You Told Me So

     I commented on a friend's FaceBook post last week about the Time magazine cover of a breastfeeding 4 year old.  She disliked the cover, I liked it.  I didn't like the caption, but I feel like it's important to have the image out there.  As a mom tandem breastfeeding a 2  YO and a 3 1/2 YO, it's kind of like the issue is coming out of the closet.  There is no bad press, as they say.
     My friend's comment was that it was a negative thing, because she was imagining the men at the photo shoot and the men working at Time magazine in sort of a Beavis & Butthead chuckle over the whole thing.  "Heh heh.  Boobies.  Heh heh." 
     Yesterday I was watching one of my favorite entertainers and most respected people in terms of human rights, kindness, and even coolness.  Ellen Degeneres.  One of the opening spots in the show was a spoof of sorts of this cover.  They showed the cover to several of Ellen's staff members, most of whom kind of recoiled in a "yuck" kind of way.  The last person to whom they showed the cover was a male, age 50-ish.  He asked "Can I keep it?" in a lewd sort of way.  I couldn't believe it.  Almost verbatim what my friend predicted / imagined.
     Of all people, Ellen Degeneres.  Champion of anti-bullying and same sex couples.  I believe in my heart that it is an ignorance thing and once Ellen hears from folks like me and gains a better understanding she will apologize for the lack of thought that went into that spot.  I sent an email to Ellen last night, asking her how she would feel if a male were depicted in the same way when shown a picture of two women embracing or kissing.  Could be Ellen and Porsche.  
     I hope the email makes it to Ellen, I really really hope it does.  And I hope that my email was not the only one.  In any case, I stand by my assertion that the magazine cover is a good thing.  I recently talked to a mom who was breastfeeding in front of a 10-12 year old cousin, who didn't even know what breastfeeding was.  This is our world we live in.  The cover and certainly the caption were not perfect, but if it opens up discussion and gets the topic out there, it's a good thing.
     Sending light and love,  Jen