In the ongoing fight for reproductive justice, it is important to remember that choice is an empty promise without clear and meaningful access to those personal choices.
In honor of Breastfeeding Awareness Month, let’s consider how the law protects the right to breastfeed, and where there is still room to grow.
Parents have a variety of ways of managing lactation and feeding infants. Some breastfeed their babies, some chestfeed with or without feeding tubes, some use manual or electric pumps to store milk that can later be bottle-fed, some exclusively bottle feed with formula, and many people use a combination of methods. What’s best for both parent and child at any given moment often varies depending on time, place, and circumstance – which is why the right to nurse, pump, or otherwise feed one’s baby must be protected and inclusive of all parents1 and their choices.
Approximately 3 million2 Americans every year will breastfeed or attempt to breastfeed their babies. This is a right that touches many people's lives, every day.
In a country without universal paid family leave, the right to breastfeed and pump at work is critical in protecting working parents’ right to economic security and advancing racial equity. Unfortunately, low-wage jobs often have some of the weakest workplace policies on lactation access and time off post-partum. This means low-income workers, a disproportionate amount of which are people of color, are hit hardest by the competing demands of their jobs and their families when it comes to breastfeeding and pumping. No one should have to choose between the well-being of their baby and the economic stability of their family.
No one should have to choose between the well-being of their baby and the economic stability of their family.
Normalizing lactation by increasing workplace access also fights against gender stereotypes and inequities. Women are the primary or sole breadwinner in close to half of all households, and they often face the “motherhood penalty” after having kids—suffering declines in their careers and economic advancement. Creating systems in the workplace that support mothers during their lactation period means they won’t have to choose between returning to work and continuing to breastfeed comfortably.
The ability to express milk in public spaces is important for non-working parents as well. The need to fully participate in society and perform daily responsibilities outside the home continues after a child is born. Non-working parents still go out, run errands, visit friends and family, engage in hobbies, and numerous other activities in their communities, all while lactating. It's critical that the right to breastfeed includes the right to pump in public, giving parents flexibility and agency (and alleviating physical discomfort) during lactation, even when they cannot physically be with their child at every feeding session.
The ACLU of Delaware advocates for breastfeeding access at work, in schools, and in public because it is a civil right, and an important step in the fight for gender and reproductive justice.
Know Your Rights: Breastfeeding
