Emma Kwasnica, Breastfeeding Mom, Says Facebook Yanked 'Sexually Explicit' Pictures [UPDATED]

The debate over how women choose to nurse their children -- not to mention where they do it, when they do it, and for how long -- has gone virtual.

The latest combattants in the breastfeeding war are moms posting breastfeeding pictures and Facebook. Emma Kwasnica, a 33-year-old mother of three living in Vancouver, said her Facebook account was suspended over the weekend after a photo of her nursing her toddler was flagged as sexually explicit. (This story has been updated. Scroll down for new information.)

"It's such a double-standard: if you type in 'breasts' on Facebook, you can see pages with thousands of members where there are naked breasts," Kwasnica told The Huffington Post. "How is that happening, when at least 30 women I know have had accounts shut down for a single breastfeeding image?"

Kwasnica, a breastfeeding activist, said she has at least 200 similar photos on her page. "Sure it's about sharing a beautiful moment," she said. "But I also want to renormalize breast feeding."

Her theory holds that with repeated exposure, society will just get over it and there won't be all those highly-publicized fights where women are kicked off of buses and out of courtrooms for nursing.

This isn't the first time Kwasnica said her Facebook account has been suspended for breastfeeding photos. It's happened at least four other times in the past five years, she said. One photo flagged in the past featured Kwasnica breastfeeding two of her children -- one age 2, the other 4 -- at once.

Outraged supporters have created a support page for Kwasnica and are posting photos of themselves breastfeeding as their profile pictures.

If Facebook doesn't allow breastfeeding photos, the social networking company can expect a "nurse-in" at its offices around the world on Feb. 6, Kwasnica said. "You don’t want the wrath of mothers," she said.

Facebook has sent mixed messages on the subject. Last month, the company publicly apologized to a North Carolina woman whose breastfeeding photo was removed. According to WCNC.com, Facebook said it was an accident:

"We agree that breastfeeding is natural and beautiful and we're very glad to know that it is important for mothers to share their experience with others on Facebook," a Facebook statement said.

Earlier this week, the Vancouver Sun reported that Facebook's Canadian publicist, Reena Dacdo, said breastfeeding is not exempt from the website's no-nudity standards.

"I recognize breastfeeding is a natural thing to do, but many users want to foster diverse respect so we have come up with a set of community standards," Dacdo said.

Kwasnica said she is puzzled that the standards would be different for Canadian and American women. Besides, she said, the site is not policing sexually explicit photos.

"Someone sent me a friend request today, and the profile photo is just an erect penis," she said.

UPDATE: Jan. 13 -
A Facebook spokesperson contacted The Huffington Post and issued the following statement:

"We agree that breastfeeding is natural and we are very glad to know that it is important for mothers, including the many mothers who work at Facebook, to share their experience with others on the site. The vast majority of breastfeeding photos are compliant with our Statement of Rights and Responsibilities and Facebook takes no action on such content. However, photos which contain a fully exposed breast, do violate our terms and may be removed if they are reported to us. These policies are based on the same standards that apply to television and print media. It is important to note that photos upon which we act are almost exclusively brought to our attention by other users who complain about them being shared on Facebook."

UPDATE: Jan. 23, 7 p.m. -
Kwasnica had a conference call with Facebook but said breastfeeding censorship continues. She issued the following statement:

"It is obvious to me now that Facebook really has lost control of their network, especially when their written policy clearly states they support the sharing of breastfeeding images, yet they say they cannot control the actions of their employees who keep removing breastfeeding images and who block accounts of the users who post them - usually "in error." This is exasperating to me."

Comments

[Joseph Guttenberg]

09:52 PM on 02/27/2012

Whether or not photos of breastfeeding is could somehow be at all enriching, Facebook or any other privately owned entity for that matter are not obliged to not censor their user-generated content. A Facebook account is a privilege–a free one, I might add–not a right. Even if the site wanted to censor dissent of democratic demonstrators against an oppressive regime, the same principle can be applied. If this doesn't stand well with you, declare a little patch on the web for yourself and buy a domain. My recommendation to Ms. Kwasnica would be to focus less of her energy on such petty losing arguments surrounding her First-World-Problems, and redirect it something like the unacceptably high infant-mortality rates across the globe.

[Joseph Guttenberg]

09:46 PM on 02/27/2012

zszdCZX

[crimminy]

10:04 PM on 02/25/2012

American society wants women to buy formula, shake it up, and go right back after work after giving birth. Breast feeding takes time, patience, and is often very challenging for new Moms who can't always "measure" how much milk their baby is getting. Many women quit - afraid they don't have enough milk. This kind of public humiliation does nothing for something which is already very much a struggle for women.

[GPOnPoint]

01:05 PM on 02/24/2012

I support the right of a mother to nurse her child anywhere she needs to. Without question, it's a part of life, it's a right, and it's not lewd or immoral in any way whatsoever. That being said, I don't see any reason why anyone would need to post 200 pictures of herself breast feeding their baby online. Or 200 pics of just about anything. That's sort of in your face, a "F- you I can do what I want" sort of action.

[manfrommars]

10:25 PM on 02/18/2012

I don't get it Zukkerbreast

[mamabear77]

03:15 PM on 01/20/2012

I truly support breastfeeding. I breastfed my son for more than a year. And I think breastfeeding should be allowed in public because when babies are hungry, they need to be fed immediately. Nonetheless, I think some of Emma's photos are too explicit. Most breastfeeding photos do not show the whole nipple. But some of her photos exposed everything. Breastfeeding is a beautiful thing. But it does not mean you need to let people see everything in an enlarged photo. The same is true with child birth or mother children bathing together. They are natual and beautiful. But do you need to post these birthing or bathing photos for the public to see?

[Tiffany Beck]

01:48 PM on 01/18/2012

I am a nursing mother and i know for a fact that when your nursing your child your full breast is not exposed. The baby covers most of the breast and then your only showing what everyone else calls cleavage! Why is it ok for a woman with a low cut shirt to show the same amount of breast on her profile pics on fb but if its a baby attatched its suddenly not ok?

[Ossit]

10:00 AM on 01/18/2012

It amazes me when a breast feeding mother is challenged. Take that baby into the bathroom with you. I don't want to see you. But you choose to look. You choose to make it sexual. But no one says of a teenager in low cut whatever, get out of the store, eat your lunch in the bathroom I don't want to see your stuff hanging out. When it suits it works.

What do I always hear from people? That country censored this! That Government censored that! Yet we want to censor each other. Don't like breast feeding pics? No one forces you to watch a video of it or see a picture.

Breast feeding moms are feeding their kids, nothing more, nothing less. They don't need to explain, justify, apologize, have their kids go hungry to suit you, they don't have to explain, defend, justify, apologize when they put pictures up. Censorship is horrible when it affects you, but dictate it for others?

The internet is an exhibitionists' dream. You have two choices. Don't look, or disconnect your internet. I don't see many disconnecting.

[Ossit]

09:31 AM on 01/18/2012

“oh, what a swing-and-­a-miss....­.paging Dr Freud!

LOL! You're a scream, Six Gator. Oh you made my morning! But I think I made a home run.

The point was "WHY"...ju­st why. WHY does a woman HAVE to post a pic of herself preast-fee­ding.

Would you ask the same questions of those who post their drunk pictures at a party? Why do people feel compelled to do that? Do you ask the same of those who use their cell phones at an airport and tape someone being manhandled and post it on YouTube when it accomplishes nothing?

Do you ask the same questions of why people would LOOK at drunk pictures of themselves on Facebook, why people would film TSA molesters and YouTube them when it changes nothing? Do you question why people would LOOK at Porn sites to see people Jungle Jumping themselves? But you rag about breast feeding moms and question them? They don't need to explain anything to you.

The internet is what it is. All things for all people. Then when censorship hits the internet that affects YOU, then you'll be angry because your choice to see certain things, put up certain things will be affected.

[LeoChild]

08:59 AM on 01/18/2012

Mothering magazine recommends breast feeding your kid for 18 years.

[DandaPanda]

08:41 AM on 01/19/2012

I live in Santa Fe. There are some women there who are in fact nursing kids in public who are well over 4. At that point its time for therapy.

[kvetinka]

10:15 PM on 01/17/2012

You know how many paintings of breastfeeding women I saw at the Met? Why isn't anybody taking them down?

[melissamae1984]

01:19 PM on 01/16/2012

ok id just like to start out saying im a bf mother myself all these breastfeeding mothers who are making a big stink about it are doing it for attention not to promote breastfeeding like they say. the pic.s i seen that where deleted the womans nipples where showing. that is a clear violation of fb. i do have a question y is it sooo important that they expose their whole breast while breastfeeding? that is what society has a problem with not breastfeeding ive breastfeed many times out in public and not once was i harassed. on the contrary i had a few people ask what i was doing and when i explained that the baby was eating they told me what a great job i was doing. and no i didnt have a blanket over my babys face. there are ways to breastfeed without covering ur baby up or showing ur whole breast. there are tasteful ways to breastfeed out in public without having to expose yourself. another thing i dont understand is y do these women feel the need to feed their toddlers out in public. im sorry but there is not reason to bf ur toddler out in public. their old enough to eat snacks, meals, and drink juice, or water. as far as the pic. are concerned what is the point of splashing a private moment between mother and child there are a lot of sick people int he world

[marianproletarian]

02:53 PM on 01/17/2012

You are entitled to your opinion, and I would also never bare my breasts in public to nurse, but there is really no reason they should NOT breastfeed their todders in public--that is off topic.

[DandaPanda]

08:43 AM on 01/19/2012

Of course there is.

[Brianna Cole]

12:34 AM on 01/16/2012

Either breasts are ok, or they are not. Its simple. You say how "much" boob can be shown, and you follow that guideline at all times. If a young woman posts a "sexy" pic with too much showing: Yank it. If a breastfeeding woman does the same: Yank it. If the breastfeeding pics are respectable and adhere to the guidelines you are imposing, they don't get yanked. Its just like the updated part of the story says. Some, violated the terms. If they don't however, FB has no right to yank them.

[maternatura]

12:16 AM on 01/16/2012

Ashok Hegde said:

"I'm not against breast feeding in public, in general...­but, I'd like to hear a real argument about "why". That it's "natural" doesn't cut it. That your baby needs it only leads to questions of the public demanding a level of privacy, from each of us. (we're used to thinking privacy is one way...it's not)

"Rights" are a strange thing...wh­ere they begin and end isn't easy. If I'm a proprietor­, like Target, should I be allowed to ask women to breastfeed in private? If I'm a parent in the community, can I ask the same, to keep my 10 year olds away from that topic until I teach them more? How about at a public park, or in school, or where? In workplaces­, why are infants even around? Non parents have rights too.

It's a strange question..­.that it's "Natural" doesn't seem convincing enough. "

My answer to follow....

[maternatura]

12:31 AM on 01/16/2012

Ashok,

You bring up reasonable arguments. I've never used the "it's natural" argument. All I have ever said is that Americans in particular seem very uptight about a topic that no one else even bats an eyelash about in most other societies or even in the past. Anything related to the body is obscene and, yet, we are a highly sexualized society that finds sexual meaning in everything. Therefore, it is verboten in polite society.

Regarding "Rights" I believe that common sense should prevail on both sides of the issue. Knowing that babies need to be fed when they are hungry means that allowances should be made for breastfeeding in public and a degree of modesty in mixed company. I'm not necessarily too worried that a child might see a woman breastfeeding. For goodness sakes, they see much worse on TV that is far more scandalous -- sexy scenes and violence toward women.

You are right.... the "it's Natural" argument isn't convincing. That's why I've never used it. I have said that this issue is "much ado about nothing."

[oberlinkay91]

10:41 PM on 01/15/2012

Okay isn't there on option that allows VEIWERS to FLAG photos?? Shouldn't she be mad at her friends, not facebook? Could you imagine how many photos facebook would have to actually look at? It probably just gets removed when flagged.

[daisy102030]

09:16 PM on 01/17/2012

Yes. This is how most of the photos get pulled. FB doesn't follow up every single reported photo (especially if enough people report it). How do I know? I've reported BFing photos, but I always cite the reason as offensive...same with any baby/preggo/spawn ads. And yes, I have trolled BFing FB pages for the sole purpose of reporting the nastier photos :) You're welcome.

[daisy102030]

09:31 PM on 01/17/2012

To be fair, I also report nasty non-BFing photos too. Sorry, I may be a hetero female but darn it, I like pretty breasts!