Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Go Micah Go!


This is an excerpt of a post* from Micah Salb, a DC attorney, parent, and all round good guy:

I am very pleased to announce that Councilmember Graham introduced the breastfeeding protection act today! Based on a sage recommendation by a local mom, the Councilmember agreed to our suggestion to call the bill the Child's Right to Nurse Human Rights Amendment Act of 2007.

Councilmembers Schwartz, Barry, and Brown all cointroduced the Bill and Councilmembers Cheh, Wells, Gray, Catania, and Evans have cosponsored the Bill! That means we have nine of the councilmembers' support right out of the gate!

And none of this would be possible but for the support of the dozens of folks who called and emailed their councilmembers on this important Bill. In fact, it is interesting for me to watch as skepticism and disinterest turned into support based on community action.

One of the most important accomplishments was Councilmember Graham's success in maneuvering to get the Bill assigned to the Workforce Development and Government Operations Committee, chaired by Councilmember Schwartz. That means that the Bill WILL advance. But since it is budget season, it is unlikely that anything will happen until April or May.

The next step will be for Councilmember Schwartz to hold a hearing sometime in the Spring. That is when we will mobilize again to get the legions to show up in droves to testify. After the hearing, Councilmember Schwartz will finalize the bill and have the committee mark it up (vote on it). Then it goes to the full Council for two votes.


Stay tuned! And please contact me if you have any stories of difficulties that you have faced at work or in the community when you breastfed. -Micah Salb



I think what he's doing is great. I personally never had anyone challenge me on nursing my children in public (well, other than my mom, but that's a whole other can of worms), but I've heard of others who have, and I find the whole situation appalling. If you have any stories to share, please feel free to post them here, or if you prefer, email them to me and I'll pass them along to Micah.


*Posted on the DC Urban Moms listserv, and excerpted with explicit permission from Micah Salb.

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