Motherhood in our culture is often a very lonely place. It’s a place that receives criticism from every direction: culture, religion, politics, friends and family. No matter what choices a mother makes, she faces people who will openly tell her that they disagree with her decision, or people who will give her sidelong glances and raised eyebrows. And sadly, much of the time, mothers are the ones doing this to other mothers. But here’s the truth: we are all doing the best job that we can. We’ve all got things that limit us, things we have to deal with and work around. But we all love our babies and want the best for them.
I’ve been a lurker in the Public Breastfeeding Awareness Project for a couple of years now. My friend, Leilani Rogers, started this project in 2013 to help normalize breastfeeding in public. She wanted to show the world images of women feeding their babies in all the places babies need to be fed. I joined the project because I believe that women should feed their babies whenever, wherever, and however they choose, but it wasn’t until this year that I finally made the time to participate with photography. I decided to take a group of mamas and their little ones on a ferry ride. As a photographer, I knew that light on the ferry would be beautiful, and as a mama who nursed all three of her little ones on ferry rides, it felt like a very real life scenario. I opened up my model call to breastfeeding AND bottle-feeding mamas because I wanted to show that there are many “normal” ways to feed a child.
What I didn’t expect, though perhaps I should have, was how powerful this session would be. Nine mamas boarded the ferry (and several daddies) with their little ones ranging in age from seven weeks old to over two years old. They sat and chatted and fed their babies and shared their stories, and it was beautiful. We were all there for a common purpose, to normalize breastfeeding in public, but what hit me is how supportive everyone was of each other. We were all mamas, doing mama things, and there wasn’t an ounce of criticism to be found.
Below are some of the images we created, along with a little testimonial from each mama. These mama’s stories bring so much power to this project. I am honored to have met and photographed each of these amazing mamas. Mamas who are doing the very best job they can. Enjoy!
For more beautiful Public Breastfeeding Awareness Project photos, visit Paige Wilks of Austin, TX.
Jamie Elzea - Jessica, I just wanted to express my gratitude for letting me be a part of your public baby feeding project. It was so lovely to be on that ferry and get to talk to all those mamas nurturing in their own unique ways. It was amazing for me how much the power of that experience continued to amplify with each beautifully photographed moment of feeding you shared online.
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