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The Troubling Erasure Of Trans Parents Who Breastfeed
When we think about breastfeeding, the image that comes to mind — the one pushed on us by society, medical professionals, and the media alike — is that of a mother nursing her newborn baby. Brochures, websites, and PSAs promote the picture of a woman lovingly looking at her child as the baby suckles at her breast. The language accompanying this imagery is inevitably gendered, specific to cisgender women who are nursing a baby that they themselves gave birth to.
For a long time, no one has questioned that language. But in recent years, as acceptance of genders outside the binary grows, our understanding of many things that have long gone unchallenged have needed to shift. There has been a push for gender-neutral language when talking about reproductive justice, from abortion to pregnancy. And we’ve recently seen gender-neutral maternity clothing hit the market.
Yet that inclusivity continues to fall short when it comes to nursing.
Nursing parents are typically referred to as “nursing mothers” or “women who nurse.” How does that language affect people who don’t necessarily fit into those categories? And what does that mean for transgender or non-binary parents and their ability to access services or legal protection?