A group of women determined to support a fellow mother who was order to leave a food court in Bendingo Australia staged a sit-in as a show of solidarity last week.
Luci White was nursing her seven-month-old son, Zaydd, in a shopping centre restaurant when she was confronted by indignant onlookers who insisted she stop breastfeeding her child in public.
According to the Bendingo Advertiser, Luci was subjected to a barrage of criticism as her infant son grew increasingly distressed, with an elderly men telling her: "You can’t do it in public. It’s inappropriate."
Having also been confronted by a fellow mother who told her the practice was "rude" while in the presence of children, Luci was ultimately asked to leave by a manager who recommended she use the "breastfeeding room" which is provided by the shopping mall.
Speaking out about the incident on a local mothers group, Luci questioned whether a screaming, hungry infant was preferable to a content, feeding child in a move which garnered considerable support online.
Organising a protest entitled Boobs for Babies, a group of breastfeeding mothers gathered at the Bendingo Marketplace and exercised their right to feed their children free from the judgement or indeed harrassment of others.
Commenting on the response to Lucy's experience last week, a spokesperson for the marketplace issued a statement, saying: "We regret that a member of our community experienced any discomfort or embarrassment while shopping with us and we apologise to the mother concerned."
