Chick-fil-A manager handed a breastfeeding mom her jacket and asked her to cover up — the next night a group of nursing mothers showed up

Despite laws protecting women’s rights to feed their babies in public, breastfeeding is often stigmatized. In January 2020, Samantha Dawn McIntosh was sitting inside a Chick-fil-A in Evans, Georgia, breastfeeding her 7-month-old daughter Scarlett. That's when the store manager approached her with a jacket and asked her to cover up. And although she did stop the feeding, she was left disappointed and upset. The episode escalated into a full-blown rebellion, in which mothers gathered to stage a collective nurse-in at the restaurant, according to a January 24, 2020, CNN report.

Much ado over taboo

On that day, McIntosh was wearing a nursing tank top under a long-sleeved shirt, and none of her skin was showing as she fed the baby. But the store manager reportedly told her that some customers had complained about it. Even though McIntosh immediately stopped the feeding, the experience left her internalizing the public humiliation, especially given that she was not a confident breastfeeder. 

“So I quickly unlatch and tell the manager I will finish feeding her later. But as I sit there in this family-friendly restaurant, I start to simmer. I’ll admit it. I got angry,” she wrote in a Facebook post, which has since been deleted, per the New York Post.

Rebellion to normalize breastfeeding

The 24-year-old mother said she believed that she had the right to feed the baby however she wanted, but this experience left her distraught and confused. Her post about the incident invited a flurry of responses, including one from a woman named Jessica Gagush, who organized a collective nurse-in protest in the fast food restaurant the very next day. “We need to normalize breastfeeding and make sure that people are as comfortable as possible with moms feeding their kids however they decide,” Gagush told The Augusta Chronicle.

A group of mothers arrived in the restaurant to support the mother with a “nurse-in,” according to CNN affiliate WJBF. The mothers filled up the booths and tables and started nursing their babies. One of these mothers, Ashley Raskin, told WJBF, “With the way society is today, it’s ridiculous because you see people with summer clothes, which is fine, but I can’t sit here and discreetly breastfeed without making someone uncomfortable.” One of the primary reasons for the rebellion was that it is absolutely legal in the 50 states to breastfeed in public.

The biggest breastfeeding dilemma

According to the Georgia Breastfeeding law, women can breastfeed their baby in “any location where the mother and baby are otherwise authorized to be” and are encouraged in the interests of maternal and child health. A study published in the International Breastfeeding Journal analyzed data from 300 women and reported that 92% breastfed their babies in public. However, 52% of the women reported feeling uncomfortable, 27% were embarrassed, and 15% felt stigmatized. 72% of them thought that they should be able to breastfeed anywhere, while 70% said breastfeeding should be done in private places.

All's well that ends well

Eventually, the store operator, Jason Adams, was compelled to apologize to McIntosh. “I am truly sorry for the experience Ms. McIntosh had in our restaurant,” he said, “I have reached out to her to personally apologize. My goal is to provide a warm and welcoming environment for all of our guests.” McIntosh confirmed that he appeared genuinely apologetic for the whole situation.

He told her that he would pay more attention to training the staff so they understand how to handle situations like these in better ways. “Overall, I am happy with the way Chick-fil-A has responded to this incident and can only hope other moms will continue to feed their children in whatever way makes them most comfortable,” she said.

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