Mama Greenest Defends Uma Thurman and New Baby: How Soon Is Too Soon to Take Your Newborn Out in Public?

How soon is too soon to take your newborn out in public? Uma Thurman finds herself in the center of this debate

Last week, my Web editor asked my opinion on a slightly heated discussion that started on our Facebook page. Uma Thurman had been photographed inside Press + Blend, a juice bar in Woodstock, with her one-day-old daughter. (Editor’s note: See TMZ’s original photo and our Facebook post here.) Given the public outcry you’d think the woman had been caught bottle feeding tequila to her newborn, but she was just picking up some cold pressed juice. Some commenters went so far as to call her stupid and selfish, justifying their vitriol with insistance that a new baby should be kept inside for a full month. I guess everyone’s an expert when it’s time to tear a stranger down…

My first impression of the discussion was “Wow, people are petty and mean.” My second thought was that there seemed to be two separate issues up for debate: first, whether or not it’s okay to take a one-day-old baby out in public; and second, whether or not Uma Thurman is a horrible person. The way I see it, the only person who gets to decide if their one-day-old goes out in public or not is its mother. Many health care professionals see no reason why a healthy newborn can’t go outside; in fact, sunlight helps eliminate jaundice, something many babies are born with to some degree. Thurman is probably breastfeeding (which boosts immunity), and in the picture it appeared that she had the baby wrapped in a blanket close to her chest. She wasn’t passing her around or holding her outstretched for the whole world to see; nobody even knows the kid’s name yet.

As for the assaults on her character, I can only laugh. Celebrity culture is funny. I doubt a single person commenting in that discussion actually knows Uma Thurman. Calling her names? Making assumptions about her motivations based solely on her career choice? Who do we think we are?!

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One commenter made an excellent point: that we shouldn’t be contributing to the shaming of new mothers for their choices. I get behind that 100 percent. You get a lot further with sugar than you do with salt. Especially with a movie star.

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