Breastfeeding in Public: Much Ado About Something

Breastfeeding has been in the news a lot lately. What's making the news is not information about the health benefits or tips and tricks for new breastfeeding moms -- the headlines are all about breastfeeding in public. It generally reads something like this: Mom breastfeeds in local store/restaurant/church. Mom told to cover up or leave. Several moms respond with nurse in. And then there are celebrity breastfeeding sightings that make headlines -- just yesterday, it was reported that Beyonce was seen with her new baby girl, Blue Ivy, breastfeeding in public at a cafe in New York city.

So, why the excitement? Why has breastfeeding in public become such a hot button? Advocates assert that making a big deal out of breastfeeding in public helps to normalize a normal way of feeding babies -- that it takes away the taboo. Yet others insist that calling excess attention to breastfeeding in public only heightens the controversy, turning something that is normal into a media spectacle.

Regardless of your views on breastfeeding in public, what it comes down to is basic human rights. Mothers have a right to feed their children; babies have a right to eat. And, women have a right to feed their babies -- bottle or breast -- where and when they need it.

Weigh in: What do you think about the media's focus on breastfeeding in public -- does it help or hurt the issue? Have you participated in a nurse in? Have you experienced discrimination for breastfeeding in public?

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