Am I Mom Enough?: Time Magazine’s Cover Controversy

Well well well…seems TIME magazine has ruffled feathers and caused quite the stir. Have you seen the latest cover? Well if you haven’t, here it is…

I haven’t had a chance to buy the magazine to read the article, but I have seen quite a few articles since yesterday discussing the cover. We thought we would share our first reactions and thoughts with you, as well as a few from some of our readers. Feel free to share your thoughts and comment!

My (Ashlee’s) thoughts (AMB Contributor, mom of 3):

#1 Do I have an issue with a mom breastfeeding past the age of 3 (he turns 4 in June)? No I don’t, to each their own. Would I do it? No, but I don’t think anything negative about a mom for doing it. Is breastfeeding this long what I think of as attachment parenting? No, but TIME wanted/needed an attention grabbing cover and they sure as hell succeeded. It causes controversy and controversy sells. Good job marketing team!

#2 I do find the photo a little odd. It certainly does not depict how I perceive breastfeeding. For me breastfeeding my babies was a special bonding time that included snuggling, stories, and songs….this is none of those things. His eye contact with the camera weirds me out a bit, but that’s just me.

#3″Am I Mom Enough”…..mom enough for what exactly? Mom enough to have 3 babies (one drug free), be a stay at home mom, breastfeed (for 17 months FYI), change diapers, car pool, clean snot of many surfaces on bodies and in house/car, be room mom for 2 classrooms, be team mom for 2 baseball teams, help with homework, cook, clean, play…the list could go on and on….or mom enough to breastfeed my kids until they are one month shy of 4? Oh I am mom enough and I dare anyone to try and challenge it. She is no more of a mother than me or any other mother. She doesn’t need some super mom award for going the extra distance, she is just doing what she thinks is best for her son. High five for doing what she thinks is best, not for the actual action of breastfeeding past 3 and showing it off on the cover of TIME.

Allison’s thoughts (AMB Co-Founder, mom of 1):

My sister sent me this article about TIME mag’s cover thinking it would be a good blog topic. I rolled my eyes and knew I couldn’t write about it since I got the wrath (okay not really, but I certainly offended some) on my last breastfeeding blog… BUT I’ll go ahead and give it a stab at what I think: First, I love her outfit!!! A close second thought, I think this child is entirely too big to be breast feeding!!! I know he’s standing on a chair but he looks like he’s 5 years old! Back in the 1920s my grandfather breastfed until he was 5 years old and he turned out just fine, but I’m just weirded out at the mere thought of my 21 month old breast feeding that I can’t even imagine doing so at this age! To each his own, I guess… Oh and my third thought is the potential embarrassment this child will face from peers later in life for always being known as the kid that was on Time’s cover breastfeeding. Fourth thought, how did the picture taking process go? “Hey little Jimmy can you go ahead and start sucking again and look this way at the camera?”. I think the picture itself is stranger than the concept of breastfeeding at this age.

Jessica’s thoughts (AMB Contributor, mom of 1):

My honest initial reaction is annoyance. It is annoying that TIME is making such an obvious attempt at buzz, but it worked, so hey, good for them. Breastfeeding however long you want to is cool with me (as I have mentioned before, I am an unabashed lactivist); however, this defiant cover and title reflects what I find annoying about Attachment Parenting . . . It acts like this is the natural, normal way of raising children, and that ever letting your baby cry or leaving your baby is evil, and maybe it is in cultures with tons of support. But this is America, 2012, and when I tried to “follow my instincts” and do all the AP things, despite the fact that I lived not in a village but in a city with no family and practically no friends at the time, I ended up beaten down and exhausted (and angry) with a baby that couldn’t sleep and wouldn’t accept other caretakers if any magically appeared out of thin air. AP (Dr. Sears) asks mothers to subjugate themselves and their relationships with their husbands to the needs of the child in a way that is sometimes unhealthy and unnatural for everyone involved in today’s society.

Vanessa’s thoughts (AMB Co-Founder, mom of 1):

OH MY STARS!! I cannot believe Time would allow that to be their cover. I’m clearly not a breastfeeding advocate as I gave up after three days of nipple pain and leaking through sports bras, but…I think if your kid can ask for the boob…they’re too old. This cover gives me the creeps.

Courtney’s thoughts (AMB reader, mom of 3):

Hmmm, wow! While I whole heartedly support women breastfeeding for any length of time they choose, and nursed one of my own children until he was almost two, I never recall a time I did it with such a ferocious look of rebelliousness on my face while my child stood on a chair mad-mugging a camera. I don’t have a problem with a breast or a 3 year old child nursing, but I am left wondering the true intentions of the shot. It has not captured warmth, compassion, or the bonding between a mother and child. The photo looks cold and unrelational.

Heather’s thoughts (AMB reader, mom of 3):

Is TIME magazine using this “shock” photo as a way to reel in a new and/or different demographic?….to shake up and draw attention in the midst of a society that is consumed with tabloids and overly sexy images? That image was obviously placed to grab readers and stir things up. My reaction is that if this is what you choose to do then great that’s your biz….the pic is catchy and appears to be more modelish than my version of attachment parenting. If I were to see this occurring in public, even as a breast feeding advocate, I’m sure I would do a double take. I’m sure TIME is anticipating a spike in sales, I myself will buy this magazine if I see it at the supermarket and I’m probably not a normal target market for TIME magazine. Note – I love Dr. Sears and am a huge follower of his….I’m not familiar with his views on extended extended super extended breast feeding!

My favorite quote about the cover picture is from Huffington Post…“Breastfeeding is not a macho test of motherhood, with the winner being the one who nurses the longest. In fact there ARE no macho tests of motherhood. Motherhood is — should be — a village, where we explore each others choices, learn from them, respect them, and then go off and make our own.”

What are your thoughts??? How do you feel about Time’s cover this month?