We Should Not Have To Fight For Our Right To Breastfeed!

Mothers Fight for the Right To Legally Breastfeed Anywhere They Are Legally Allowed to Be House Bill 5515 Sponsored by Rep. Rebekah Warren

I am pleased to let you know Rep. Warren has introduced the breastfeeding bill. It is House Bill 5515. HB 5515 would allow a woman to breastfeed anywhere she may otherwise legally be. You can see it online at michiganlegislature.org; just enter "5515" in the field for bill number. HB 5515 has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee, and just yesterday they set a date for testimony. On Wednesday, December 2 at 10:30 AM the Judiciary Committee will meet in Room 521 of the House Office Building in Lansing. The House Office Building is at 124 N. Capitol, at the corner of Capitol and Ottawa in downtown Lansing.

EXPRESS SUPPORTNow is the time for supporters of the legislation to contact members of the committee to express support for HB 5515! Each person should write to all the committee members and to his or her own Representative and state that they support HB 5515. The committee is chaired by Rep. Mark S. Meadows. Here is a list of all the members and their email addresses:Mark S. Meadows (D), Committee Chair, 69th District (markmeadows@house.mi.gov) Ellen Cogen Lipton (D), Majority Vice-Chair, 27th District (EllenLipton@house.mi.gov) Lisa Brown (D), 39th District (LisaBrown@house.mi.gov) Bob Constan (D), 16th District; (bobconstan@house.mi.gov) Marc R. Corriveau (D), 20th District ( marccorriveau@house.mi.gov) Andy Coulouris (D), 95th District (andycoulouris@house.mi.gov) Andrew J. Kandrevas (D), 13th District (andrewkandrevas@house.mi.gov) Bettie Cook Scott (D), 3rd District (bettiecookscott@house.mi.gov) Rebekah Warren (D), 53rd District (rebekahwarren@house.mi.gov) Tonya Schuitmaker (R), Minority Vice-Chair, 80th District (tonyaschuitmaker@house.mi.gov) Justin Amash (R), 72nd District (justinamash@house.mi.gov) Joseph Haveman (R), 90th District (JosephHaveman@house.mi.gov) Rick Jones (R), 71st District (rickjones@house.mi.gov) Eileen Kowall (R), 44th District (EileenKowall@house.mi.gov) Tory Rocca (R), 30th District (tonyrocca@house.mi.gov) Malika Abdul-Basir, Committee Clerk 517-373-7256 mabdul@house.mi.govA resident may find out who their own Representative at this link:  Find YOUR Rep Here  ATTEND THE HEARING The hearing will be at 10:30 on Wednesday, Dec. 2nd. If you or another interested person would like to testify, please let Kim Easter know (contact info at top of page).  Anyone may testify, even without advance notice, but letting Kim know lets her plan for a good topic flow. If you would like to testify but cannot attend, you may mail or email your testimony to me in advance of the hearing. Even if you prefer not to testify, your attendance at a hearing and personal correspondence with committee members and your own legislators are important in influencing the decision-making process. The purpose of testimony given should be informational so that committee members can vote on the bill with as full an understanding as possible of all sides of the issue it addresses, and the consequences of its passage. I suggest a witness prepare testimony in advance and keep the testimony short and to the point. When you testify, identify who you are and, if you represent a group, give the name of the group. At the beginning of your remarks, state that you are testifying in support of the bill. Relate your group's or your own experience or views directly to the issue. If you are asked a hostile question, keep a cool head. Don't be afraid to stop and think for a minute to answer a question properly. If you don't have the answer, never guess-request permission to file a detailed response at a later date. I hope you will feel free to forward this message or paraphrase it for your contacts who are also supporting change. Rep. Warren truly hopes to make a positive change for women and children in Michigan.