Facebook raises mothers' ire by deleting breastfeeding pics

Facebook is apparently telling mothers to cover up. Mothers have found that pictures of themselves nursing have been deleted from their online photo albums on the popular social networking site.

Those entrusted with deleting the pics now have their work cut out for them as there has been a groundswell against the popular social networking site's actions. A protest group - "Hey Facebook, breastfeeding is not obscene" - featured almost 1,000 photos by Sept.19.

On Aug.25, the group had 7,000 friends. That number had grown to 20,021 on Sept.19. The support has reportedly come from all over the world. It has got mothers talking on Vancouver Island, ParetoLogic's home base, according to Karine Bordua, a spokesperson for the Victoria Central chapter of the La Leche League Canada.

"We surely don't consider pictures of mothers nursing their children to be anything other than common pictures of love and affection and normal family life," Bordua wrote in an email statement to the ParetoLogic newsletter. "Although La Leche League isn't affiliated with this petition, we know that mothers have been discussing this intensely. As an organization helping mothers with questions and concerns about breastfeeding since 1956, we've seen that society has become more accepting of the normal needs of breastfeeding babies."

But the Facebook team does not feel the images are appropriate. Mothers who have posted images that have been deemed inappropriate have received emails stating their accounts will be closed if they continue putting up pictures that contain "nudity, drug use or other obscene content," according to a Sept. 13 CanWest News Service story in the Victoria Times Colonist.

"Photos containing an exposed breast do violate our terms and are removed," Facebook spokeswoman Meredith Chinn was quoted as saying in the article.

The latest outcry against Facebook started in August when 33-year-old Edmonton mother Karen Speed had five photos deleted and her account was shut down. The mother of three boys (a nine-year-old, four-year-old and 20 month-old) decided last April to start a Facebook version of the breastfeeding support group she had organized. The photo that seemed to spark the recent battle was one of her tandem breastfeeding the two youngest boys, Speed said in a Sept. 12 Toronto Star article.

Some breastfeeding mothers have publicly said they agree with Facebook's stance on the issue. "Breastfeeding pictures have no place on a social website," Mississauga's Karen Brown wrote in a Sept. 12 edition of the Toronto Star website's Voices section. "I am a breastfeeding mom and feel that that is a private bonding moment between mother and child and the rest of society does not need to see it."

But Boruda believes the breastfeeding experience is something mothers should not be ashamed to share. "Mothers who are breastfeeding their babies have many cherished, funny, and surprising moments. In our multi-media society, mothers naturally want to capture these moments and then pass them on to their friends (most mothers' perception of Facebook). Mothers who have struggled with breastfeeding challenges are often proud of their effort and as a result, document their victory."

"At La Leche League meetings, mothers share their breastfeeding joys and challenges in an atmosphere of acceptance. The number of mothers who disagree with Facebook's stance shows that a healthy view of the breastfeeding mother-baby bond is alive and well."

Back to main Newsletter »

Each month ParetoLogic features one of its sophisticated powerful software products for you to try and enjoy!

To learn more about this month’s freatured product, click on the buttons below; they will allow you to download the product, explain how to download the product or let you view an informative video about this exciting solution.

Scan Tab (Scanning Screen)

Advanced Shred (Shred Levels Screen)