Community Corner

What Do You Think? CT Woman Told Not to Breastfeed at Restaurant

Connecticut restaurant staff asked a breastfeeding mother to stop or 'cover up.'

Update: June 12, 5:30 p.m.

A group of moms is planning a "nurse in" Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Norwich Friendly's, WFSB.com reports.

Liz Linehan of Cheshire told Channel 3 she was angered when she heard restaurant staff approached Tabitha Donohue about breastfeeding her baby. Linehan asserted that under Connecticut law, mothers don't have to cover up or leave a public place to breastfeed.

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Friendly's officials told Channel 3 that the issue with Donohue at the restaurant concerned her baby lying on the table, not the mother's breasts.

Organizers of the "nurse in" called it a positive campaign to raise awareness about the state law, WFSB.com reported.

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Women who are breastfeeding are protected by Connecticut state law, but the staff of a Norwich restaurant felt it necessary to ask a mother to stop breastfeeding her baby at the table.

Tabitha Donohue was offended when employees at a Friendly’s restaurant asked her to stop breastfeeding her 8-week-old baby, according to WFSB.com. The young mother was not asked to leave the restaurant, but restaurant staff asked her to stop or hide her breastfeeding.

Donohue told WFSB.com the staff wouldn't leave her table until her child stopped eating.

State law says no person or public place can restrict or limit a mother’s right to breastfeed her child.

Friendly’s corporate headquarters released a statement saying Donohue’s child was lying on the table while Donohue breastfed, WFSB.com said. The restaurant manager felt the situation was unsafe, and she asked the mother if there was a better accommodation for them.

What do you think? Should a restaurant be allowed to ask women to stop or hide breastfeeding in public?


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