Sustainable Mothering » Breastfeeding and the Law

Goodbye Mothering Magazine

Jake — Thu, 19 May 2011 20:23:16 +0000

I first saw Mothering magazine in the waiting room of my midwife in 1996. I didn't read parenting magazines but this one was clearly written for me. Breastfeeding, co-sleeping, baby-wearing, anti-circumcision, suspicious of the vaccine schedule. I didn't come to parenting with more than a desire to breastfeed and an academic understanding of attachment theory. [...]

Will Nebraska Finally Get A Public Breastfeeding Law? Will it Matter?

Jake — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:00:58 +0000

Only three U.S. states have no public breastfeeding law – West Virginia, Idaho and Nebraska. Unfortunately the majority of state public breastfeeding laws don't do a particularly good job of stopping harassment of women who breastfeed in public (this is where I tell you again to go read my feature in Mothering magazine called Lactation [...]

“The Talk” on Breastfeeding and The New Federal Workplace Pumping Law

Jake — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 14:00:03 +0000

The latest "sorta famous women sitting in a semi-circle talking about things they know little about" daytime show is called "The Talk." You probably know lots more about it then I do. It looks like "The View" which I have seen only in clips – the clips that arrive couched in "can you believe [insert [...]

Tennessee Legislature Considering Eliminating 12 Month Limitation in Public Breastfeeding Law

Jake — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 18:18:28 +0000

Since its passage in 2006, Tennessee's public breastfeeding law has been trouble. It reads:

68-58-101. Right to breastfeed in any location. —

A mother has a right to breastfeed her child who is twelve (12) months of age or younger in any location, public or private, where the mother and child are otherwise authorized to be present.

The [...]

West Virginia’s Pending Breastfeeding Bills: I Have Good News and I Have Bad News

Jake — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 14:00:57 +0000

West Virginia is one of only three U.S. states (along with Nebraska and Idaho) that has no law whatsoever protecting breastfeeding. So I was glad to read that this month not one but two bills were introduced in the West Virginia Senate concerning breastfeeding.

Unfortunately, one of the bills could result in a law that helps [...]

Stacey Armato Responds To The TSA Post On Her Breast Milk Detention

Jake — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 14:00:38 +0000

Stacey Armato, the mom who was detained by the TSA when she requested that her pumped breast milk be given an "alternate" screening, agreed to an interview with me to answer some questions that might be lingering since the TSA posted its statement on her case.

Q. In any earlier interview you said you hadn't received [...]

The TSA Responds To Breast Milk Mom, Stacey Armato

Jake — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 22:58:15 +0000

[UPDATE: After the original publication of this blog post, the following went up on The TSA Blog: "Updated on 12/9/2010 at 8:25 P.M. to add that proper procedures were followed." Oh, really? ] Over at The TSA Blog, they have posted TSA Response to "TSA Breast Milk Screening" Video. It is quite short but has already [...]

Breast Milk Mom Prepares to Sue the TSA Over Detention

Jake — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 00:00:37 +0000

Stacey Armato, the mother who was detained by TSA agents in Phoenix last February when she asked for "alternate" screening for her pumped breast milk, has filed a TSA Tort Claim Package, the last step before she can file a lawsuit against the government employees who she claims detained her in retaliation for filing a [...]

Just When You Thought it Was Safe to Travel with Breast Milk: The TSA Targets Mothers

Jake — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 23:45:48 +0000

When attorney Stacey Armato arrived at the TSA inspection at her usual gate at Phoenix International Airport for her weekly return flight home to Los Angeles on February 1st, she felt a bit of trepidation. The week before she had been held for 40 minutes while TSA staff researched whether she had a right to [...]

Breastfeeding and the Law in New York – Another News Report that Misses the Point

Jake — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 11:06:12 +0000

Last year Julia Acevedo-Taylor claimed she was rudely asked to leave a Manhattan chocolate shop because she was breastfeeding her five month old. Last month, she filed a lawsuit against the shop. I'll be following that case – the first suit filed under the 1994 New York State public breastfeeding law – but watching a [...]