by Michelle Stein posted in Parenting

Elizabeth Gooding was feeding her 1-year-old at her local YMCA when it first happened: She became a victim of breastfeeding discrimination. Now, she's suing to protect the rights of breastfeeding women everywhere.
"I was in the 'Kids Corner' center at the YMCA, breastfeeding my one-year-old baby, when a child care worker exclaimed, 'You are not allowed to breastfeed here.' I immediately cited RI law allowing mothers to breastfeed openly wherever they are publicly allowed to be," Gooding wrote in an open letter. "In response she offered no apology for violating my civil rights, but instead continued to declare that breastfeeding is inappropriate around young boys. Breastfeeding laws enforce my legal right to nurse in public despite what personal opinion may be. Not only am I legally able to breastfeed, but I am also permitted and protected to do so openly, uncovered, and wherever I am publicly allowed to be in accordance with Rhode Island state law. If a mother cannot feed her baby in the daycare of a family establishment, where can she nurse""
Pictured above: Gooding and her daughter
Gooding claims she experienced more than once incident of discrimination at the Ocean Community YMCA, where she had also taught classes. When she took this particular incident to YMCA supervisors, the director and finally to the president and CEO, she was told she should be "more discreet" or find another place...