Friendly's Restaurant asks nursing mother to cover up or stop nursing.

[opiate69]

My niece (the mom's step sister) contacts local news. Story blows up. (Connecticut law allows for unfettered public nursing)
Proud uncle, I am.
http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=10256808

[elleng]

1. Friendly's ain't so friendly!

Thanks for sharing!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. Shame on that restaurant.

Good for that mom!

[Rex]

3. Yes! Cause it is totally bizarre to feed your child while you feed yourself!

[opiate69]

4. And now some friends of theirs are organizing a "nurse-in" there!

[niyad]

5. good for the mom!! wasn't this chain in the news just a few days ago for some other stupidity?

I just remembered what it was.

[opiate69]

6. Was it? I'm on the west coast so I don't get much news from back home...

What was the deal there?

[niyad]

7. this:

an open letter to my waiter from your "princessa"

An Open Letter to My Waiter from “Your Princessa”
by Meagan McGinnes


To my overly charming waiter at Friendly’s,
I just met you; I am not your “princessa.” Your hasty Diet Coke refills with jokes about spiking my drinks with tequila were not funny. I actually was scared you might have drugged my drink. I was scared to be too nice and “lead you on.” I was scared to be rude and possibly make you angry. I was scared that in the end I would come off being “the bitch,” “the tease” when I just wanted to eat my chicken tenders in peace.
You never were aggressive, violent or made any threats, yet I was still put off by your flirtatious attempts. My reaction is not your fault, but nor is it mine. Rape culture and violence towards women is real and, yes, all women feel afraid at some point in time.

#YesAllWomen is a hashtag that began trending after the Isla Vista shooting. Immediately, media was reporting about a gun epidemic, the NRA and the rise of mass shootings nationally. Everytown for Gun Safety then launched a campaign sending letters to political figures with the phrase “Not One More.”

Gun violence is on the rise and becoming an ever-growing problem facing our nation, however in the midst of this epidemic it seems that women have more of a target on our
backs. Mother Jones reported that in 2010, nearly 6 times more women were shot by husbands, boyfriends, and ex-partners than murdered by male strangers. A woman’s chances of being killed by her abuser increase more than 7 times if he has access to a gun. MJ even reported that one study found that women in states with higher gun ownership rates were 4.9 times more likely to be murdered by a gun than women in states with lower gun ownership rates.

The hashtag extends beyond this horrific event, and even beyond gun violence toward women. It is about the common experience of misogyny all women; regardless of race, class, religion or backgrounds understand.
You may have meant no harm, but your attitude toward me as a woman is what perpetuates this culture where violence is stemming and fear is growing. In everyday experiences I question my decisions in order to protect myself from potential harm from men.

. . . .

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2014/06/07-0

[opiate69]

8. Heh. That's what I get for skimming.

I remember that article, just didn't make the connection. Thanks

[niyad]

9. you are most welcome.

[moriah]

20. Yowch, a bit TOO "Friendly"....

Can't they find a happy medium somewhere?

And why does the actual commonality seem to be objectification of women?

[Blue Owl]

10. Not so sure I like their brand of friendly

n/t

[RiffRandell]

11. One of my old stomping grounds.

Get the munchies, go to that same Friendly's for a Reece's Pieces Sundae.

I be placing a call to my homies yo.



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[opiate69]

12. Ha! Mine too...

Used to go there for ice cream after going to the movies down the street. Can;t remember the name of the complex the movie theater was in though... been waaaaaay too long

[RiffRandell]

13. They are all closed.

New one in "Lisbon Landing" off of Route 12. No 3-D or IMAX...that will probably take another 20 years.

[badtoworse]

14. She can certainly stand her legal ground, but if she gets roasted on social media,...

... that's protected by the law as well.

[laundry_queen]

21. Well. That's an odd response.

You hoping she gets 'roasted' or something?

[pnwmom]

25. Yeah, and so is all kinds of nasty speech. What is your point?

That a-holes will always be a-holes?

[jberryhill]

15. If tits fired bullets, you'd see them in chain restaurants everywhere

In what kind of bizarro world do you have an absolute unfettered right to brandish your killing machine anywhere and everywhere but, my GOD! Cover up those tits! There are small infants present!

[Hekate]

16. +1

[DFW]

17. And another +1

Breasts nourishing small infants, what were they thinking?

Now, weapons that do nothing more than kill if used as intended, well, that is another story altogether.

[badtoworse]

18. I was thinking of posting about this, but thought better of bringing it up.

I'm glad, however, that someone else did. There is actually quite a bit of similarity between the two. Both activities are legally protected, but both are upsetting or offensive to many people. The issue is about being considerate and discreet: You may be entitled to exercise your rights, but doing it in a way that upsets other people reflects very poorly on the person doing it. We generally agree that the person walking into a fast food restaurant with an AR-15 slung over his shoulder is a jerk. This mother isn't much better.

[laundry_queen]

22. What a load.

I wondered about your post upthread, now I will wonder no more. Your post is far more offensive than anything that mother has done.

[troublesome_mind]

26. As far as I could see she was very discreet and nonchalant about it.

I didn't even notice she was feeding during the interview until the second time I watched it. Sure some first-time mothers fumble and may expose more than those more experienced, but that's to be expected. And I'm not so sure I agree with the comparison to firearms. Maybe I just don't see it.

[niyad]

27. dear goddess, PLEASE tell me you forgot the sarcasm icon, because, if you seriously meant that

nursing an infant is the same as brandishing a killing machine, I would suggest you are on the wrong board.

[badtoworse]

29. It's about pissing people off by exercising your rights.

My sense from the video was that a number of people in the restaurant were offended. If that is the case, I'll speculate that she wasn't doing it discreetly.

This isn't about comparing breast feeding to open carry; it's about just being considerate. Personally, I wouldn't be offended by open carry or overt breast feeding, but not everyone is as tolerant as I am. If you know you're offending people around you, what does it say about you if you continue doing what you're doing?

[Warren DeMontague]

31. It doesn't matter if people were offended.

And breastfeeding is not something to be graciously "tolerant" of. It's a protected behavior by law in most states, and for good reason.

"what does it say about"... who? The baby that needs to eat?

Oh, I'm sorry, my baby needs to eat right now, but some prune-faced shitwit is bothered. Here, allow me to accommodate them instead of my baby (because they're clearly the REAL infant in this situation.)

Babies need to eat, and as a father of kids who were breastfed, I can tell you secondhand but with some definite awareness, that successful breastfeeding is HARD. And no one does it with the deliberate intent of pissing people off or "forcing them to watch". They do it because it's a necessity, and usually the baby picks the time and the place.

Where was the mother supposed to go... let me guess, the bathroom, right?

Conversely, no one NEEDS to cradle and stroke their AR-15 in a starbucks.


People have the option to look away. In fact, the polite thing is not to gawk. I doubt she sat herself down at some strangers' table and did it.

[badtoworse]

32. I've seen women breastfeeding many times.

Most times, you wouldn't even know it was happening. Apparently, this case was different, but no matter, the prunefaces can go scratch.

We'll just have to disagree about being considerate.

[Warren DeMontague]

34. Apparently according to whom?

The baby in question is 8 weeks old. Friendly's is trying to say now that it was the baby being 'on the table' that was the problem, not the breastfeeding.

Doesn't really gel with the manager telling the new mom "don't you care if you're bothering people?"

They're backpedaling furiously, because they know they're wrong. AND if they were bothered by one breastfeeding mom, they're about to get several orders of magnitude more.

[moriah]

19. Well, we know boobs are out to destroy society....

On the serious, anyone who is offended or thinks it will confuse their child to see a breast being used for its natural purpose needs a reality check.

[Orrex]

23. In fairness, the restaurant probably has a policy against bringing in food from outside

[hunter]

28. Duzy.

[Ilsa]

35. But goddess forgive you if you ask them to warm

up a bottle for you! LoL
Great reply.

[Ilsa]

36. Yeah, no Hooters food! nt

[Leme]

24. I have faults, what can I say

my guess is that some breast feeding at times in some restaurants might make me uneasy. But if legal... and I think it should be legal... I will get over it.

[Warren DeMontague]

30. Friendly's is about to get schooled, I think.

And a good thing, too.

[opiate69]

33. No doubt. My niece's story is going viral a bit too

Following her Facebook feed, the story made CNN's wire service and has been aired in a bunch of different markets.