I don't know if any of you read The Atlantic. A few weeks ago an article was published by a woman named Hanna Rosin called The Case Against Breastfeeding. Basically this woman claimed that if a woman felt that breastfeeding her baby wasn't easy and enjoyable for her she may as well give up and formula feed. She claimed that there wasn't scientific evidence saying that breastfeeding was better. She wrote the article as fact in a way that would let shitloads of mothers maybe having a bit of a hard time nursing their babies, it is HARD sometimes, feel that they were off the hook. She slams La Leche League all over the place, as if this nursing support group is a bunch of loony extremists with it's own weird agenda. She bases all of her crap on her and her privileged friends experiences dealing with holier than thou type moms, and claims that there is more pressure to breastfeed than to formula feed (which is bullshit).
Her and her friends even went so far as to make a podcast where they sit around on couches and bad mouth La Leche League, and laugh about how annoying it is to be a nursing mom, and how they wish they had had someone tell them then what Hanna is telling them now- it's not important, you can stop if you want. Bottles of formula are just as good, they say. Pumping is a pointless hassle. (Bullshit)
I could barely get through the podcast. These woman made me sick.
And they had the balls to use my song Tire Swing as the intro, outro, and between segment music.
Without permission.
So I found Hanna Rosin on Facebook, and wrote to her, and told her that I wanted nothing to do with her message and if my song wasn't off the podcast by the next day I was calling a lawyer. She wrote back and said okay. The next day the song was still there and she had posted a blog called "Flamed By Kimya Dawson". A snarky post about how she saw that she had a message from me and was excited, she's a fan, blah blah, lo and behold.
So I wrote back to her leveling with her about how I felt about her message. Not based on medical fact. Undermining feminism and lactivism. Playing queen bee social politic games. Claiming her limited experience as "the norm". And so on and so forth.
She wrote back telling me I didn't know what I was talking about and she did because SHE'S A JOURNALIST.
A journalist telling a musician - "Trust me, I got the facts, I am a journalist!" is comical. For the past 10 years I have watched journalists skew words, mix up facts, and edit interviews for the benefit of their own agenda. There are some solid ones out there, but I am not the type to generalize and assume that (because you have a pencil, a notepad, internet access, and someone to put your story on their site) you know what you are talking about JUST because you are a journalist.
But Hanna Rosin was not going to budge because of what I was saying and I had all these other wars to fight (i.e. Comcast), so I just said- "Fine, I am done". The song was down by this point and I didn't have the energy to keep butting heads. I knew she was wrong and our head-to-head on the FB was going nowhere.
Sigh.
I know that some women have medical issues and can't nurse their babies. Some babies have medical issues and can't latch on. Some women suffer from mental illness or post partum depression. Some women are on medication that isn't compatible with nursing. Some women have to work and can't pump enough. I understand. Not EVERYONE can breastfeed their baby.
But people need to understand that, as far as health and bonding is concerned, it is the best option. And it is worth the struggle. And there is support. Online and off. You have to really look for it sometimes. But it's out there.
It is important to work toward becoming a society that supports breastfeeding, rather than giving up because it's inconvenient. Why write off the people doing this important work? Does it help some people who just don't want to nurse get over the guilt of that choice by declaring the rest of us "boob nazis"?!
I will whip out a boob anywhere, most of you have probably seen at least a peek of my giant milk bags. And it's not because I think public nursing is cool or because I am trying to be extreme. It is because, like pooping and periods, BREASTFEEDING IS NORMAL. WE ARE ANIMALS. THIS IS HOW ANIMALS FEED THEIR BABIES. I am not ashamed. I will nurse in the store, at the park, in the privacy of my own home, and at the merch table. Nursing is the best option. Bottle feeding pumped or expressed breast milk is the next best option. Even if those aren't the most convenient options.
Being a parent isn't easy. It isn't supposed to be easy. And disagreeing with stubborn, snarky journalists isn't easy either but I am not alone. The United States Breastfeeding Committee doesn't agree with her either.
CHECK OUT THEIR RESPONSE LETTER!!!In your face Hanna Rosin.
In your face.
Oh and, here is what Panda has to say about it...
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