Mommyish Poll: Following The Bloomberg Formula Lockdown, Does This Ad Piss You Off?

It’s World Breastfeeding Week, which means lots of fun facts regarding the status of breastfeeding, great big nurse-ins, and some tips on that Facebook etiquette. But even though all of us on the Mommyish staff are pretty pro-breastfeeding, this year’s breastfeeding campaign is well-timed with Mayor Bloomberg‘s formula lockdown. Now, Mr. Bloomberg isn’t quite yanking formula from all New York City hospitals, but he is stepping into a hornet’s nest of sensitivity regarding breastfeeding. Considering that lactation experts have left many a woman feeling like they’re in the middle of “one big guilt trip” and other women physically cannot breastfeed for a host of reasons, Bloomberg’s initiative risks further stigmatizing an already touchy arena. Let us remember that formula samples are not the problem when discussing why mommies aren’t breastfeeding. A little maternity leave would help matters.

While I’m not exactly for formula companies shilling their products to new mothers left and right, the idea of a new mommy having to go request formula from behind a big judgey desk, much like a 13-year-old asking for a tampon in gym class, seems — forgive the term — infantalizing.

So to coincide with Bloomberg’s “nanny state,” as our editor-in-chief put it, Latch On NYC is reportedly putting up these ads across the NYC subways. The big red “factory made” versus the friendly green “mom made” makes that good and bad dichotomy pretty clear. Had I glanced up and saw this advertisement on my morning commute, I’d most likely just chalk it up to your standard (i.e. shame on all formula feeders) pro-breastfeeding public service announcements. But in the wake of Bloomberg asking hospitals to participate in a formula contraband initiative, I’m just a tad more annoyed.

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