Goodwill Makes Bad Move With Anti-Breastfeeding Tweet
By Jenny Erikson for The Stir Cafe Mom
Image via: thestir.cafemom.com
While it's not hard to believe there are individuals out there that still feel the need to shame mothers who nurse in public, it's rather disconcerting to hear of a national company doing so. Goodwill is in hot water with the pro-breastfeeding community after some seriously insensitive tweets over a mother's right to breastfeed in public.
It started when a Goodwill employee (using the Twitter handle @jordyyynicole) tweeted her disdain for a mom who was breastfeeding her baby in line at the McMinnville store.
She shared on the social media site, "So I totally had a lady come through my line today while she was breastfeeding her baby. #OnlyAtGoodwill #SawHerNipple"
She then responded to another user, "I don't like seeing tits in a public place unless it's a strip joint. #SorryNotSorry she shouldn't have taken her baby shopping."
Well OK then. You know, it's not always easy to fit everything in a day in as a mom -- we have to make use of the time we have. With the amount of breast we see everyday these days (um, hello? Has anyone heard about the #FreeTheNipple campaign?), what the heck is wrong with a mom using her breasts to do what they're actually meant to do and feed her child?
Besides, anyone want to bet that this lady would've been complaining if the baby had been crying in hunger while waiting in line? You make a judgment call as a mom sometimes.
But the story doesn't end there. Goodwill, a company that prides itself on helping people with "barriers to employment learn the skills to find competitive employment," tweeted its support for employee who bashed the breastfeeding mom.
"@KilleezMama Breastfeeding shouldn't be done out in public without covering your private parts. A blanket for a breastfeeding mo..." and "@KilleezMama There isn't a thing wrong with breastfeeding. breastfeeding is a natural thing, but it should be done in a private place."
In other words, stay home until your children are weaned, mothers of America!
Goodwill has been in damage control ever since, because duh, there is no reason whatsoever to shame a mother for feeding her child whichever way she chooses these days. The company has apologized for both accounts and the things that were said, and their official stance does say that they "support a woman's right to breastfeed in public."
A nurse-in was organized at the Oregon store on Friday, where Goodwill provided refreshments to nearly 100 breastfeeding moms who showed up, so it does look like this may be a case of rogue tweeting by an uninformed intern. At least we hope it is. It's hard to fathom that a company like Goodwill would ever condone public shaming of mothers.
Do you think Goodwill's tweets about breastfeeding moms were inappropriate?