Statement regarding the removal of LLL Leader accreditation from five LLLGB trustees

[IwantToRetire]

On 11th October, five of the trustees of La Leche League GB (LLLGB) were informed that their accreditation as LLL breastfeeding counsellors (known as Leaders) had been removed by the LLL International (LLLI) Board, for actions that had been taken in their capacity as trustees.

There is no concern around the breastfeeding support offered by any of these women. When the LLLGB Council of Directors was consulted by the LLLI Board, the Council made it clear they opposed the removal of accreditation as LLL Leaders of the five trustees. This removal affects their ability to offer breastfeeding support to hundreds of mothers across the country, despite the capabilities of the five never having been in question as breastfeeding counsellors.

The removal of accreditation is the result of an ongoing dispute arising from the conflict between LLLI policy and LLLGB’s charitable objects. All five of those affected remain trustees of the charity with the full support of the LLLGB Council.

https://laleche.org.uk/statement-regarding-the-removal-of-leader-accreditation-from-five-lllgb-trustees/

I cant find the thread(s) that had background on the split. Sorry. And searching didn't bring up anything useful.

Following. I suppose this is about gendered language.

There were several threads by a former member.

I've been finding MN search extremely unhelpful. However, using Google with La Leche League Mumsnet brought up a few pertinent threads. This was the earliest

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4091356-La-Leche-League-will-support-males-of-the-male-sex-who-wish-to-breastfeed

It's almost like women's services are being targeted and run down?

For some reason my search just now did bring up a thread (and it was started by me !)

Breastfeeding charity suspends trustees who want to ban trans women from its services
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5066540-breastfeeding-charity-suspends-trustees-who-want-to-ban-trans-women-from-its-services

This refers to six trustees and was posted in May, so not sure now whether the new link I started this thread with which refers to 11 October but no year is just last week or a year ago.

Yes i saw this a while back. I do not understand why women who find themselves in this position do not just say piss off and set up a new agency, LGBA did it.

Isn't it more that LLL GB is gradually breaking away from the US based LLL HQ?

Yes but why bother just set up a new gaff. I would not personally want the association with such numptys.

Oh and the best strategy if someone is on your playing field uninvited, take your ball elsewhere.

This is not always possible i accept. And we as a loose collective should and do support employees etc.

However there is such as thing as collective action, especially in sport.

Does my nut in that sportswomen leave Martina and Sharon out in the cold, and then get in a ring with a bloke, and cry afterwards.

The women at la Leche need to take their tits elsewhere.

Sorry for the rant some women really need to get their shit together.

Supporting men who want to breast feed makes me wonder if I’ve stepped into a dystopian parallel universe

Our local branch announced yesterday it was closing https://www.facebook.com/share/p/4kcfrBEqNxZx7F8X/

That's really sad. I wonder who many others will close.

Is there going to be any attempt to set up a totally different group for those who dont agree with LLL HQ?

Is accreditation with LLL accepted by other organizations? If so, setting up another organization could be a big job, and expensive, you'd have to have similar level training and outside groups would need to accept it.

Your probably right about cost etc..

I was just having a more gut reaction, that here are women wanting to support other women, and wanted to think they could continue to do so.

It’s not easy to leave a philosophy based organisation that has been around for decades and taught someone to love herself in her mothering role. Many don’t want to leave this wonderful, quietly radical and much cherished mother to mother support charity, I think there is still hope it can be saved even after this heartbreaking news. These disaccredited leaders are wonderful, generous and determined women and like willow saplings they are being blown but are not snapping.

There could be something to be said though for getting away from these organizations that are so bureaucratic and just getting back to some grass roots people getting together to talk about things they are concerned about or need support with.

I wonder when all of this will start to trigger any kind of interest/ concern among authorities. When I was breastfeeding, apart from some amazing initial support from a local NHS service which has since been axed, I was directed online towards mum-to-mum resources and my local LLL group because the official support just wasn’t there. So if that kind of help starts disappearing too, we really will start to see breastfeeding rates plummet- and they’re already low. But hey - we’ll have all these men breastfeeding instead to make up for the shortfall… won’t we?

Lovely post. Yet this is yet another service for women (and babies) being trashed by the demands of men with a fetish to access the service. Women are having to start again, creating support and services for women that women started decades ago.

Such a destructive ideology that has no respect for the needs and rights of women and children

Bit confused what's happening. Comment on that FB thread:

'I assume this is because you refuse to sign a statement of commitment that would require you to break the law governing the charitable aims? Shame on LLLLI! The organisation was created by mothers for mothers, all of them women. Being sacked for not promising to welcome men shows just how delusional those in control have become.'

https://laleche.org.uk/lllgb-statement-21-6-24/

https://x.com/LLLGB/status/1846073787541856415

They seem to have updated 'The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding' and it's now titled 'The Art of Breastfeeding'.

And they are now launching ' a new Priority Setting Partnership to gather unanswered research questions related to LGBTQIA+ perinatal care. If you have questions about becoming & being pregnant, birth, feeding & the year after birth for LGBTQIA+ people, tell us here: http://bit.ly/3Bev2zp'

Look at the accounts they tag.

Ah.

I shared a shortened link to the research that LLL are launching.

Re sharing with link redacted:

'a new Priority Setting Partnership to gather unanswered research questions related to LGBTQIA+ perinatal care. If you have questions about becoming & being pregnant, birth, feeding & the year after birth for LGBTQIA+ people, tell us here:'

The link goes to a survey.

The accounts LLL tag are worth a read.

Does anyone else remember this? Did the Baroness ever get an answer does anyone know?

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4096260-The-Baroness-takes-on-La-Leche-League

Just to try to clear up any potential confusion regarding why these women have been disaccredited, here is some background information:

‘“The removal of accreditation is the result of an ongoing dispute arising from the conflict between LLLI policy and LLLGB’s charitable objects. All five of those affected remain trustees of the charity with the full support of the LLLGB Council.”

LLLGB’s listing on the Charity Commission website

‘LLLGB is a voluntary organisation dedicated to providing education, information, support, and encouragement to women who want to breastfeed. Our mission is to help mothers to breastfeed through mother-to-mother support, encouragement, information and education, and to promote a better understanding, of breastfeeding as an important element in the healthy development of the baby and the mother.
TO PROMOTE THE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH OF MOTHERS AND CHILDREN THROUGH EDUCATION IN THE TECHNIQUE OF BREASTFEEDING, AND TO ADVANCE THE EDUCATION OF THE PUBLIC AND ESPECIALLY THOSE CONCERNED WITH THE CARE OF CHILDREN IN THE HEALTH BENEFITS BOTH IMMEDIATE AND LONG-TERM OF BREASTFEEDING.’

However the La Leche League International website states that

‘We at La Leche League have all nursed our babies. If you want to do the same, whoever you are, whatever your story is, we’re here to help. LLLI is committed to serving everyone inclusive of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, physical or mental ability, socio-economic status, political views, gender identity, sexual orientation, family structure, or other protected status.
Trans men, trans women, and non-binary individuals may choose to breastfeed or chestfeed their babies. You do not need to have given birth to breastfeed or chestfeed, as we can also see in the experiences of those nursing adopted babies.

llli.org/breastfeeding-info/transgender-non-binary- parents/

We can also see that LLLUSA has quite a different mission statement:
‘La Leche League USA helps parents, families, and communities to breastfeed, chestfeed, and human milk feed their babies through parent-to-parent support. LLL USA encourages, informs, educates, supports, and promotes the use of human milk and the intimate relationship and development that comes from nursing a child for as long as mutually desired’

So it seems that the essence of this issue is that the disaccredited Leaders are trying to keep the organisation’s GB area’s work and focus (mothers supporting mothers) true to the original mission (as specified in the Charity Commission listing) and LLL International is refusing to let them…