Morgan Gallagher posted this on the Facebook page for Lactnet and I thought it was so interesting that it ought to be shared with the wider group. She has given me permission to share.

"Can I ask the USA members in here who are also women of colour... a favour? The below photo is being used a lot at the moment in breastfeeding memes. It always is. It's a great photo. Professionally done, brilliant lighting, perfectly posed. It's why it survived from being a postcard of French life in Turkey in 1910.

It was taken in the city of Adana, Turkey. France was heavily involved in Turkey as an occupying force - there was a War of Independence just ten years later.

The woman in the photo is a paid wet-nurse for a French family. She is clearly well fed. Extremely well dressed. She is wearing jewellery on both hands and round her neck. She has expensive, delicate slippers on her feet with lace trim. She's looking straight at the camera from a position of power and authority. (I'm a specialist media analyser). It is a wonderful photo.

It is not, however, a photograph of a USAn woman being forced to wet-nurse her owner's baby during slavery in the USA. And it drives me mad to see her portrayed as such. I get ranty about historical portraits of women being used in the wrong context. I'm a geek. This woman HAS a story: it's her story, she should get to keep it.

We don't know if this woman is French herself: she could be. France has a long history of colonising African nations. Many many people of colour with African heritage are born in France itself. Always have been, always will. So we don't know if she is French born, and of African heritage. Or, an African who has been employed during the family's travels.

But we do know with absolute certainty that she is not in the USA, during slavery, being used as a wet-nurse. We know she's in Adana, Turkey, as a paid wet-nurse in 1910.

And that being factual, using it in memes about slavery and wet-nursing, just allows racist idiots to rubbish the meme as 'not true'. So, in my personal opinion, it's like shooting your own foot.

I'd be really grateful is any of you who are from the USA, and are a person of colour, particularly a USAn with African origin... if you see this picture being discussed as being included in meme making etc... you consider my input here when making your choices. Thank you.

(And to any USAn woman without colour, or African heritage, who is considering using such an image in meme or leaflet or poster making: to stop deciding what images to use at all, and ask your colleagues who have African heritage to do it. :-) Yes, I've been on the internet a looooooong time. Here's hoping I said this right! Apologies if I've said it all wrong...)"

The image can be found here: http://www.mfa.org/collections/object/type-de-negresse-dadana-574888

Thanks,

Michelle

Michelle Pensa Branco, IBCLC 
Latch Lactation
www.latchlactation.com
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

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