I have just received communication from a mom who was hasseled for nursing in public.  But wait 'till you hear where.  At a Renaissance Faire!  Have you seen the outfits women wear there?  Lift 'em up, push 'em out and show as much skin as possible.  In addition, a variety of items may be tucked in her cleavage such as flowers, frozen bottles (not a bad idea-it really helps cool off on a hot day) and small stuffed animals-one has a small mouse that she calls her "titmouse".  :>)
Last weekend a mom who for the most part had been nursing her baby in a sling, but when it became too hot she took her baby out of the sling to nurse.  A guard approached her and told her she should "do that" in the mother's area.  "After all, this is a family event"!  The guard was apparantly acting on orders from the owner, (with whom many people have had other issues in the past).  Other management was supportive and gave her family refunds, but she wished instead she had gotten an apology from "the top" instead.  While she was self confident and assertive, we wonder about how many other mothers have been criticized who have meekly left or hidden.  I have seen a number of moms nurse and have yet to hear a negative comment myself and I have been a regular for many years.
The other irony is, just how do they think babies were fed in the late 1500's?  This Faire tires to pride themselves on their degree of authenticity - right!  Personally, I think that anyone seen giving a bottle while in garb (costume) should be asked to disguise it since it is not "period".
I was not there when this happened as I was at the ILCA Conference, but you can bet I will let management know how I feel about their treatment of this (and other?) moms.  This coming weekend, instead of wearing garb, I plan to wear my t-shirt that says "How do you save a million babies?" on the front and in big, bold letters on the back says BREASTFEED.

Winnie

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