Yesterday in the office we reminisced about Tia and Tamera’s reality show. On the Style Network series, we saw each of the sisters give birth and as they transitioned into motherhood, we saw them drink breast milk and eat placenta as well. This prompted one editor to ask: “Would you drink your sister’s breast milk?” As some of us said “hell no,” with the quickness, others were curious enough to say they’d give it a try. As we grappled between yeses and nos, another editor questioned, “Don’t you think it is weird humans drink milk from other animals and not their own species?” Point taken- but the real question is, why does breastfeeding or drinking breast milk make us uncomfortable as adults?
Earlier this summer we reported on Karlesha Thurman who was publicly shamed on the internet because she was seen breastfeeding her daughter during her graduation ceremony. People deemed Thurman’s actions inappropriate because of the event taking place. The majority of criticism Thurman faced was not so much about breast feeding but because her breast was exposed. Unfortunately in our society we don’t look at breasts the same way we look at our hands or feet. Breasts have become fetishized into sexual objects that only provide pleasure. Professor Lipscomb at Winthrop University reported via The Johnsonian that society has deemed breasts as erotic rather than maternal. Because of this, public breastfeeding or drinking breast milk past a certain age links to the public viewing the act as sexual rather than maternal.
“Lipscomb questioned if pop culture’s “eroticization of the breast” is really as natural as we think, for it’s this eroticization, Lipscomb feels, that is stunting the progress of breastfeeding rights in the U.S., as well as women’s interest in breastfeeding.”
Professor Lipscomb also stated in his report, when we become conscious about drinking breast milk or breastfeeding, it alerts us to how we are programmed to think about certain body parts. We asked our readers for their input and most claimed to only partake in drinking breast milk because of its nutritional value. Others shared they rather not taste their sibling’s secretions. Do you think you will be taking a sip of your sister’s breast milk when she has a child? Weigh in on the topic and let us know in the comment section after you check out this clip of Tamera drinking Tia’s breast milk below. Thoughts?
