Dear all:

Living here in Manhattan there is sometimes a curious dichotomy of "politically correct" 
photos and behavior.  

On the one hand, I did take a look at the photos from Canada and I think that these would 
not cause many to bat an eyelash in Manhattan. In the last six months or so the "Red 
Room" at Realbirth where I do breastfeeding clinics has undergone a face lift.  A good 
paint job to complement the red floor.  Bright red paint on one wall in the lobby.  And 
beautiful photographs by professional photographers.  My setting is a deep red carpet, 
with red mats and white pillows and photographs of naked pregnant women.  On the wall 
near the window is a willowy woman with breasts exposed, a white whispy skirt and a 
beautiful "bump" to coin the current cliche.  On the other walls are all sorts of 
photographs of barely clothed silouettes of pregnant women by themselves or with 
partners of either gender.  One is a woman and her husband only showing the torsos that 
gently curve against each other.  The other is a woman and a woman in three photos 
where they are in black and it takes you until the third photo to recognize the gentle 
curve of one of their curved bellies. The photos are sensual without being sexual.  They 
could be in an art museum.  Since these photos have been hung, I can't tell you how 
much more cheerful this room appears.  Outside the room is literally a red hanging 
lampshade --- a few beads dangling.  No pink pastels.  

A few photos that were in the room where I run my clinics have been moved to the 
bathroom (not because of embarassment, but displacement for even better photos). The 
bathroom has a rich deep red wall that works well with all these photos.  One is a photos 
of a placenta in a steel bucket between a woman's legs.  Describing this, you might think 
it to be a shocking or ugly photo.  It is so subtle and beautiful that you cannot at first 
figure out what is in the bucket.  In the same red bathoom is a fabulous photo of a baby 
about ready to clamp down hard on the underside of mom's nipple.  A beautiful wide 
gaping mouth, but headed straight for the nipple. Even though it makes me cringe in 
anticipatory empathetic pain, it is beautiful.  The lobby has a picture of a man naked to 
the waist with his naked daughter holding her up above his head.  

The "green room" now has its collection of photos recently added.  These are a series of 
birhing photos taking by a mom in the process of giving birth.  She is a photographer and 
got them from a mom's eye view of the process.  A photo of her looking down at her own 
belly in the bathtub while in labor, her hand clenched on the arm of the chair in what 
appears to be her ob or midwife's office, a photo of the "exam" by her ob or midwife, her 
hand supporting herself while she is on what is clearly the hospital bed, the health care 
practitioner examining her belly, all the way through the baby being handed up to her and 
placed on her belly.  You never see the baby crowning because she is took the pictures all 
the way through.

No one has objected to any of these photos.  

At the same time, "Hooter Hiders" (a name I hate) are sold at Realbirth.  Bizarre 
psychodelic throwbacks to the 1960s to hide yourself while breastfeeding. I was prepared 
to hate this addition to the other organic products sold until one of my moms taught me 
an important lesson in different points of view.  This mother HATED feeding at the breast.  
I never really got to the bottom of why, but I was not hired as her shrink.  She LOVED 
pumping.  Her husband really wanted her to breastfeed, but she really hated it.  She 
happily came to support group for a while pumping under the Hooter Hider.  She 
BEAMED.  I really cannot tell you how much this transformed her experience.  In all other 
ways she really responded to her baby.  She regularly came to group, put on the Hooter 
Hider, pumped and bottle fed her baby.  This was an important compromise for her and 
her husband.  

I'm thinking I should take photographs of the "photos" at Realbirth for anyone who wants 
to see how daring one can get with photography!!!!

Best, Susan Burger

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