In principle, public breastfeeding wasn't illegal in Massachusetts; rather, it wasn't legally protected, meaning a mother could be charged with indecent exposure or lewdness if someone objected to her nursing her baby in a public place. In reality, hordes of lactating moms were not being loaded into paddy wagons for nursing their babies at the mall food court. But too often, breastfeeding advocates point out, they were subjected to harassment, or ordered to stop nursing or "cover up" by store managers and other squeamish types.
Sometimes those incidents trigger protests; a couple of years ago, for instance, when a mom was chastised by an employee at an iParty store in eastern Mass. for nursing her infant on the sales floor, supporters threatened to hold a "nurse-in" at the store. In response, iParty apologized to the mom and held a party for nursing women at the store. But it's impossible to know how many other moms have faced similar responses and were too intimidated to fight back.
The new law, which went into effect April 9, allows a woman to breastfeed in any public place (with the exception, curiously, of places of worship); it also allows a woman or the Attorney General to bring a civil action against anyone who harasses or tries to prevent a mother from breastfeeding in public. If a court finds the woman's rights have been violated, she could receive damages of up to $500, as well as her legal costs.
Locally, the Pioneer Valley Breastfeeding Task Force (www.valleybreastfeeding.org) is distributing business cards with the law printed on them, which a mom can take out to remind anyone who gives her a hard time for nursing in public. (The coalition also has great "Breastfeeding Welcome Here" stickers that supportive businesses and organizations can post on their premises, and proud parents can slap on the windows of their minivans.)
Before the bill's passage last December, Massachusetts was one of just three states that offered nursing moms no legal protection. The law came after years of hard work by activists and their legislative allies, most notably state Sen. Susan Fargo, a Democrat from Middlesex County, who's filed multiple pro-breastfeeding bills. The state still has work to do when it comes to protecting breastfeeding; another proposal by Fargo, that would guarantee a woman's right to pump breastmilk at work, for instance, has yet to win legislative approval. Still, the new bill—called, tellingly, "An Act to Promote Breastfeeding"—is an indication that lawmakers increasingly realize that breastfeeding isn't a "lifestyle choice" but an important public health issue that deserves government support."
