World Breastfeeding Week serves as a reminder that hardly a month goes by without a report of a breastfeeding mother being asked to vacate a public space because she was breastfeeding her baby (or worse yet, her young child). In an effort to protect a woman’s right to breastfeed wherever she has the right to be, forty-three states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands have enacted breastfeeding laws.

Because public breastfeeding elicits strong opinions, breastfeeding mothers might want to familiarize themselves with the laws in their state. A detailed listing of breastfeeding legislation organized state-by-state can be found at the National Conference of State Legislatures. You can also access color-coded maps: Workplace Pumping And The Law and Breastfeeding In Public: Are You Protected? through Mothering Magazine.

Laws are good. But a society where breastfeeding no longer needs protection is even better.