Justice

Mom Keeps it Real by Putting Commuters Who Won't Give Up Their Seats on Blast

July 18th 2017

One United Kingdom mom is going viral on Facebook for posting a photo of her while on a frustrating train commute.

"Having to stand on a train whilst breastfeeding my baby thanks to the lovely bunch of charmers giving more priority to their suitcases and rolling joints!! It stinks," Bryony Esther wrote in her July 15 post. "Plus the cyclist with a fancy bike that keeps rolling into me, sat in the disabled seat."

She went on to add, "Please share cos I'd love it if their mothers, girlfriends and wives get to see how they behave."

Her post has over 31,000 shares and over 8,000 reactions.

When inevitably asked if Esther made it clear to these men she needed a seat, she wrote in a comment, "Hell no they 1000% knew. The fact I stood by them for a few mins and then asked if I could please sit where the suitcase was and yet they ignored me completely."

She then added that she received disparaging messages for breastfeeding her child.

Mothers added their own comments on the post of terrible commutes they also experienced, in solidarity:

Unfortunately, moms struggling to find a seat on the train is far from unusual.

As ATTN: previously reported on March 9, a pregnant woman in New York City literally gave an award to the first man who offered her his seat.

Kyle Fitzpatrick reported for ATTN: on the incident:

"Yvonne Lin resides in New York City and after never being offered a seat by a man while on the subway during her first pregnancy, she made an award to give to the first man to do so during her second pregnancy. However, this moment didn't happen until she was around eight months pregnant on Feb. 24, and she posted a photo of the man, with his award, who gave her his seat along with a caption on Instagram Feb. 28.

'I didn't get a single subway seat offered to me by a man throughout my first pregnancy. So for the second pregnancy, I had this made and I've been carrying it around everyday - till last Friday. This guy is the winner!' she wrote in the caption of the post."

Fitzpatrick spoke with Dr. Leena Nathan, assistant clinical professor at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), who told ATTN:, "for pregnant women, it’s actually very important on a commute for people to give them a seat. The center of gravity changes as you’re pregnant.” He went on to explain that it's hard for a person to stay balanced when on a moving train or subway and “when you are pregnant, there’s much more risk of falling or injuring yourself."

Women who breastfeed in public are likely already concerned about how others will react, and that's without worrying about trying to find a seat to do it.

In April, Avery Lane wrote a Facebook post about her experience breastfeeding at an H&R Block on a military post. As ATTN: previously reported on the incident, the mom was breastfeeding when an employee asked her, "Can you cover up with a towel or something?"

These women aren't asking for a lot. They just want to sit down to care for their kids.

"[T]his world is filled with inconsiderate selfish people sadly," Esther commented on her post, "and I have had enough of it."

Share your opinion

Have you ever given up your seat to a pregnant or breastfeeding woman who needed it?

No 17%Yes 83%