Mother breastfeeds baby in car – then the situation escalates
A 26-year-old mother in Gmunden, Upper Austria, says she was verbally attacked by an older man after she breastfed her six-month-old daughter inside her car. The incident has reignited debate over breastfeeding in public.
The mother told the *Krone* that she had been out with her baby when the six-month-old became hungry. She initially planned to breastfeed the child on a park bench, but an older man was already sitting there, so she decided to use her car instead.
Because temperatures had climbed above 30°C, the woman started the car so she could use the air conditioning while feeding her daughter. The older man noticed her, stood in front of the vehicle, stared at its license plate and began angrily complaining about her breastfeeding.
The mother reportedly tried to speak to the man, but the conversation did not resolve the situation. She said this was not her first negative experience. Just days earlier, another man had also confronted her and argued that breastfeeding should not take place in public and should instead be done at home.
The incident has highlighted the difficulties some mothers face when feeding their babies outside the home. Breastfeeding consultant Heike Frenner described attacking mothers for feeding their children as completely unacceptable, stressing that breastfeeding is a natural part of caring for a baby.
There is also no general legal prohibition against breastfeeding in public in Austria. According to the report, exposing a breast to breastfeed a baby does not constitute a criminal offense. Many mothers also choose to cover themselves and their babies with a cloth while feeding.