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Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Breastfeeding Mother Kicked Off Plane!

Below is the letter that I wrote to Delta airlines regarding

http://mothering.com/sections/news_bulletins/november2006.html#emily

Re: Flight 6160 from Burlington, Vermont to New York's La Guardia

To whom it may concern,

By this time I am sure that you have received countless emails from angry mothers demanding restitution for the way that Emily Gillette was treated by your flight attendant. I will not shout and name call; I will only offer you facts.
Fact - Nursing during liftoff, or before and during landing can significantly calm a baby/toddler who has no idea why his ears have suddenly started to hurt. I understand that the flight was not taking off at the time of the incident, but I want to remind you that mothers are keenly aware and therefore anxious about the way that their child is going to act when taking off/landing. I believe that nursing before takeoff is a preemptive strike so that the child is comfortable and not disturbing other guests when it comes time to takeoff.
Fact - The World Health Organization recognizes the need of children to breastfeed up until 4yrs at a minimum. As the mother of a nursing toddler it is my belief that Emily was discriminated against because she was nursing her toddler (22mos) and not an infant. If it is a policy for your airline to have a child in arms while traveling under 2 years old, there should be no issue with the child nursing in arms as he is where he was supposed to be. IF however the child was in his own seat, or not belted in and it was a safety issue, then I could MAYBE see where the stewardess was coming from, but because this was not the case and it was because she was "uncomfortable, and offended" then perhaps she should find another job. Or at least educate herself and become more tolerant.
I understand that the United States are very archaic when it comes to womens rights for breastfeeding and for children's rights to breastfeed, and I could go on and on about violations and discriminations, but I am sure that you have gotten plenty of those emails in the last few days, so I will not comment further.
I only had one other question. If this stewardess was offended or felt uncomfortable because of someone's race/ethnicity or sexual orientation, would they be thrown off the plane as well?
I will not fly Delta or any affiliates until this issue is resolved and Emily is compensated to the full extent. I want the stewardess to publicly apologize for the way that the Gillette family was treated.

Sincerely,
Alisha

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