As HRLA client Jasmine Sussex defends herself from a vilification claim for saying that “men cannot breastfeed”, the clash between gender ideology and biological reality is playing out internationally.

Tension is mounting as organisations once focused on supporting mothers are pressured to align with radical gender ideology, raising serious questions about free speech, child safeguarding, and the integrity of their original missions.

News emerged this week that the founder of the La Leche League (LLL) in the United States—an organisation established to support breastfeeding mothers—has resigned because of new policies which include transgender-identifying men in its mission. In a letter explaining her decision, Marion Tompson, who was one of seven women who founded LLL in Chicago in 1956, called the group’s current direction “a travesty of my original intent.”

Ms. Tompson wrote:

“From an organisation with the specific Mission of supporting biological women who want to give their babies the best start in life by breastfeeding them, LLL’s focus has subtly shifted to include men who, for whatever reason, want to have the experience of breastfeeding despite no careful long-term research on male lactation and how that may affect the baby.

This shift from following the norms of nature, which is the core of mothering through breastfeeding, to indulging the fantasies of adults, is destroying our organisation.”

In the United Kingdom, similar tensions have emerged within La Leche League GB (LLLGB). Miriam Main, a long-time trustee and PR director, recently stepped down in protest over a new policy permitting biological men to attend support groups. The policy, introduced by the charity’s global arm, states that it supports anyone who wishes to “breastfeed or chestfeed,” regardless of sex, gender, or gender identity.

The new policy has raised concerns that volunteers will be required to provide guidance to men identifying as women on “chestfeeding”, as well as serious concerns about the implications for infant safety. Ms Main called attempts by men to breastfeed “a poor imitation” that put babies’ safety at risk. She also criticised the organisation for “mixing causes and politics,” warning that it was jeopardising the integrity of its mission.

For an organisation whose purpose and mission is so inherently tied to biological reality, the push to include men who identify as women presents one of the most direct clashes between gender ideology and truth.

Critics, including Helen Joyce of the campaign group Sex Matters, argue that this new policy undermines the charity’s foundational purpose, saying that this “...is one of the starkest examples of how gender-identity ideology turns organisations upside-down.”

Here in Australia, HRLA is representing Jasmine Sussex, a breastfeeding expert with more than fifteen years experience as a breastfeeding counsellor. HRLA, along with a team of legal and medical experts, is defending Jasmine against a vilification claim in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal after she publicly stated that men can’t breastfeed.

This is another example of flawed vilification laws being misused to silence and censor individuals in Australia. These laws allow complaints to be brought against people for speaking truth, forcing them to endure lengthy and costly legal processes. Even when they are ultimately successful in court, the legal process is itself a form of punishment.

Personal offence should not be sufficient grounds for legal action against those who speak truth. The contested claims of gender ideology, as well as issues of child safety and wellbeing, are matters of public interest, and should be open to free and public debate.

This is why HRLA is defending Jasmine’s right, and the right of all Australians, to live and speak the truth freely.