Breastfeeding moms to stage pool protest

Calgary - A breastfeeding protest planned for Sunday was cancelled after meeting with the city staff. The protest was over breastfeeding in a public pool in Calgary Alberta Canada. Gemma Kelsall, a breastfeed mother at the pool, has been told hundreds of times by lifeguards not to nurse her 21 month old girl while in the pool. She has been given many reasons over the year as to why mothers were not allowed to do this. In the past three years, she and other mothers have complained to the city’s aquatic manager, the pool’s manager, their alderman and to the mayor.

The women all believe that they have a right to breastfeed wherever they want to. Those who disagree with this, feel that breastfeeding in the pool is unhygienic but feel that it is acceptable outside of the pool. Lifeguards had misunderstood the city’s policy in allowing mothers to breastfeed in our out of the city pools. The city has now apologized and has put up ‘breast-feeding friendly’ logos around the pool.

Gemma Kelsall has received over 100 pieces of hate mail the last couple of days through Facebook. There have also been over 800 comments stating the mothers are wrong, disgusting and are child abusers. With acknowledgment of this issue, the city ensures from now on that mothers who breastfeed in or at the pool will no longer be harassed for nursing their babies.