Many people still think it’s rude for a mother to breastfeed in public in Mexico, as they do in other parts of the world, like parts of the United Kingdom and the United States. In 2014, the country had one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Latin America, with just approximately 14% of moms exclusively nursing their children for the first six months. Nonetheless, recent UNICEF estimates suggest rates of roughly 30%, which is still lower than the global average of 41%.
It was thought that breastfeeding rates would rise over time after the nation banned free infant formula distributions in hospitals in 2015. With increased breastfeeding, there will surely be an increase in moms nursing in public. With stigma still fueling this ‘taboo’ in many parts of the world, there will undoubtedly be some elevated indicators of friction between certain moms and others who suggest you should ‘cover up’ or ‘do it in secret’. It goes without saying that criticizing women for this is never acceptable. Fortunately, this time it was actually rather amusing.
Melanie Dudley is a clever woman who should not be trifled with. The mother of three was on vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, when something irritated her. According to her, it was 90 degrees outside when a man approached her while she was breastfeeding her baby at a café and requested her to “cover up”. She didn’t say whether or not he was the manager. She did, however, “cover up” respectfully.
Dudley’s reply is worthy of a motherhood medal. She just grabbed up her baby’s blanket, draped it above, and kept breastfeeding. Legend!
“I was on vacation in Cabo San Lucas with my entire family when a man requested me to cover myself,” Dudley told News Channel 9. “Normally, I’m quiet, but we were sitting at the rear of the restaurant.”
On July 6, 2018, a photo of Dudley with her wrapped head and nursing baby became popular on Facebook [6]. It has since received 138,000 responses, 40,000 comments, and 226,000 shares. The image undoubtedly instilled confidence in many nursing moms. They owe no one discretion since their boobs aren’t given out for the sake of fashion.
“Well done, mom,” one lady said. Your infant is not at risk of suffocating. Breastfeed your kid naturally whenever and wherever your infant requires food.”
“If you don’t enjoy watching women nurse their kids, look away, close your eyes, or mind your own business!” said one man.
Melanie served that man with a single action that would be remembered for a long time.
Even though breastfeeding in public has been legal in all 50 states since July 2018 [7], mothers are still laughed at and made to feel bad when they do it in public.Legalization, as the adage goes, is not the same as normality. The latter would normally involve a significant amount of time and effort, but this is just inconvenient because nursing is such a natural and vital demand. If mothers are now protected by the law when nursing their children in public, being ridiculed or embarrassed for doing so should be punishable. Maybe a touch excessive, but it would get the point across, right?
What’s so ethically and socially wrong about a nursing mother breastfeeding her child in public, even if she tries to be discreet? Others may say that it is impolite and disrespectful, but seriously? She only wants to feed her kid. Why not start by prohibiting individuals from wearing bikinis at the beach or non-bum-covering bum shorts in the summer? Nursing women were mercilessly led to the restroom to feed their infants at several restaurants. Ew. No one, let alone a child, should have to eat in a restroom.
It’s past time to totally mainstream breastfeeding. There will be no more taboos. Just acceptance.