If you read my blog regularly (thanks!), you're probably aware of my frustration with Hanna Rosin's article for the the Atlantic, "The Case Against Breastfeeding".All over the internet, there have been intelligent, articulate responses from SAHMs, working mamas, lactivists, feminists, and combinations of the above.
As you may remember, Rosin argues that the health benefits of breastfeeding are grossly overstated. But she doesn't make the obvious argument: that formula is wholesome and healthy. Because she can't. She also seems to think that the act of feeding our children with our bodies, that most natural act, hold us back from true equality. In my response to Rosin, I pointed out the "equal" does not mean "the same".
However, this silly, self-denying woman has a gigantic megaphone. Her argument was not only published online and in the April 2009 issue of the Atlantic, it was also posted on MSNBC, followed by a trip to the Today show.
And here I am on my cardboard soapbox.
I want her to have to respond to the criticism and the educated, well-researched articles that have arisen in response. Especially considering the infant formula industry needs no more lobbyists, thank you very much!
But breastfeeding, especially for mothers who work outside the home, needs all the help it can get. With the current lack of paid maternity or paternity leave and piecemeal state laws on breastfeeding, families must work twice as hard here in the U.S. than in other developed countries to make sure our babies are fed and nurtured properly.
Instead of focusing on the so-called "problems" with breastfeeding, perhaps Rosin could have used her soapbox to demand more attention to the inequality that parents face. Perhaps she could have called on the corporate world to be more family-friendly and allow more parents to bring their infants to work. You know, for all those breastfeeding babies who grow up to become corporate execs and policy makers themselves.
I know I'm not alone here. Especially considering the wonderful responses I received after my "Preemptive Attack on Breastfeeding" blog.
Take Action!
But now we can all act together and maybe take over that megaphone for a while. The United States Breastfeeding Committee sent a letter to the editor of the Atlantic signed by members and lactivist groups.
Now, they also help you write your own. Choose from some popular talking points, or write it yourself, as I did. I linked to my blog response to Rosin, and I encourage you to post a link to either my blog or to another favorite response to "The Case Against Breastfeeding".
Let's show them what the rational breastfeeders (and formula-feeders!) of the world believe. Start right here.
And thank you, my dears!
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