The catch phrase "Women have a right to breastfeed anywhere they have a
right to be" is accurate only insofar as we all have a right to do
anything that is not specifically forbidden by the law.  The one case
finding a such a constitutional right is for one jurisdiction and is not
binding on every state.  So I have always thought it was a bit
misleading for LLL and others to tell people their rights as if it were
sound legal advice.

The wording of the particular state statute, if there is one, is very
important.  Many of them do only apply to public places.  However,
generally, a public accommodation, like a restaurant, is a public
place.  But if the statute merely altered the "indecent exposure"
statute to exclude breastfeeding, that means only that the mom can not
be arrested for indecent exposure if the restaurant owner calls the
police.  It doesn't mean that the restaurant owner can't boot her out
under the fairly wide authority the owner of a public accommodation has
to choose who he serves.

Is breastfeeding in public illegal?  No.  Can you usually do much about
it if you are harassed?  No.  Are there states (New York for instance)
in which you can totally kick butt if someone bothers you?  Yes, but you
need to know whether you live in one of those states.

I can't recall if the original post writer included the state or I could
look up the statute.

Jake Marcus, lawyer with a very long history of public breastfeeding

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