Is it OK to put breastfeeding pictures online?

As actress Georgia Tennant has a photo taken down...

AAUTHOR AND BROADCASTER CTRESS Georgia Tennant, the wife of actor David, sounds like a good egg.

She shared her experience of cervical cancer on social media, posting a photo of herself in a hospital gown, to raise awareness. So in a fight between her and Facebook, I’d like to be on her side. Sadly, I am not.

She feels that by removing a photo of her breastfeeding her daughter, Birdie (pictured), the social media giant ‘sexualised’ it. It’s an elegant black-and-white image, and there’s not a nipple in sight.

Her threat, in response, to squirt the Facebook CEo Mark Zuckerberg in the eye, seems fine by me: he’s been asking for it for years. Also in her favour is the fact I have always championed public breastfeeding — despite the squawks of horror I heard when I praised House of Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, for raising the ban on it in the Chamber.

As a working mother with a voracious newborn, I had to feed anywhere. I once did it in a committee meeting with some chief constables, after my babysitter plans fell through. No one ever complained, except one old git on a delayed train. He piped down pretty fast when I offered him the choice: screaming or feeding?

So hooray for liberated nursing. But the trend for sharing photos of it? That bothers me, and I wish Georgia hadn’t posted her carefully curated shot on a public noticeboard for fans to admire. ‘So powerful! You are a star!’ they wrote. Fans of a different

It isn’t sexual, but it is definitely self-centred

kind, of course, will just perve at the upper curve of her breast and imagine the rest. of course they shouldn’t.

But even in this age of Instagram bragging, the brelfie or ‘breastfeeding selfie’ feels wrong. Feeding a hungry baby anywhere is natural: bystanders can look away, or smile in approval. often, new mums are a bit chaotic rather than glamorous — with a bag full of nappies looped over their arm. It’s the essence of maternal un-selfawareness, and rather lovely.

You are certainly not making a point about how wonderful you are as a mum, or there to depress women who can’t feed or had to give up early. It’s just that you’re there, in real time, and so is a hungry baby.

But to adjust and post a photo of yourself looking gorgeous and serene is different. Not sexual, but definitely self-centred. Babies are not props to adorn a mother’s image, especially not while, unaware of the camera, they’re just trying to have dinner.