According to medical experts, breastfeeding is a great way to provide your baby with the nutrients that they need. And while ultimately it is up to each mother whether she breastfeeds her baby or not, no mother should be shamed for doing so, even in public.

The next story shows that while not everyone in society is ready for this reality, many people are more accepting of it.

Pregnant and going to school

Marcella Mares, a 23-year-old student, was taking an online course at Fresno City College. As a part of the class was the requirement to attend her classes in a Zoom seminar. Her professor had required his students to keep their camera and microphones on to be counted as present in class.

Mares was also a mother to a baby girl, Olivia. As a part of her role as a mother, Mares would breastfeed Olivia when it was her mealtime. Thinking ahead, Mares had emailed her professor telling him she would be turning off her camera during these feeding sessions. This is where problems arose.

A shocking email

Expecting her professor to simply acknowledge that she would be doing this, Mares was shocked when her professor refused to allow her to do so as if she really had a choice of when her daughter would be hungry. It was bad enough that the Zoom calls lasted for four consecutive hours, but, babies are babies and don’t get hungry on cue.

“He said, ‘You should not be doing that during class. Just do that on your own time or do it after class. “For him to say something like that — it just got me really upset,” Mares told Today Parents.

The professor shamed her in front of her classmates

To add insult to injury, at the next seminar, the professor announced to everyone in the class what had transpired between them. According to Mares, the professor told everyone:

“I had a really weird email from a student stating that she needed to do inappropriate things during class time. You need to be creative with your children and accommodate them so you can pay attention to my lectures.”

Fighting for her rights

Taken aback by the professor’s shaming of what many consider a natural act, Mares did not let that stop her. She approached the professor online and asked him some questions about his decision.

“I emailed him and asked him about the school’s rules and his rules against breastfeeding. He emailed back right away and said that there were no rules, that he’s just following the syllabus guidelines.”

She also contacted the school to get their viewpoint on the matter, contacting the Title IX coordinator, and sharing the professor’s email. The coordinator talked to the professor directly, explaining that he had no right to stop Mares from feeding her child.

Mares soon received an email from her professor, apologizing. “I apologize for my remarks. … You may now breastfeed your baby when you need to and you may turn off your camera and microphone when you need to,” the professor’s email said.

Raising awareness

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But Mares didn’t stop there, she wanted to raise awareness of the plight that many mothers face when going to school. She did this by sharing a photo on her Facebook with her breastfeeding while working. She also left a comment on the photo:

“I didn’t want to post this picture because I just wanted it for me but I just wanted to show that I CAN focus in class WHILE breastfeeding my child. My professor changed the requirements for class & said we needed to have our camera & microphone on in order to receive credit for the attendance part of class.”

She hopes that the professor will think before trying to shame someone again, especially for doing something as simple and natural as feeding their child, stating:

“Breastfeeding mamas & any mama that is trying to juggle school, work, & a child should be praised not put down & humiliated. I love my baby & would choose her health over anything or anyone, any day of any week!”

H/T: Parenting Isn’t Easy, Today