Hi Karleen (and others!) 

I keep coming back to this :-) 

You wrote:

And, finally I have personal experience. In early 2021 I was asked to write an article for LLLI’s publication Breastfeeding Today on the importance of mothers and infants to one another in the COVID-19 pandemic. I agreed to do so and wrote this article especially for LLLI. However, after it had been finalised, I was told that I needed to change the language. I was unwilling to do so and as a result, it was not published in Breastfeeding Today (if anyone else wants to publish it, I would be happy for it to be used). This was a most unprecedented experience. I am not a member of LLL, I wrote the article to support LLL and to help mothers, I was quite shocked to be told I could not used sexed language throughout the article and even that an inclusivity statement was not sufficient. To be honest, I thought it was very rude.

To which I replied with: 
----------------What comes into stake here which seems to be the point where things get complicated: the requirement? duty? to use 'a variety of terms' has *LLLI* placed upon *itself*. LLLI being the part of the organisation which is 'board and management', the legal thing so to say. LLL Japan or LLL Australia or LLL France - or their ówn entities with their ówn editorial rules on their ówn website.  
You were asked to write an article for Breastfeeding Today, which is an *LLLI*-publication, placed on the *LLLI*-website. It is logical LLLI uses its own rules for its own website. Were you asked to write an article for Borstvoeding Vandaag (the Dutch magazin) than the editorial rules of the Dutch entity would apply. Were you asked to write an article for whatever magazine or article published on whatever website of whatever LLL-entity around the world, than *their* editorial rules would apply. 

Everybody writing for LLLI is asked to use a *variety of terms*. If you don't want to abide to that, that's okay. It won't be published. It works the other way around too. If somebody writes an articles with genderneutral language, they are álso asked to use a *variety of terms*. If they don't, that's okay. It won't be published on the *LLLI*-website. I know this has happened to Leaders and I have no reason to doubt them.

-------------
Now, as you wrote you thought LLLI has been rude to you, I can't let this go. Although I am not speaking on behalf of LLL(I), I do feel responsibility towards the organisation and I don't like people to feel being treated rudely. I am not involved with Breastfeeding Today on any editorial level, but I do know my way around publications - for LLL and other groups. 

An editor always tries to find articles that might be of interest for its audience. In LLL's case: the breastfeeding parent. During the last two years, things were heavily focussed on Covid, no surprises there I guess. You said you were asked to write an article for Breastfeeding Today and I *assume* you got delivered the guidelines, as that is what is usually done. 

As editors do not wake up with a list of writers in the morning, they usually hop around the internet or their contacts to find someone who could write about a certain subject. 

As your article on 'Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic Response for Breastfeeding, Maternal Caregiving Capacity and Infant Mental Health' was published in August 2020, I *assume* that is the reason you were contacted. You obviously know things :-) This is the article I refer to: 

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0890334420949514

In the abstract of your article, a variety of terms is used: 
Breastfeeding parents are reluctant to seek health care out of fear of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 in medical facilities (Shrestha & Heaton, 2020). In highly affected communities health systems have been and may continue to be overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, constraining access to health care for all other reasons. Food security for formula-dependent infants is a concern. Some settings have experienced shortages of infant formula due to panic buying (Abrams, 2020). Additionally, the broader economic effects of this pandemic have reduced families’ ability to purchase human milk substitutes, where infants are not breastfed (McKibbin & Fernando, 2020). However, where breastfeeding is supported, human milk is a secure food supply. It is unaffected by supply chain issues, does not require payment, and protects infants from diarrhea-associated malnutrition or the inaccessibility of appropriate human milk substitutes (Salmon, 2015; Scherbaum & Srour, 2016).


So I can fully understand the editor of the LLLI magazine to approach you and ask if you could write a likewise article – as using a ‘variety of terms’ is not new to you. 

I am very sorry this did not work out and that you feel you are treated badly. I hope this will never happen again to anyone. 


Lydia de Raad
Volunteer counsellor La Leche League (LLL) Netherlands (Europe)
All opinions expressed in this email are my own





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