Mexican mothers breastfeed at museum as an act of protest

On November 19, the group “ Normalizing Breastfeeding in Mexico ” (Normalizando la Lactancia Materna en México ) and maternity center Luperca denounced that a woman who was breastfeeding her daughter at the Modern Art Museum ( MAM ) was removed from the museum by security guards, who argued that breastfeeding inside the museum is forbidden.

Through its Instagram account , the NGO explained that the security at the museum said that food and beverage consumption was not allowed inside the museum and claimed that all this was stated in the museum's rules.

However, the NGO explains that the Mexican Constitution establishes that everyone has the right to a nutritious, sufficient, and quality diet in its 4th article. Additionally, the Civic Culture Law establishes that “ conditioning , insulting , or intimidating a woman who is breastfeeding in a public space” is part of the offenses against the dignity of people.

Through a private message, the Modern Art Museum acknowledged that its staff “ misinterpreted ” the situation and that breastfeeding is in fact allowed at the museum . It also vowed to train its personnel in regards to breastfeeding .

In a video sent by the museum to the NGO , it can be seen how 4 guards approach the woman . And although there was no physical contact, the staff was rude to the woman. Therefore, this is an act of violence against women .

As a response to the mistreatment of the mother , both NGOs launched a breastfeeding protest inside the MAM on November 24.

The event was titled “ Breastfeeding for the rights of nursing mothers .”

After a lot of criticism, the museum posted a statement acknowledging its mistake and later joined the movement.

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