No Cover-Up
Mothers keep local librarians abreast
of state law

by Alan D. McNarie

In Hawai'i County, go-go dancers must wear bikini tops, and the nudity at Kehena Beach is tolerated only unofficially. Yet Hawaii state law declares, "It is a discriminatory practice to deny, or attempt to deny, the full and equal enjoyment of goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages and accommodations of a place of public accommodations to a woman because she is breastfeeding a child."
Last January, a Hilo Public Library staffer told patron Amber Scott to find someplace more private to nurse her baby. Hilo Library Supervisor Caludine Fujii backed her employee in a letter responding to Scott's written complaint.
Many found the library's attitude much more offensive than an exposed nipple. Molly Mantree, another nursing mother, contacted the local branch of the breastfeeding advocacy group La Leche League and suggested a protest.
"La Leche said they thought it was great, but nobody was organizing it," Mantree recalled. So she and Lofton started making phone calls and soon had a collection of home-schooling parents and La Leche league members organized to march from the Hilo Farmer's Market to the library. After half an hour of sign-waving, which drew honks of encouragement from several passing motorists, they moved inside to present Fujii with their own letter, asking the library to "adopt a specific policy that women be allowed to breast feed as openly or discreetly as they are comfortable with." Several mothers went into the children's section and nursed their babies.
But even before the protest, they had already won. Scott had received a letter from State Librarian Jo Ann Schindler, apologizing for the incident and promising to educate librarians statewide about the rights of nursing mothers.
Scott didn't go to the protest. She told the Journal that she thought Schindler's letter was sufficient. But the other women went ahead with the demonstration to educate the public and support Scott.
It started last January; Scott was in line with her five-month-old and her 2-year-old, when the infant "started fussing." She went into the children's to nurse the baby.
"A librarian named Mrs. Crain saw me nursing and gasped and asked me to find someplace more private to nurse," Scott, Crain suggested that she conceal herself behind some partially folded accordion doors in the children's area.
"I told her I didn't feel I had to hide to breastfeed my son," said Scott.
The incident stayed with her. In February, she returned to the library and filled out a comment form, complaining about Crain's behavior.
She wasn't satisfied with Fujii's response, so she took it to the top.
"We will be working with employees at all Hawaii State Public Library System locations to ensure that they are fully aware of Hawaii Revised Statute 489-21 on Breastfeeding in Public Accommodations," Schindler wrote. "As this is state law, we will not be creating a separate policy regarding breastfeeding rights in the library. Educating our employees and informing library customers about a mother's right to breastfeed her child will enhance our efforts to create libraries which are safe, inviting, and enjoyable for all."
"I feel that the larger part of the community would back my original stance," Fujii told the Journal.
"We do abide by the state law, but the state law is somewhat at odds with the community standards for acceptable behavior," but said the outcome of the incident had been "positive" and educational, since it "raised the level of awareness of the library staff to breastfeeding."
"The staff will welcome all breastfeeding mothers in the library, an they are free to breast feed in wherever they want to, whenever they want to, and however they want to."

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