Cover Causes Controversy

[Jimmy Choo]

Originally Posted by Scandia

Why is it against the law to tell people about the nursing lounge?

It could be interpreted as not allowing a mom to feed in public. So to protect the mom's right to feed and to ensure businesses don't do something that could get them sued, you can not offer the room unless you are asked.

[Scandia]

But it can be shown as an option, not a requirement.

Also, in some establishments, it is harder to nurse in the public area. Say, Wal-Mart or Target may not really have seats where you can comfortably sit down and nurse a baby in peace.

I have seen women do it in audiences at a library program. They did it so discretely that at first I could not tell- especially when the lights were dimmed.

[Jimmy Choo]

Originally Posted by Scandia

But it can be shown as an option, not a requirement.

Also, in some establishments, it is harder to nurse in the public area. Say, Wal-Mart or Target may not really have seats where you can comfortably sit down and nurse a baby in peace.

Even showing it as an option can be offense to some people. The only reason that I know about this at all comes from personally experience. Once I offered our lounge to a mother. She was thrilled that we had one and I thought everything was fine. My boss overheard and was livid with me. That was when I found out it was law b/c by offering that to someone who did ask for it it can be perceived that I am denying her her public right to breastfeed. While I may not personally agree with that law I have to abide by it. I do see the reasoning and logic behind it. Just b/c I asked the lady "Would you like to use our lounge so you can sit down?" another establishment with less tact could say "We have a lounge and a highly recommend you go use." While both are offers, one clearly is not an "offer" if you catch my drift. In the example I gave the woman could have turned around and fussed at me thinking I was trying to publicly shun her. I got lucky.

[Taualumna]

Originally Posted by ecupidelta

It could be interpreted as not allowing a mom to feed in public. So to protect the mom's right to feed and to ensure businesses don't do something that could get them sued, you can not offer the room unless you are asked.

What about a no (outside) food/drink policy? It works well for non-babies. Seriously though, I think moms should lighten up. If you (as an adult) don't eat everywhere, then neither should a baby. Besides, some believe that it isn't proper to eat anywhere other than in proper dining places.

When I was a baby, my mother was asked to feed me outside of the restaurant because she brought in outside food. She was a tad upset, but she didn't speak with management or anything like that.

[preciousjeni]

Originally Posted by Taualumna

What about a no (outside) food/drink policy? It works well for non-babies. Seriously though, I think moms should lighten up. If you (as an adult) don't eat everywhere, then neither should a baby. Besides, some believe that it isn't proper to eat anywhere other than in proper dining places.

When I was a baby, my mother was asked to feed me outside of the restaurant because she brought in outside food. She was a tad upset, but she didn't speak with management or anything like that.

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by Taualumna

What about a no (outside) food/drink policy? It works well for non-babies. Seriously though, I think moms should lighten up. If you (as an adult) don't eat everywhere, then neither should a baby. Besides, some believe that it isn't proper to eat anywhere other than in proper dining places.

When I was a baby, my mother was asked to feed me outside of the restaurant because she brought in outside food. She was a tad upset, but she didn't speak with management or anything like that.

Hi...you're a grown woman, and if you don't eat you might get cranky (more then ususal), but you don't scream and cry (well, maybe you do, I don't know). Babies do. They're not adults for a reason (even if they may be taller then you). Babies don't care about proper, and they don't care where you are. They just know they're hungry, and are going to scream until that is fixed. A newborn can eat every 1-2 hours, and life doesn't stop because you have a baby.

[Taualumna]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

Hi...you're a grown woman, and if you don't eat you might get cranky (more then ususal), but you don't scream and cry (well, maybe you do, I don't know). Babies do. They're not adults for a reason (even if they may be taller then you). Babies don't care about proper, and they don't care where you are. They just know they're hungry, and are going to scream until that is fixed. A newborn can eat every 1-2 hours, and life doesn't stop because you have a baby.

No, it's more like people today are more likely to get upset AND do something about that situation if they aren't allowed to do something. My mother was upset because she wasn't allowed to bring baby food into a restaurant, but she promptly took me out and fed me elsewhere. We didn't go back to that place until I was old enough to eat "grown up" food. Maybe people back in the 80s were less sensitive.