6 tweets that capture the truth about breastfeeding

The thing about babies is that they have to eat.

But the thing about society is that we’re so conditioned to seeing women’s bodies and breasts in a sexual way that catching a glimpse of them being used in a completely normal and natural way often elicits strong reactions. And not necessarily the best kind.

So, when women like model Nicole Trunfio do something like — gasp — breastfeed a baby on the cover of a big magazine, people take notice.

(Can I just mention how much I love what she said here?)

There is nothing more powerful and beautiful than motherhood. The last thing I want to do is be controversial, so please take this for what it is, let us #normalizebreastfeeding there is nothing worse than a mother that is judged for feeding her hungry child in public. #weareonlyhuman I’m so proud of this cover and for what it’s stands for. I obviously don’t look like this while I am breastfeeding but this stands for all women out there, whether you breastfeed or not, we gave birth, we are women, we are mothers. Thank you to ELLE for being so bold and making such an encouraging, positive and healthy statement. #womenunite
A photo posted by Nicole Trunfio (@nictrunfio) on May 20, 2015 at 9:21pm PDT

When babies are hungry, moms should be able to feed them without worrying about criticism.

That’s exactly what Trunfio did while on the photo shoot — and that’s how the cover came about.

“This wasn’t a contrived situation: Zion needed a feed, Nicole gave it to him, and when we saw how beautiful they looked we simply moved her onto the set,” Elle Australia’s editor in chief Justine Cullen said. “It was a completely natural moment that resulted in a powerful picture.”

The photo that Elle Australia originally intended — Trunfio wearing a Prada dress, holding her baby — will be on the cover of copies sold at newsstands. Subscribers will receive the breastfeeding version.

Trunfio’s Elle Australia cover sparked the #NormalizeBreastfeeding hashtag on Twitter, where people shared their thoughts.

Little truth bombs, like:

Words of support:

Words that highlight what’s actually happening — trying to normalize what’s normal:

And, really, here’s the bottom line:

Image via Martin/FunnyAnd