When two graphic design students from the University of North Texas started working on their college assignment, they probably didn’t think they’d cause global controversy.
 
When asked to design an ad campaign “as if they were working for real clients,” they decided to create an ad supporting an anti-harassment bill to protect breastfeeding mums that is currently being debated in Texas.
 
Their mock campaign featured three ads, all of which showed mums nursing their babies in public toilets. The taglines included ‘Private Dining’ and 'Table for Two,' while the copy for all three ads was as follows:
 
"Would you eat here? By law, breastfeeding mothers are not protected from harassment and refusal of service in public, often forcing them to feed in secluded spaces such as public bathrooms. To help take a stand, visit whennurturcalls.com, because a baby should never be nurtured where nature calls."
 
While the ad is only for a college project, the design students and 21-year-old Monica Young, who posed for one of the pictures, are receiving severe backlash, with critics saying the images encourage public nudity and teen pregnancy.
 
Monica has said this in response:
 
"I am the one pictured here and I have personally been harassed on numerous levels. I've heard more than just "go to the car" and "cover yourself", I get more sexual comments than anything. So yeah it'd be pretty great not to have any nasty comments made while I'm feeding my child, with or without a cover.
 
"My point in participating in this ad wasn't just for the legislation, but to shed light on a problem that most people don't even realize is an actual problem. And just because you've never been harassed while NIP [nursing in public] doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. Nursing your child in a bathroom, car, anywhere but where he mother is comfortable for fear of anything is a problem . . .
 
"Whether I was a too young or not, what does it matter what age I am? Teen moms breastfeed, too. I'm 21, so yeah I'm pretty young, and younger mothers are less likely to breastfeed. So hopefully it will encourage younger mothers to breastfeed, breastfeed in public and to not be ashamed to do any of it. (Plus I think my expression and the colors used in the ads depict how I feel about nursing in a bathroom, but that's just my opinion)"
 
You can read the comments made about the campaign here.

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