...to ask what you think of this new breastfeeding video?

[clitorisorclitoraint]

I found it a tadge patronising.

You?

It is a little presumptuous for some posters to assume that people are responding negatively to this video because they are ignorant about breastfeeding. I breastfed DD for just over two years, and I don't understand why a video has been made that sexualises breastfeeding mothers.

You only have to look at threads on MN to realise that one of the reasons people don't like breastfeeding is because they think it is sexual and that breastfeeding in public is some kind of sexual exhibitionism. Putting bf mothers in corsets on youtube is not going to dispel that myth.

In addition to that, many people think burlesque is sleazy and promotes the sexualisation of women. If you want to make breastfeeding normal, why attempt to promote it by associating it with something like Burlesque that many people are uncomfortable with?

I am sure that some good ideas could have been come up with if the makers had asked for help off some marketing students rather than getting advice from a glamour model and some burlesque performers.

There have been some really good ideas on here - breastfeeding extras on soaps, and seeing FF mothers and BF mothers feeding their babies alongside each other, which is, in my experience, what actually happens in real life.

It does seem as if there is literally nothing left that cannot be sexualised. Perhaps there will be a sequel where women having natural births will do a pole dance during second stage labour to show how confident, sexy and sassy they can be about childbirth.

'midwifeVH - I don't think formula companies 'jazz up' formula feeding - they are very clever and have made formula feeding the 'normal' thing to do. They use normality to sell formula milk. They show normal women, normal babies formula feeding. They imply that it's normal for babies to go four hours between a feed and sleep through by three months.

They know most women consider themselves 'normal' and are marketing their milk as normal.

A friend of mine didn't breastfeed because she said she's just a normal mum, nothing special, not good enough to try and give the 'best' that is breastfeeding.

We need to redress the balance by turning this around and making breastfeeding normal.

We are making progress, and midwives like you, by giving good breastfeeding advice, are doing a fabulous job in improving breastfeeding rates.

And as MillyR says, I don't think anyone needs to prove their breastfeeding credentials to give their opinion on this thread.

It is just as presumptuous to say that MN members represent all of society and their view on BF! Although I also agree that you don't have to have any breastfeeding credentials to comment.
When you BF for 2 years did you never get dressed up to go out or to some kind of social even or did you feel as you were breastfeeding it was compulsive that you didn't do any thing that made you seem sexy for fear of being deemed as having some kind of breastfeeding sexual fetish? Remain celibate for the whole 2 years really is the only option if that's your stand point.
I breastfeed and still feel sexy. You don't have to forgo one for the other they are not mutually exclusive.
I don't think the breastfeeding mothers in the vid were being provocative in any way, Did you? The dancers were doing a dance that involved those well known sex shop staples cabbage leaves, breast pumps and muslin squares.
The comment about the birth pole dancing is utterly ridiculous and did make me lol. Giving birth is not a way of living your life a choice you make that affects the way you go about your day to day living is it? (apart from the obvious fact you get a baby afterwards that changes your life) The giving birth part of it isn't something you will be doing lots of times throughout the day for months.
Midwives giving great advice about breastfeeding is fabulous but it's clearly not doing that much of a good job as breastfeeding rates in this country are still low. Do you agree more needs to be done?

Well I loved the video and the tune. Thought it was fab. Especially liked how it married up the dual functions of breasts- baby feeders and sexy funbags. ;)

Bravo!

Who is saying Mumsnet represents the whole of society?

The mumsnet demographic is very limited.

"You only have to look at threads on MN to realise that one of the reasons people don't like breastfeeding is because they think it is sexual and that breastfeeding in public is some kind of sexual exhibitionism." MillyR in her post above belgo

mummamizz - I don't think what I wear to feel 'sexy' is particularly relevant to this thread, but I don't feel the need to get dressed up in a corset to feel sexy.

And I don't want to feel 'sassy'.

Of course more needs to be done to help women breastfeed successfully. The argument is the way we go about it - as another poster says, I don't think we need to make a song and dance about bfing, I think that may even be off putting to some women.

What we need to do is to encourage bfing to be seen as normal. Having women bfing as extras in soap operas etc. is a very good suggestion.

I have seen one music video which features bfing, I will link to it.

No, I didn't feel 'sexy' during the two years of breastfeeding; I felt sexual, being I am an adult human being. I didn't feel the need to objectify myself and put on an act of sexiness for other people. Yes, I did have sex, because again, I am an adult human being and most adults want to have sex.

I am sure that during those two years some people found me sexually attractive because I was an average woman in my early twenties dressing and behaving as young women on average do. It's not really equivalent to getting dressed up in a corset and posting it on youtube though.

I have no idea why you are asking these questions, or why you think that having sex rather than being celibate is equivalent to sexualised performance or stripping - it isn't. Sex, desire, and breastfeeding are entirely ordinary activities. These things are all mostly done outside of the sex industry, which Burlesque is. Of course it is provocative to associate breastfeeding with strippers. How can it not be?

You have now moved well beyond the content of this video and on to territory of making out that women who don't like performative sex or performative sexuality are some kind of prudes with issues that would require them to remain celibate. So the video has got across the message that people said it would - whatever you do as a woman, you also have to appear sexy and up for it, or there is something wrong with you.

at about 50 seconds. I'm linking to it because I like the singer. She's Belgium.

mummamizz - MillyR isn't saying that they represent the whole of society; just giving one reason why some people don't like bfing.

I didn't say that MN represented the views of all of society. For a start, we're almost all mothers, which is clearly not what society is mostly made up of.

Can you all not understand if they made a normal video it would be bloody boring and nobody would watch it! But with 5123 hits on youtube in only two days they have obviously done something right as its putting breastfeeding in the public eye which no 'normal video' would do good luck to everyone who took part and made it. I personally think its a brilliant idea and all the myms look great despite the above bitchy comments.

I was asking if the other poster ever dressed up and felt sexy in the 2 years that she breastfed or if she was of the view point that you cannot be sexy if you breastfeed. It wasn't just a random "what do you wear to feel sexy?" question! I'm also not suggesting that we have to all don corsets, fishnets and fire engine red lipstick in order to be sexy. As I'm sure your aware.
I know I'm beginning to repeat myself but drip feeding breastfeeding into our every day lives is a good idea but soap operas won't put it in that often because it doesn't represent a big enough demographic in society to warrant it not only that but people still have prejudices about it so is at the risk of complaints from narrow minded people. So without using soaps or tv programmes how do you get it out there for normal mums to see Belga?
Look fwd to seeing the link

Perhapes the remaining celibate comment was a little much. I was not suggesting that people who don't like performative sex are prudes either. That's words you have put in my mouth.
What I got from your post was you object to women breastfeeding and being seen as sexual as well, like you cannot do them both. When as you say we are adult human beings and it is natural.
Would also like to point there was no stripping involved either. It is meant to be slightly amusing and a bit controversial to get noticed and viewed.
I don't agree that the video is saying whatever you do you have to be sexy and I certainly do not hold that view either. You don't HAVE to follow what a comedy video on breastfeeding says to do do you? It's just about getting it out there and should be taken for what it is a light hearted video designed to get breastfeeding noticed .

Or the issue could be that as breastfeeding is not seen as normal so where is the incentive to persevere when you have formula which is marketed as being almost as good, a whole lot easier to do and everybody else does it.

You seem unable to make a distinction between being sexual and putting on a performance of sexy, which is probably why you can't follow the content of my posts. I have no idea how sexual any of the women in the video are; I just know that they are putting on a performance of sexy because somebody has asked them to do so.

Burlesque is a kind of stripping - the women are dressed as strippers. In much the same way as if they were dressed as firefighters I would ask what firefighting has to do with breastfeeding; I don't need to see them putting out a fire to ask the question. Actually, it would make quite a good video if they did have women who breastfed also appeared as firefighters, nurses, teaching assistants, shop assistants and so on - you know, actually representing the fact that breastfeeding mothers are just like everybody else.

Breastfeeding is out there - it is noticed. Often it is noticed for the wrong reasons; that is why we have laws protecting the right to breastfeed. So we don't need more exposure to breastfeeding - we need more positive exposure to breastfeeding. Many people don't think this video is positive, which is what is being discussed on this thread (and on other forums in similar ways).

Im sorry MillyR i was really shocked when I saw this thread and the negativity everyone I know who has seen it has liked it and seen the funny side, its not meant to be taken seriously you can tell that its just about getting the breastfeeding message out there without being dull. Which other forums are discussing just out of interest?

Really sorry you're not able to understand the meaning of the video.

Aside from the ethics of the video, I think the women in it look fantastic!

Lula, that's the thing about media though. The meaning it has is the meaning the viewer gives to it. Given that there is a sexualisation debate going on right across the media, and within the Government, and that many people on MN pointed out how dodgy the idea was before the video was even made, you can hardly be surprised that many people don't take it as a bit of fun.

I am just really glad that my kids are now 10 and 13, and I don't have to breastfeed in the current climate of sexualisation.

Thanks for the comments and advice.

"Really sorry you're not able to understand the meaning of the video."

Imo if you have to explain something like a promotional video its not doing its job properly.

Yeah I agree the women look good, not many people could pull it off myself included.:)

Also I never realised that people thought breastfeeding and being sexy/sexual were mutually exclusive.

Nobody does think they are mutually exclusive, DF. Being a nurse and being sexual or sexy are not mutually exclusive, but we don't try to encourage people to become nurses by putting out youtube videos of women handing out medicine or working in an operating theatre while wearing a burlesque costume. In fact, if we did, female nurses would rightfully complain that it was sexual discrimination. The same goes for any public health campaign - we don't have women in burlesque costumes encouraging us to cross the road safely, or avoid food poisoning.

What I find hard about this debate is that this video is such a mix of super positives and cringing negatives.

Breastfeeding as a fun activity is a great message, but burlesque is not really my cup of tea - somebody once described it "stripping for the middle classes".

Still, the women are beautiful, in the way that healthy youth always is - and most importantly they are not professional dancers, but mums that wanted to spread the pro breastfeeding message. So I was finding it a bit sad yesterday to read negative comments towards the participants, as some were mnetters, and actually reading the thread.

I think I mostly disagree with the sentiment of the person organising it, the obsession with cows and vilification of formula, and also that the website contains an interview with a professional burlesque dancer. And I do find the term "sexy & sassy" a bit pigeon-holing, unless you're 14 and only care what the boys think about you.

As for the calls for Kerry Catona and Jordan to breastfeed, that would probably put me off, I don't really like the look "once I got my tits out for the lads and now for my baby". Big Yuck.

Its so silly. The cows and the melons?

When I was bfing (failed both times) I viewed my breasts as a physical tool to feed my baby with. I don't want to compare them to melons or to bring bfing down to something as daft as burlesque dancers it makes it embrassing.

Definitely doing more harm than good, why people haven't got this yet I really don't know.