Mothers Tell MySpace Breastfeeding is Not Obscene

The online community MySpace is stirring up trouble among its users that are mothers. Many mothers are furious over the fact that MySpace has been deleting any photos that portray breastfeeding. The photos are being pulled for violating the terms of agreement, which state that any content that is offensive, illegal or violate the rights, harm, or threaten the safety of any person may be deleted. Many are wondering how images of breastfeeding fits into those terms.

As a virtual protest many mothers have begun changing their user pictures to that of nursing babies. The breastfeeding mothers claim that nursing is not offensive at all, and that by being more public about it they are helping to normalize something that has been hidden under a cloud of shame for years. Many feel that the sexualization of the female breast makes it difficult for many to see a difference between using the breast for sex and using the breast for its intended purpose, which is to feed a child. This is on top of an already diminished view of breastfeeding held from the early 1950s when doctors often told women that their milk was not good enough and many families felt that formula created by science was a better choice.

The debated over breastfeeding photos has sparked a fire among those who support breastfeeding in public and those who feel it is disgusting. Many mothers who have breastfeeding photos are finding themselves attacked by those who feel that the breast is a purely sexual object. Hate filled messages are being sent out to many mothers on MySpace for sharing their breastfeeding photos, some are going as far as reporting every photo that the mothers have on their account often resulting in all of the photos deleted by MySpace.