A charity has sparked outrage after announcing that men who identify as women are allowed to attend their meetings designed for mothers who are struggling with breastfeeding.
The controversy started after La Leche League Great Britain, the British branch of the international charity dedicated to raising awareness about breastfeeding and helping struggling mothers, said it was okay for trans women to seek their support.
According to LLLGB, the charity aims to be more “inclusive” as “the world is moving on” by letting trans women join their breastfeeding meetings and present them with options on how to induce lactation.
“Trans men, trans women and non-binary individuals may choose to breastfeed or chestfeed their babies,” the charity said in a statement.
“You do not need to have given birth to breastfeed or chestfeed, as we can also see in the experiences of those nursing adopted babies.”
Speaking of chestfeeding, the term was put to use to avoid offending trans men who may be feeding their babies but feel uncomfortable around the word ‘breast’ due to their transition.
While many people voiced their support for the charity’s decision to be more inclusive by letting trans women join their ranks, some expressed their concerns over the group’s alleged shift of focus.
“I was a La Leche League leader for many years and am very upset to see how the organization has lost its focus on the mother and baby,” a former LLLGB leader wrote in a Mumsnet post.
“LLLGB should not be promoting the idea that males can induce lactation to feed a baby. There is no evidence to say this is safe, only an anecdotal example of a case where a doctor in the US enabled this to happen using off label drugs.”
Backing the former LLLGB leader’s comment was another mother who said: “It is really depressing that a breastfeeding charity isn’t prioritizing breastfeeding.
“There’s so much guilt and shame around women who have a difficult time of it, and so much policing and judgment. It is a particular female experience and it is not up for grabs.”
Responding to the criticism on Mumsnet, LLLGB chairwoman, Helen Lloyd, told The Mail that “the world is moving on and we are trying to keep up to date and ensure that there is nobody who needs us and doesn’t get the support.”
“We are absolutely proud to be inclusive and to be making our reach as wide as possible,” she said.
“I can see it’s unsettling for people who grew up thinking very clearly it’s mothers who breastfeed and believing there is a very clear divide behind sex and gender.”
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