First-time mom Izabele Lomax was scrolling a breastfeeding support group on Facebook when she saw an angry post from a fellow nursing mom. It was a screenshot of yet another post where a nursing mom was being shamed for feeding her child in public. The poster in Lomax’s group was aghast that someone had secretly filmed a mom feeding her baby and then ranted about how she needed to cover up. Lomax heartily agreed that this was a terrible thing to do to a nursing mom…but as she zoomed in closer, she realized the breastfeeding mom was HER. She was the one who had been secretly filmed, and she was the one who had been shamed.
Here are the words Lomax saw written about herself, along with a video of her nursing her child at the beach:
“I’m not shaming woman who breast feed their babies. I’m shaming the woman who breast feed in public with no respect to cover themselves up and just let their boobs hangout (nipple included) for everyone to see! COVER TF UP!!! I shouldn’t have to cover my sons eyes and explain why your boobs are out and quite frankly I don’t want to see it either. Have some respect!”
As a mom who nursed, and as a woman in general, I am shocked that a woman would write this about another woman who is just feeding her baby! Breastfeeding is not sexual, and Lomax wasn’t putting on a show. The poster’s attitude is frankly ridiculous.
Lomax was also shocked at the Facebook post and the author’s harsh words. She had been at the beach with her family, nursing her 9-week-old son Baker, and hadn’t noticed anyone watching.
“We were in our own little area and I didn’t notice anyone staring at us or anything,” she says. “It wouldn’t even occur to me that somebody would be upset about me feeding my child.” She also added that it was quite hot at the beach that day and she did not want to overheat her infant by putting a cover over his body as she nursed him. Not to mention, she shouldn’t and doesn’t have to. Mothers can legally breastfeed in any public or private space in the United States.
The next day, Lomax took her shock and anger to TikTok to tell her story of being secretly filmed and shamed for breastfeeding her child in public. Addressing the woman who posted the video, she said, “You had every opportunity in the world to say something to me. Not that I would have cared or stopped what I was doing. But you instead choose to post a video of me and my child on Facebook. My child was also hungry in multiple restaurants and while we were walking down the street, and guess what? He ate.”
@izlomax ill leave this here #breastfeeding ♬ original sound – izlomax
She was applauded on TikTok with many supportive comments, and says the woman has since deleted the video from Facebook. She has yet to receive an apology, however.
My heart goes out to Lomax but I’m glad she used the situation to speak out in support of her fellow breastfeeding moms. When a baby needs to eat, it should be fed – regardless of how that makes anyone else in a public space feel, and a nursing mom should not be made to feel as if she needs to go off and hide to feed her child.
