Breastfeeding Canton Woman Protected by Target Customers, Staff from Man's Verbal Assault

Torrington, CT - Canton resident Jessie Maher was at the Torrington Target on Monday morning, minding her business and breastfeeding her child.

In 2016, you would think that such a common sight might go unnoticed. But not to a male stranger who angrily objected, allegedly screaming obscenities and vulgar insults at the mom until a group of shoppers and Target staff intervened to protect her.

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She recorded much of the encounter and posted it to her Facebook page, where as of this morning, June 14, it had racked up more than 2.1 million views.

"Anybody know this a*****e who verbally assaulted me in Target this morning while I was breastfeeding my baby? (He's wearing an Avon shirt)," she wrote in the post. "Before the video started rolling he looked at me and said (very angrily), 'can't you do that somewhere else?... That's f***ing disgusting.. You are nasty' (he said a few other things under his breath) I responded with, "I am feeding my baby, and I have the right to do it here...walk the f**k away..leave me the f**k alone."

From there, it only got worse, but eventually a group came to her defense and defanged the bully.

While the man thought she didn't belong there, Target actually has a very inclusive policy as it relates to breastfeeding, one that has garnered praise from moms around the country.

"Guests may openly breastfeed in our stores or ask where they can go to breastfeed their child," the policy states in part, adding that staff should not disturb a breastfeeding mom unless she asks for assistance. "When this happens, remember these points: Target's policy supports breastfeeding in any area of our stores, including our fitting rooms, even if others are waiting."

The video is below.

What would you have done? Tell us in the comments section below.

Image via Shutterstock