Originally posted on May 30, 2012:
Photographs taken of military moms breastfeeding their babies in uniform are stirring up controversy on the Internet.
TODAY Moms reports it all started when professional photographer Brynja Sigurdardottir snapped unposed shots of breastfeeding service women assigned to Fairchild Air Force Base in Washington state. The photographs were to be used on promotional base posters for National Breastfeeding Awareness Month in August.
But the photos, posted on Sigurdardottir's website, began circulating on the Internet. And the two women photographed breastfeeding in uniform found themselves under fire.
Terran Echegoyen-McCabe, who is photographed breastfeeding her twin girls, told TODAY:
"There isn't a policy saying we can or cannot breast-feed in uniform. I think it's something that every military mom who is breast-feeding has done. ... I think we do need to be able to breast-feed in uniform and be protected."
In contrast, former Marine captain Emily Barton wrote on a military breastfeeding website:
"I don’t want my Marines to look at me any other way than as a Marine. When I am asking them to fly into combat with me and do a dangerous mission, I do not want them to have the mental image of a babe at my breast. I want them to only see me as a Marine... Trust me, I love the ease of breastfeeding, but not at the detriment of good order and discipline. Find a room, go to your car, ask someone for their office. It’s not hard."
What do YOU think about military moms breastfeeding their babies in uniform? Have your say in our comments section!
