Lucylastic -> RE: Breastfeeding In Court? (11/15/2011 9:41:55 AM)
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ORIGINAL: BBBTBW I breastfed my daughter in the park, on the bus and in many public places. This was 26 years ago. I discretely covered her and myself up with a blanket and she ate to her hearts content. I have no problem with anyone breastfeeding their children in public. It is a normal, natural thing. Sure show a little decorum about yourself and put a lite blanket over you and your child but those of you that are offended...get over yourselves. this PLUS.... A SECTION OF ONTARIOS HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER. VIII. Services, Goods and Facilities Section 1 of the Code prohibits discrimination in “services, goods and facilities” against women who are pregnant and breastfeeding. This includes educational institutions, hospitals and health services, insurance providers, public places like malls and parks, public transit, and stores and restaurants. This means that women who are pregnant, or who are accompanied by their babies to a restaurant or a theatre, cannot be denied service or access unless there is a bona fide reason for doing so. This also means that women have a right to nurse undisturbed, and cannot be prevented from breastfeeding a child in, for example, a public area or restaurant. They also cannot be asked to move to a more “discreet” area to breastfeed a child, or to “cover up”. Complaints from other persons will not justify interfering with a woman’s right to breastfeed. Example: While a mother was waiting in a courtroom to contest a parking ticket, she began to nurse her infant son. The security guard asked her to leave the courtroom and nurse her son where she would not be seen. The Tribunal ruled that this was discriminatory.64 Education providers have the same type of obligation as employers to accommodate women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, including the obligation to cooperatively discuss options and create a supportive environment. Example: An educational program requires all of its students to complete a co-op placement as a condition of graduation. These placements last several weeks, and are in locations across the province. A student who has a young baby who is still breastfeeding frequently asks to be accommodated in a placement within a reasonable commute of her home, so that she can go home in the evening to nurse her baby, and more easily transport the breastmilk she will be pumping during the day. The program explores accommodation options with her. Service providers should take steps to design their services in a way that is inclusive of pregnant and breastfeeding women. Example: The City of Toronto has approved a policy on Breastfeeding in Public that supports women who live, work in or visit Toronto to breastfeed anytime and anywhere in public spaces controlled by the City. The City also promotes positive attitudes towards breastfeeding through public events such as annual Breastfeeding Challenges.65 Access to services may be affected by negative attitudes and stereotypes. For example, lone mothers are heavily stigmatized, especially if they are young, racialized or Aboriginal, or in receipt of social assistance, and these women may find themselves subjected to unwarranted scrutiny, denied services, or subjected to harassment when seeking services. Example: A young Aboriginal lone mother in receipt of social assistance is told by her caseworker that she “is just having babies to get benefits” and that she “should have her tubes tied”. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION For more information about the Ontario Human Rights Commission or this policy statement, please call 1-800-387-9080 (toll free) or in Toronto (416) 326-9511 (TTD (416) 314-4535), during regular office hours from Monday to Friday. You can also visit our Web site at www.ohrc.on.ca. IM so very happy I live in ontario, where my rights to feed my child are covered , wherever I happen to be caught short. Despite being almost 50, Im glad the law is there to protect my daughters rights... against those who rant against it.
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