Paris: Protesting nursing mothers breastfeed in public (Nigerian Tribune)

ONE hundred young mothers gathered to breastfeed their babies in central Paris on Sunday afternoon to campaign against the taboo on nursing in public in France.


“There are lots of prejudices against breastfeeding, especially in professional environments,” said Marie-France Astoin, co-ordinator for the Big Breastfeed demonstration outside Paris’s Sainte Eustache church, one of several taking place simultaneously in France’s major cities.


Astoin decried France’s level of breastfeeding, which at around 50%, is the lowest in Europe. During the World Health Organisation’s International Breastfeeding Week, the UN body and partner organisations are trying to promote mother’s milk as a newborn’s best defence against diarrhoea and respiratory infection.


“It’s not at all a new feminist fight,” said Monica, mother of Raphael. “Nothing beats a mother’s milk, it’s natural, so why give something artificial in its place?” Nearby, a young father ambled past wearing a placard marked “breast is best”.




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