Ah, New Hampshire. "Live free or die." If you breast feed in public, your freedom is dead.

When in doubt.........whip em out!

I am 100% all for breast feeding, however I do believe in public using a cover up while feeding is appropriate. I breasted my daughter, now age 7, and always had my cover up with me, and never had a problem feeding her wherever I went.

Really? Breast feeding is probably one of the most natural things on this planet for mothers and babies. Protesting? Really? Sheesh.

I have no issue it's a natural thing. There are alternatives like pumping and bringing bottles, but if a lady is covered up and not attracting attention what's the harm?

I nursed all three of my kids, but I also appreciate it when nursing women are discreet in public. It's a simple way to be considerate (particularly when you're in close quarters like a restaurant) while still meeting the baby's needs. "Dinner and a show" should just mean a meal out and a trip to the movies ;-)

There is absolutely nothing wrong with breastfeeding in public. There is nothing more natural. And, when a baby is hungry, they need to eat! The same people who complain about public breastfeeding would probably be the first to complain if the baby started to cry/fuss out of hunger. Some people just like to complain.

I breastfed both of my children in all sorts of places and never had a problem at all. I used a nursing cover sometimes, but often I didn't. My kids were distracted by and bothered by blankets and covers and they were able to nurse more quickly and calmly without a cover. I did try to wear clothes that allowed me to nurse easily and discreetly. And, often moved myself off to a slighly more private location. But, I'm sure people caught a glimpse of a boob now and then! Who cares! We all have them.

One thing though about the article, you need to edit one sentence. The restaurant asked her to cover up following customer complaints. The request was not "followed by" complaints.

I covered up when nursing in public, usually. Or I would find a discreet spot, like a changing room in a store. But I have absolutely no problem with women who don't cover up. I know some babies freak out if you put a cover over them. The baby's head covers the breast anyway. I see women nursing in public often now. Once you've done it, you can spot it, where I never did before had kids. It is normal and not a big deal at all.

I think it's insulting that this question is even asked. Of course mothers should be able to do this when, where and how they want.

I was at the Hibernia Pub in Easton the other day and a mother changed a diaper on the seat next to her. The only good thing about that was that the soiled diaper smelled better than Hibernia's food.

I never covered up when I nursed my children (all 3 of them). A blanket or cover us never worked for me, not to mention it might as well be a blinking neon light telling everyone that I am nursing my child. I have nursed in resturants, playgrounds, parking lots, stores, you name it. I have had several people come up to me thinking my baby was sleeping while he / she was nursing. I believe a baby has a right to eat when they are hungry and a parent has the right to feed their baby even if someone might accidently see some breast.

Who cares!? People need to simmer down. It's not like she was going topless.

Oh my God...When will people stop even debating about breast feeding. The breast is just anoth part of the body and has a function. Good for all Moms that either breast feed or cover up. It's up to the Mom. I bet most of those that complain were probably breast fed in various places without any fanfare. It's natural and that's what right about it.

I breastfed my son until he was 19 months old. I was doing what has been PROVEN to be enormously beneficial to children. Though when he got that old I was only nursing him before bed, but when he was younger, I fed him wherever and however I could. Even without a cover-up. The fact that people have a problem with it, well, the problem is theirs.And it is absurd.

And the protesters were standing up FOR the mother in this article. They were protesting the restaurant for asking her to cover up. That makes more sense. :)

Do what you need to do to nourish another fellow human being ! I am so sick of this madonna/whore comlex dichotomy Americans have about women. In Europe and other cultures there is not this twisted dichotomy.
God Bless mothers!
K. B. A nurse and a mother

I can remember this topic of conversation being debated on late night TV a short time ago when one of the debaters stood up and yelled..."Masturbation is totally natural....but one refrains from doing it in public....passing gas is totally natural, but one refrains..or attempts to refrain from doing it in public!!!" Unfortunately we live in a society where there are alot of sikos and perverts who don't see it as "Something Natural" Personally, I'm not offended by it but with all due respect to all the woman here who do breast feed, maybe when you're going out it would be best to pump and use a bottle, rather than whipping a boob out to prove a point. I recently did see several folks who were offended by it and 3 of them walked over, sat down next to the woman and just stared until she just stopped. Different strokes for different folks I reckon. BTW, IMO Changing a child's soiled diaper at a public dinner table is gross and offensive. That's where I draw the line. If there is no changing facility in the restroom, try the car. I predict that there will be legislation on the public breastfeeding topic in the not to distant future if both side decide to push the issue.

I breastfed my children and most of my friends did as well. I never had an issue in public. I was able to do it discreetly with or without the need of a cover/towel/blanket and could feed them anywhere imaginable....many, many times in restaurants. It is not hard to be discreet and the more practice you get the easier it is. With that said, I have seen women who just can't seem to be discreet, or maybe they just don't care to be, and are literally bare chested....(for instance; wearing a strapless top and pulling down a side!) Even then, she could have hiked it up and it would have looked better!
So, even though I do believe moms should try to be discreet, it's an all or nothing law...you can't start putting limitations on the type of attire or how much skin you are allowed to show. Breastfeeding is necessary, and if you don't like it, don't look. I just find it ridiculous that people complain about breastfeeding in public when it's perfectly fine for men and women of all sizes to wear the skimpiest of bathing suits on the beach or in beach restaurants! yikes! And as for the changing a diaper in the restaurant, whoa! That's disgusting! That is why there are restrooms and backseats of cars!! (**btw: if 3 people had the gall to come over to stare at me while breastfeeding, they would have barked up the wrong tree...no telling what I would have done or said!! wow! so rude.)

I have no problem with women breast feeding, I just feel if they want respect from people then they also need to respect others around them. If you are discreet about it and respectful then by all means have at it. I did work in the restaurant business in the past and for the most part women would come in and let us know that they would need to feed their child, so they would ask for a booth in the back of the restaurant so they were not a distraction to others or they would ask us if we had an area that was not being used for customers so they could use it. I understand some people are freaked out about it but come on it is all a part of life and you should be use to it.

I breast fed in public all of the time when I nursed both of my children, but I made sure to cover up. My goods are mine (and for that time my chldren's!) I didn't want anybody else getting free sneak peeks without at least buying me dinner first! JK! I didn't cover up for the sake of respecting others, I covered up to protect my privacy.

I breastfed both of my children and I also have worked in restaurants for years. There is a difference between feeding your child and putting on a show. I have seen mothers purposely whip them out for all to see in the name of breastfeeding. That is just plain wrong. And from what I have seen about this story this woman was very visible in what she was doing. People are going out to enjoy themselves and many people feel uncomfortable seeing a womans bare breast. Use a cover up for goodness sake and there will be no problems.

I think women should be able to be breastfeed in public. It would be more appropriate to use a little discretion on covering up, but when the baby is hungry it's a basic need to survive. Leave the women that want to breastfeed alone. As others have said, for other countries this isn't a problem. America has more freedom than most countries, what's the problem with breastfeeding.

@Sarah..... Sarah..your making my point!! The operative word is "discreetly!" I totally disagree with you in regards to my interpretation of "Proving a point." The women here who mention "Covering up" are NOT the ones I refer to here. I know many a woman who breastfeed and agree that there are some folks out there who find public breastfeeding offensive. If one can't respect their point of view how do you expect them to respect your point of view? Why can't a nursing mother take the time to feed their child prior to going into the restaurant or any public place? Why can't the breastfeeding mother find a secluded place to breastfeed their child if some folks find it offensive? Why is it necessary to breastfeed a child in public? Just because someone claims this to be "Natural" doesn't make it appropriate for public viewing!! In regards to keeping the breast milk fresh...We have coolers with icepacks just like any other beverage of your choice. For every debate regarding public breastfeeding, there is a counter debate and comeback! As mentioned, it's all about respecting everyones point of view. Again What is "Natural to one might be offensive to others!!!

@edna Just a bit off topic because I saw this situation a week or 2 ago. Crying babies in a restaurant when the parents can't control them. Two New mothers walked over to the table of the crying baby and said to the parent..and I quote.. "We left our children at home to get AWAY from this." The question is...is suckling a child the way to quiet a child in public as not to upset the others sitting around them?
If you look further into the several replies I posted, I'm NOT against public breastfeeding atol, I'm against women who aren't discreet about it, bare breast feed and hide behind "Legislation" that allows them to do such. I get a kick out of the little kids who yell out "Look mommy that lady is booby feeding"..lol.
Discretion is the better part of valor. As mentioned, if one chooses to breastfeed in public, expect to be stared at just like when famous people go out in public, expect paparazzi! LOL

The thing is, sometimes it is not a choice. The thing about babies is that they dont eat when they are not hungry- so timing is impossible. I would pump and have a bottle on hand sometimes, but when a baby IS hungry even after the bottle is gone, you have to feed him. In my own personal experiences, you are as discreet as you can be. My son hated being covered up, he would kick and wriggle the cover- up off as an infant. Oh well.
I have also left to nurse my baby in the car if we were out. Usually then you will be running the air conditioning or heat and sitting in the parking lot. Wicked awesome, especially when the ac is on the fritz.
Fundamentally, why should a tired nursing mom have to run around and try to hide something that is unavoidable, and unpredictable.
Nursing moms could stay home I guess. But, Daddies and Husbands, do you want to see how sane your wife will be without getting out for dinner once in a while to speak to a grown- up or two? :)

Rebecca is right about timing. I have seen mothers nurse their babies in public areas and most of them are very discreet when they do nurse. Those NH people should be pro-nursing in public.

PS: Do these same people exhibit excellent table manners themseives?

Oh my! Look how many opinions on how women nourish their babies are actually written by men!

It might prove an interesting exercise to try to separate sex and childcare in one's mind, whatever our gender.

This shouldn't even be a point of discussion! Women should be free to breast-feed their children whenever/wherever they need to. If they want/can cover up fine if not that is fine too. Americans, especially in the Northeast are sickeningly uptight Puritans about "what others should do" but look around at how people dress nowadays. I hope those that want to ban/restrict it (I'm sure that Sharon will do this) also have all their women covered from the neck to the toes at all time in public!

I don't know how others feel but I enjoyed reading the patch when it was just local news. I don't see the point of all these polls.

Both sides should resprct one another, plain and simple. Descretion when feeding in public would be the proper thing. If a woman chooses not to cover up in public, my best guess is she is expecting a "reaction" from those who may be around her. You know, like "its my First Ammendent right" to express myself as I wish. Me, personally, I wouldn't give this self centered person any kind of reaction. It may be a "natural" thing to do, but, a lack of common sense prevails here. It's not about feeding the child. It's all about the person doing the feeding.

You should be able to breast feed your child where ever and whenever your child is hungry and needs to. Its sad to see how so many "men" frown upon it. They are the ones that have sexualised the breast. It 'is' natural and made for the baby to feed from. Do we need to cover up animals feeding their children? Should you hide your mouth when you chew at a restaurant?

....and some "women" are just Dense and have tunnel vision totally NOT caring about anyones opinions and viewpoints but there own. I'd suggest reading the entire debate through from post number one before posting such selfishness.

This is about feeding a baby Todd, grow up.

Sorry Todd, but, no. It really is about feeding a baby.

I breast feed my son for 3 years. I think it's ok as long as you cover up. I had one of those cover things. Sometimes my (easy to embarrass) husband didn't like it but by then he realized, give the boy some milk so he'd stop crying. I was always discreet. sometimes i would go to a bathroom, a mothers room or just out to my car.

This is great that people are talking about breastfeeding. I feel that even negative publicity is good publicity. And breastfeeding needs as much publicity as it can, good or bad. Because then it gets people thinking. If more people see women nurse their babies in public, then it will become the norm, and not some shocking behavior to witness. I breastfed my children for over 2 years each. Once an infant gets big enough that you cannot do it discreetly anymore (they are moving their head around, too big to hide under a shirt, etc...), then the baby is usually eating solid foods, drinking from a sippy cup and does not need to nurse as often and as urgently. So, if one goes out to dinner with that baby a mom can just time her nursing sessions around it. This is such a non-issue. I think the only time someone ever even knew I was nursing my baby was at the airport, a woman was walking by me a couple of times to try to figure out what I was doing. She wanted to actually confirm I was indeed breastfeeding so she could give me dirty looks, classic. And hey, why can men walk around outside without their shirts on but if a woman is nursing a hungry infant, that's offensive and shocking?

Television makes breastfeeding a big joke as well. In an episode of Two and Half Men, a woman was breastfeeding her infant in a coffee shop with her tank top pulled down. Now who does that? Nobody does! In an episode of Nurse Jackie, an alcoholic woman was drinking vodka in the restroom and then went into the waiting area to nurse her infant. Nurse Jackie came to the rescue and told the woman to give the baby formula. That would never happen as alcohol dehydrates you so milk supply would be reduced..... and what falling down drunk would breastfeed their baby? Seriously. There is so much misinformation on television and even from medical professionals. In the last few thousand years of humanity, breastfeeding used to be what the poor and middle class did. The rich had wet nurses. When formula was introduced and Dr.'s encouraged women to purchase and feed infants formula, (getting kickbacks from the formula companies of course) it became the rich women's choice. Now, the tables seemed to have turned again as financially stable and educated women are nursing their infants while many others cannot due to lack of family support, education and/or they have to work.

Talking about offensive, why don't we discuss teenage girls walking around with "Juicy" stamped on their behind, or teenage boys with their pants falling off showing their underwear, or how about the morbidly obese people I have to look at on a daily basis? What about half naked women on television, or the half naked, half starved women in advertisements, the current risque dialog on television today. Let's not even begin to talk about the violence. Hey, I have an idea, maybe if people just got over it, the epidemic of a few generations of children having all these ridiculous allergies will cease. During infancy, our immune systems are developing for life and what you feed your baby can help shape it.