank you." That doesn't mean I have to get mad about it or consider it fighting words. They aren't picking a fight. Why would I assume they were? People have the right to feel uncomfortable or offended by something, and should have the ability to voice that opinion. I think that enough of this country is so ready to assume that any dissent means that they are attacking you, when that's not the case. My rights and your rights are equal. I have the right to breastfeed in public, you have the right to tell my that you're uncomfortable with it. It's not a big deal. I don't have the right to make it illegal for you to tell me you're uncomfortable with it.

Well, we just have to agree to disagree.

this is the most decent, gentle spoken comment i have seen so far every other person is just being rude and grumpy over nothing i mean any educated well mannered mother should know most ppl might not agree to breastfeeding in public if they excuse her politely it's nothing wrong why do ppl get offended over nothing, they are just being over sensitive and frustrated ppl

Thank you, that's very kind of you to say.

Stretching much? Do not mix the things like one’s taste in color of one’s face with the requests for decency in many cultures. We are not talking about your house, we are talking about PUBLIC places here. You don't care how polite you are only because you are rude. FYI: to many people it is rude to go around naked in a public place. But, sure, you don't care. If YOU would prefer to go around naked then EVERYONE just HAS TO applaud you, no? You missed the point though. To breastfeed is NOT a right, it's a need. And, there is absolutely NO need to make it a political issue since no one is being prosecuted for that.

Sometimes people should remember that in history many people died fighting for the REAL rights. To make this life better for their children. They didn’t die for their children making the mockery out of themselves by screwing the ethics and the common values behavior.
You need to breastfeed? Do it. Just learn to do it in a polite way. You demand to respect your needs. Then you should learn to respect others first. Otherwise, the “fight for you right” looks rather hypocritical.

Well I guess the bottom line of what I'm saying is that; We don't live in a world where everybody see's eye to eye on things, and if we don't never see anything that offends us when we are out in public than we are not living a free country. So if we want peace, unless it some of our business, we need to keep our nose out. Its that simple.

Thank you and you are correct. Ironically, even people who are saying "No" in their comments for some reason keep pressing the "Yes" button, LOL. Thank you for your understanding. :)

You're quite welcome. It's kind of crazy to see how many people are so offended by people saying that breastfeeding shouldn't be considered a civil right.

Sheesh! Golly gee . . .

What next??? Are we going to vote on whether we can go to the bathroom? Breasts were around before baby bottles.

It is a civil right to eat.

Please!

It should be no body's business but my baby and me. I just feel it should be done discreetly, after all you are a woman, respect yourself and your child.

But of course.

Yes it should breast feeding is more healthy that formula.

Mammals always wean [breast feed] so it should be a right; but I have to ask that whether or not it can be done publicly as I saw before.

I don't think the issue needs to be taken that seriously. I see nothing wrong with a woman breastfeeding in public, but maybe they can cover up, and not for the ones who are asking them to but for themselves. I wouldn't want any pervert standing in the bus line staring at my breasts while I'm trying to do something healthy and natural.

I agree with you a 100% I see nothing wrong with a woman breastfeeding in public, but I do agree that if I was a woman i would not not want some pervert getting his kicks off while i trying to feed my child breast which in fact is by all means healthy than formula bottom line cover up not because some jerk says cover up so some perv come by just to get his jolly off.

I wish I had been allowed to even cover up and breastfeed on the train or bus. It's such taboo here that my bubs was left screaming and I was near tears because not one single person would let me find a corner seat to try and do it as out of view as possible and I got vicious glares and 'words' for trying to do it on one of the open side seats.

yeah . of course they can ! :)

THIRD OPTION PLEASE! THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A WEBSITE FOR ALL OPINIONS, NOT JUST THE RADICAL AND/OR LOUD ONES!!

As long as they're decently covered, let them feed. It's kind of sad and pathetic that something as basic as this even NEEDS to be made into law.

Well said a woman should have a right to feed her child but iit is sad and pathetic that something as basic as this even NEEDS to be made into law. whats next huh people are dying and stuff and all these people are fixated on is how to make it harder to feed a child look I say if breast feeding make the kid healthy more power to ya.

YES!!!

When in doubt, whip 'em out!

Breast feeding in publik could make baby in danger cause of contamination from environment on the breast.
It should be doing in special room for mothers to take a breast feeding to their babies