Quote From: badtripI do think I'm a good mother. Your comparison of nursing to giving birth in a parking lot IS ridiculous. Have fun looking at your boobies. By the way, you chose not to answer the question I asked. Do you think nursing moms should be shunned by society?
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BREASTFEEDING LEGISLATION: AN OVERVIEW
In the United States, breastfeeding legislation has been enacted nearly one-third of the states over the past six years, and many more states have pending bills. This article gives some pointers on enacting legislation.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO BREASTFEED
In looking at legislation, first look at the language of the case of Dike v. Orange County School Board, 650 F.2d 783 (5th Cir., 1981) . This case sets forth that mothers have a constitutional right to breastfeed. In that case, a teacher wanted to nurse her baby on her duty free lunch break. The school claimed that insurance provisions prohibited teachers from bringing their children onto school property, and also prohibited teachers from leaving the school grounds during the day. The trial court ruled that the mother had no right to breastfeed. In Dike, the appeals court reversed the case and remanded it for a new trial, stating that breastfeeding is a protected constitutional right. "Breastfeeding is the most elemental form of parental care. It is a communion between mother and child that, like marriage, is "intimate to the degree of being sacred," Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. at 486, 85 S. Ct. at 1682, 14 L. Ed. 2d at 516. Nourishment is necessary to maintain the child's life, and the parent may choose to believe that breastfeeding will enhance the child's psychological as well as physical health. In light of the spectrum of interests that the Supreme Court has held specially protected we conclude that the Constitution protects from excessive state interference a woman's decision respecting breastfeeding her child." 650 F.2d at 787
Constitutional rights are not absolute, and often collide with legitimate, recognized interests. Sometimes the courts must balance individual rights with state interests. In the Dike case, the trial court determined that the state had a legitimate interest in restricting the teacher's comings and goings because of certain school policies . Although the appellate court ruled that mothers have a constitutional right to breastfeed, Mrs. Dike did not have the right to leave school to go home and nurse her baby, or to bring her baby on to school grounds. Keep in mind that this constitutional right may not apply to a mother who is breastfeeding in a private location, such as a store or restaurant. And although there are some other legal theories upon which the right to breastfeed can be based (discrimination laws, equal protection, etc.), breastfeeding legislation is the best way to clarify the right that women have - to feed their babies where they do.
RESTRICTIONS ON THE RIGHT TO BREASTFEED
Can states restrict the right to breastfeed? We think not! Women have a constitutional right to breastfeed, and no one has the right to discriminate or segregate against breastfeeding mothers. However, some states initially considered limiting a mother's right to breastfeed, while considering legislation that would clarify a mother's right to breastfeed in public. For instance, New Jersey's Assembly initially passed an amendment to their bill that would allow mothers to breastfeed in public only if there was no designated area for them to go. This amendment was rejected by the NJ Senate, and caused quite an outcry from the public and press. This is why the City of Philadelphia enacted an Ordinance that not only prohibited discriminating against breastfeeding mothers, but expressly prohibited segregating breastfeeding mothers. (Amending Section 9-1105 of the Fair Practices Code, 1996). They felt strongly that it is segregation to tell a mother that she has to go to a certain place or area to breastfeed. Some other states considered requiring a mother to breastfeed discreetly. However, this legislation restricts the right mothers already have, and would impose an arbitrary and subjective standard on breastfeeding. The purpose of legislation is to clarify the mother's right, in the hopes that it will increase the incidence and duration of breastfeeding. Restrictions would defeat the entire purpose of breastfeeding legislation, and could deter a mother from making this healthy choice! "
Source, http://www.lalecheleague.org/Law/LawEnact.html you can go to the website and look up laws in your state as well.
Here is a link to references about breastfeeding in the Bible.
http://www.texas-midwife.com/breastfeeding.htm#metaphor
"...breastfeeding was a fact of life in Bible times. It was so common to the culture of the Bible lands that the image of a nursing mother influenced even idiomatic expressions and figures of speech. In fact, I'll take that conclusion one step further. Breastfeeding was an everyday, common occurrence in Biblical times because it is God's design for nourishing an infant. He who created mankind as male and female designed them to procreate (Genesis 1:27-28). And in order to nourish and nurture the children born from the union of man and woman, our Creator designed the female anatomy for breastfeeding an infant. As the patriarch Jacob put it in Genesis 49:25, it is "the Almighty who blesses [us with...the blessings of the breasts and of the womb." the giving birth in public comment was a joke... i see that obviously flew over your head, b/c you take everything way to seriously.b/c your showing me legislatures, that im not going to read. i did answer you question,maybe you should read it again, but since i see you have a habit of missing things, ill say it again. its simply my opinion. im not going to tell a woman to go somewhere else and feed her baby. i personally dont like to see it, thats all, i figured that woman would want to know another perspective. As far as the bible... again... if you read what i wrote before, i said where in the bible it says to breastfeed in public?, not in general. obviously some woman need to breast feed. .. i dont think its indecent and yes, you are a very informative mother at that, so if you child makes a comment that you feel is wrong, do you belittle them and hand them a bunch of information to try prove them that your right, too? or do you just do that to strangers?
Dr. Phil and his guests strike up heated conversations as they debate the latest hot topics. Should women give up their right to breastfeed their babies in public so other people don't feel uncomfortable? Will passing out condoms in schools prevent unwanted pregnancies or just send the message to kids that it's OK to have sex? And, is it acceptable for others to discipline your kids if they see them acting out in public, or should they just mind their own business? Dr. Phil weighs in on these controversial subjects. Share your thoughts, join the discussion.
