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THE TROUBLES ARISING WHEN BREASTFEEDING IN PUBLIC

Most women have no difficulty discretely breastfeeding their babies in public. Then there is the tale of the newly-elected Victoria State legislator in Australia, former Australian Olympic skier, Kirstie Marshall.

Ms. Marshall, who was attending her first session of Parliament, heard the bells ringing calling Parliament to order for question period. Not wanting to miss this, her first session, Ms. Marshall hurried to her seat, whereupon her 11-day old daughter, Charlotte, began to cry from hunger. Ms. Marshall promptly began to discreetly breastfeed her in the Chamber.

No sooner had Ms. Marshall begun, than the Sergeant-at-Arms tapped her on the shoulder and told her that Charlotte had to leave the Chamber in accordance with the rule that no strangers may remain while the House was in session. Unfortunately Charlotte, although she had been an integral part of her mother's election campaign, since she was inside her womb all that time, she had not, regrettably, been elected to Parliament herself and had to leave the Chamber.

Ms. Marshall said that she and her daughter would abide by the rules for now, but she remains hopeful that the rules will change so that she will be able to feed the little stranger in the Chamber in the future. Certainly, Charlotte will be a bit quieter that way.

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