A Georgia-based mother has said she was on the receiving end of discrimination for breastfeeding her 11-month-old child in a water park.
Tiffany Francis took to Facebook to share her ordeal at Rigby's Water World, where she was told she couldn't breastfeed in the water due to fears of breastmilk "getting into the water."
Francis explained in her post that she was accustomed to nursing her baby to sleep in the Lazy River section of the water park, leveraging the soothing motion the water offered. She said, "He likes motion to sleep, he sleeps well in the car or swing, so he will also sleep in the Lazy River."
Her peaceful day, however, took a dramatic turn when a lifeguard and another staff member confronted her, claiming that breastfeeding was not permitted in the water. Despite her request to verify the rules, she couldn't find any specific regulation barring breastfeeding.
A conversation with the manager led to her realizing that breastfeeding was equated with the "No food or drinks in the water" rule, leaving Francis feeling wronged and embarrassed.
"Imagine all the bodily fluids being excreted into the water, but they’re worried about breastmilk when the baby was latched, my breast was out of the water, and the milk was only going into [my] baby’s mouth," she expressed on Facebook, adding that the primary concern seemed to be about making other guests uncomfortable.
She said in her post: "I left crying because I was told I couldn’t feed my child. It is against the law to tell a mother they can’t breastfeed their child - but sure, let’s worry about offending people by feeding a child.
"Somehow I made people uncomfortable by doing the most natural thing I could do for my child, while just trying to let him nap. Mind you, this was also at a waterpark where most people are wearing very little clothing but my son and I were offensive.
"I’m just so upset and appalled and wanted to give a heads up to all the other moms out there that this is how breastfeeding moms are treated at Rigby's Water World."
Upon being denied a refund, Francis chose to leave the water park. Her story, which was shared on social media, ignited controversy, given that Georgia state law, according to code 31-1-9, explicitly allows breastfeeding in any location where the mother and baby are authorized to be.
After the incident gained attention, Steve Rigby, owner of Rigby's Water World, and the general manager reached out to Francis with apologies. However, she found them to be insincere, feeling they were a reaction to the online backlash more than anything else. She said the apology included the phrase, "while it’s not the best practice, feeding is now allowed anywhere."
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