The Weird Role Of Breastfeeding In Systems Of Injustice

Antiblackness shades everything, even how you feed your kids.

Breastfeeding is a hot-button issue in the world of mommy blogs. There’s mom-shaming on both sides of the issue as everyone just wants to feel like the decision they made about feeding their kids is the correct one — both for themselves and the rest of the world. But what is frequently ignored is the way in which breastfeeding or formula feeding has historically been construed to align with antiblackness.

In the latest episode of The Jabot podcast, I talk with University of Hawaii at Manoa William S. Richardson School of Law professor Andrea Freeman. We discuss her new book, Skimmed: Breastfeeding, Race, and Injustice which tells the heartbreaking story of the Fultz Quads, the first known identical African-American quadruplets. Their birth was seen as an opportunity for riches for the doctor who delivered them, then quickly stole the right to name them and used the girls for his medical experiments. That injustice has a throughline that can still be felt today.

The Jabot podcast is an offshoot of the Above the Law brand focused on the challenges women, people of color, LGBTQIA, and other diverse populations face in the legal industry. Our name comes from none other than the Notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the jabot (decorative collar) she wears when delivering dissents from the bench. It’s a reminder that even when we aren’t winning, we’re still a powerful force to be reckoned with.

Happy listening!

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