How is it possible we are still telling women not to breastfeed in public?

You don’t even need to be ‘woke’ to know that’s at the top of the list of ‘what not to do - ever.’

An Auckland mall manager has had to apologise to a woman who says she was told to stop breastfeeding in public. She says the security guard asked her to move to a parent room instead.

Obviously she wasn’t breastfeeding with her breasts in full view, she says she’d covered up with a blanket. But it didn’t stop a security guard thinking that perhaps the most natural of actions – feeding your baby – would best be done out of sight.

What is so terrifying about a woman breastfeeding? What is it about that that upsets people? Do they think breastfeeding is a disgusting act?

What’s worse in this particular case, is that the security guard here was a woman. A fellow owner of breasts. A grandmother, in fact. She pointed out she personally didn’t have a problem with it, but that other customers did.

So what I want to know is, why wasn’t that security guards time better spent educating the customers who had a problem with it, that this is the most natural act in the world, and that they could get over themselves?

Why, if you personally don’t have an issue with something, are you conveying a message from the 1940’s, to a modern mother doing her best to feed a hungry baby?

Why is she allowing customers who claim to be uncomfortable, to call the shots?  Why should the mother and baby be shunted off to an out of sight nappy room to feed just because a few punters feel 'uncomfortable'.

Have you been in a mall lately? There's so much more going on in malls that may make you feel uncomfortable. Breastfeeding's certainly not one of them.

The mother said she was taken aback, she felt vulnerable and like she’d done something wrong. She did nothing wrong. Feeding a hungry baby, wherever you are, is not wrong.

If you think this very basic of human instinct and behaviour is wrong, then perhaps you shouldn’t be in a mall.

This mum said she wanted to tell her story so as to let other new mums who may be feeling vulnerable in similar situations, know their rights.

It's pretty simple really: no one has the right to tell you not to breastfeed in public. It’s a form of sexual discrimination under the Human Rights Act. You can legally breastfeed at work, at your place of study, in public and in shops and restaurants.

So if you want to breastfeed your baby, do. We should be championing women who breastfeed, not shooshing them away to behind closed doors.