She stated, “I kind of laughed because I thought he was just making a really bad joke. After he went on, a woman came over and informed me that I wasn’t allowed to use the radio. I tried to get rid of the infant, but once he latches, he latches. ”.
Olivia, Landon, and Francis all left the pool to investigate Francis’ claim that the second employee repeated the no-breastfeeding rule.
Of course, nothing about kids was mentioned other than the requirement that infants wear swim diapers, which her son did. No food or drinks in the water, the manager told Francis, when she asked to speak to them, Francis claimed. ”.
She wrote, “Imagine all the bodily fluids being excreted into the water, but they’re worried about breast milk when the baby was latching, my breast was out of the water, and the milk was only going into the baby’s mouth.”. But it wasn’t even about him eating in the water; it was about how it made other guests feel. ”.
“I just wanted to let the other moms know because I’m so outraged and disturbed by how breastfeeding mothers are treated at Rigby’s Water World. ”.
Francis asserted that she asked Rigby’s for a refund for her $92.99 season pass but was denied. She claimed that day, as she left the facility, she started crying.
Francis cited Georgia law, which states that a mother is permitted to breastfeed her child anywhere she and the child are otherwise permitted to be. ”.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, nursing is not considered a public indecency under the laws of 31 of those states, and breastfeeding is legal in 50 states, including Georgia.
“I was wearing a one-piece swimsuit, and my son’s head covered more of my breast than just my suit did,” she asserts. My top was sufficiently lowered for him to feed, but nothing was visible. ”.
Due to the park’s heavy foot traffic on that particular day, the mother claimed that there wasn’t much of a place for her to breastfeed elsewhere.
Francis claims that Steve Brown, the vice president of operations at Rigby’s Water World, contacted her two days later to apologize.
The breastfeeding policy at Rigby’s was changed soon after the incident, according to Brown, and staff members received new legal training.
He said that in other areas of the park, nursing has always been permitted. According to him, “We had a policy in place that didn’t allow breastfeeding in the river and was in line with the health department’s standard on no eating or drinking in the pools.”.
Bathers are not permitted to consume food or beverages while in or partially submerged in the water, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health’s regulations for public swimming pools, spas, and recreational water parks. ”.
He asserts that Francis was encouraged to nurse there, ideally in the shade on a lounge chair, and that she was never asked to leave the water park; rather, she left on her own initiative.
He states, “We reviewed our policy and reached out to other experts who operate aquatic facilities.”. When I learned that it is legal for mothers to breastfeed wherever they are allowed to be, he continues. From there, we decided to permit visitors to nurse in the pools if they so desired.
Brown said that by calling Francis, he had expressed regret for the “misguided” policy.
He says, “We thought it was a violation of the health code.”. Although there are different points of view on the subject, we want to follow the law, so it was a misunderstanding and my fault for interpreting the law incorrectly.
Francis won’t get her seasonal pass back, according to Brown’s confirmation of Rigby’s policy.
Francis says, “In this case, we didn’t tell her she couldn’t come to the park or ask her to leave the park. We have not given her a refund because she is more than welcome to return to the park and nurse wherever she pleases.
Francis claims she finds it difficult to imagine returning to Rigby’s.
She wonders, “I don’t know what they expected—for me to lay down while they broke the law.”. “Especially for something that mothers are frequently shamed for. ”.
