lactivists

I have a friend who said, "I think there are extremists on both sides." Now, for pretty much *any* topic, she'd have made a very safe statement. Usually there are two or more sides to an issue, and usually there can be extreme views on two or more sides.

But we were talking about breastfeeding in public, and in this case I think she's wrong. There certainly are extremists on one side, who believe any breastfeeding in public is offensive and should not be allowed. And on the other side, there are:

1. Those who believe in breastfeeding when the child needs feeding, which is reasonable parenting, not extreme;

2. and a subset of these who will breastfeed in public specifically during calls to action to raise awareness about breastfeeding.

But I have never heard of breastfeeding "extremists" who actually do anything that *extreme*, like what- going nude and making sure the breast is exposed?! But I do think it is extreme to try and prevent people from feeding their children, and that is what anti-breastfeeding-in-public people are about. So it seems that the extremists in this case are only on one side. Because at the end of the day, being a lactivist seems to be about standing up for your child's right to be nourished and not go hungry just because some stranger is uncomfortable about it (even though that person wouldn't even see more breast exposed than in a low cut top).

Um, QED! And happy four month birthday dear Paloma!