Recently, an age-old issue has once again arisen in media. And, for the life of me, I have to ask myself, “Why is breast-feeding in public still causing so much drama?”

First, this shouldn’t even be an issue or topic for discussion. In the simplest of terms, it should be allowed. That being said, I’ll try to defend my reasoning, but that will be nearly impossible in such a limited word space. Some points can only come up in person in intellectual conversation.

One of the recent common arguments has been for the moms to bring their infants into the bathrooms. I don’t know about you, but I hate using public bathrooms even after they have just been cleaned. My mind thinks of all the people that have used the bathroom before me and if I feel that way, what right do I have telling a mom to feed their child in such conditions?

Next, I hear that the moms should go out of sight. Well, where? I don’t see designated areas, and here I emphasize it once again, I don’t see private bathrooms. Society can’t even make gender neutral bathrooms. 

I’ve also heard that a mom can just bring a blanket. I get cold easily. I draw attention when I am wearing a sweatshirt in the summer and I am a guy. How much attention is that blanket going to bring to everyone around the mom when she is breast-feeding? Plus, she is having to put that blanket over the child’s face. What happens when it gets over 100 degrees? A feat that isn’t too difficult in south Louisiana. 

Also, it is extremely important for the health of the baby for a mom to naturally breast-feed her child. A formula can only do so much. Not only will breast milk give the child the nutrients and vitamins they need for the first six months of their life, but breast milk also provides natural antibodies to infants in fighting diseases.

So women, if you choose to breast-feed in public, go out there with confidence. Hopefully this stigmatization of looking sideways at women who breast-feed will become obsolete, like in a time long ago before social constraints dictated how women could feed their child in public. 

One final point, and this is directed to all those people who over-sexualize women who are breast-feeding. Stop, just freaking stop. It is wrong, degrading and you are forcing women to make a decision that she shouldn’t have to make. You are just making yourself look like a fool. If you get turned on from a mom feeding her infant in public, go home and truly rethink your morals of being a decent human being. Hopefully one day infants can be fed in public and this issue will be looked at as something that can be laughed at and leave the future wondering why it caused such an issue to our generation, the generation of easily offended.