Mobilized

Breastfeeding flash mobs rock Target: Angry moms take it to the boobs in charge

Breastfeeding came back to bite Target with a mass protest.
Moms in Philidelphia "before latch on."
Photo via @PghMilkTruck
Mississippi moms.
Photo via @gracelings

"A mother is entitled to breast feed her baby in any location in which the mother is authorized to be."

So reads a Texas state law on the oft-debated issue. But just because it's written into the books doesn't necessarily mean that a mom will be treated with respect while breastfeeding in public.

Friendswood resident Michelle Hickman tells KHOU she was shopping at the Target in Webster on Nov. 29, when her 4-month-old son, Noah, became hungry and fussy. She sat down in a remote part of the women's clothing section, covered up with a large blanket and began breastfeeding. Two female Target employees harassed Hickman, and even after a later phone call to corporate headquarters, Target refused to apologize.

As many lactation-centered injustices do, the story and the outrage spread. More mothers shared stories about similar issues with Target employees.

Hickman and thousands of other breastfeeding mothers across the nation decided to stage a form of matronly protest.

The result was a literal flash mob: On Wednesday, moms met up at more than 100 Target stores in at least 35 states (including the one in Webster) to stage a 10 a.m. "nurse-in" at the popcorn-scented food court, the in-store Starbucks or just in the middle of the aisles while browsing the post-holiday sales. As they're allowed to do.

Did you participate or see the display first-hand? Does public breastfeeding make you uncomfortable?

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”