Dozens Gather For 'Nurse-In' At SMART Bus Terminal

TROY (WWJ) - A few dozen women, babies and dads staged a "nurse-in" outside the SMART Bus Terminal in Troy Friday.  WWJ Newsradio 950's Florence Walton reports the group wants to make a statement about breastfeeding.

Black Mothers Breastfeeding Association founder Kiddada Green said they are here in support of 32-year-old Afrykahn Moon, who was thrown off a SMART bus for breastfeeding her newborn son on June 24.

"So, we're in full support of Moon, and we're just really letting the world know that it's completely proper and appropriate to nurse your child and to feed your infant," Green said.

Moon began breastfeeding her two-week old son while waiting at the bus stop when the bus arrived. The driver told Moon she needed to finish nursing before boarding the bus, but Moon demanded her right to breastfeed in public and boarded the bus. The driver, a female, refused to leave the bus stop until Moon was finished breastfeeding. Security officers from the nearby Southland Center mall boarded at the next stop and ordered the mother and child off the bus.

"It wasn't, it was not a lot of things showing, you know. But, like Kiddada was saying, that's not the point, you know, it's like she's picky for no reason because I have the right to feed my baby," Moon said.

The parents said the purpose of the "nurse-in" is to show that breastfeeding in public is normal and should be accepted. They are also pushing for new legislation that would protect nursing mothers from discrimination.

The SMART bus driver who ordered Moon off the bus is on paid leave pending the outcome of an investigation. SMART is also promising to remind its 600 drivers that breastfeeding is allowed on buses.