Black Breastfeeding Week

The Black community has a long and complicated history with breastfeeding, and so the stigma surrounding the practice runs deep. Back during the days of slavery, many Black women were forced to breastfeed the White children of families that they were enslaved to.

It was a degrading theft of resources and the exploitation of Black women and their bodies. As this was an all-too-common practice, most Black women stopped or refused to breastfeed their own children.

However, moving forward to motherhood post-slavery, the practice of not breastfeeding Black children had become a cultural norm. Breastfeeding was not a common practice amongst the Black community and had begun to take on the connotation of being ‘only for White women’.

The use of formula has been marketed toward Black mothers for decades. Formula can be a great alternative for mothers who are not able to breastfeed, or for children transitioning from a diet of only milk to the introduction of soft foods and cereals. However, solely relying on formula does include higher health risks for you and your baby.