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Florida theme park apologizes to N.L. woman over breastfeeding fuss

Last Updated: Friday, November 2, 2007 | 7:43 AM NT

CBC News

A Florida theme park is apologizing to a St. John's woman who was told to cover up while she breastfed her daughter or leave the premises.

Cheryl Cruz says she felt belittled and humiliated after a reprimand from staff at the Universal Studios theme park in Orlando, Fla.
(CBC)

Cheryl Cruz said she was shaken by an encounter on Tuesday while she was breastfeeding her 10-month-old child, Kalli, on a bench at the Universal Studios park in Orlando.

"I'm just feeding her, minding my own business, there's hardly anyone at the resort, [and] suddenly this lady comes over to me and says, 'Listen I want you to cover up, this is a family affair,' " Cruz said Thursday.

"I was so shocked. I looked at her [and thought], 'Oh my goodness, you've got to be kidding.' "

Then, Cruz said, a group of security officers surrounded her. She was eventually permitted to stay in the park.

She described the experience as mean and humiliating and said there is no law against public breastfeeding in Florida.

Cheryl Cruz, seen playing with her children in Orlando on Thursday, will receive apologies from employees involved in this week's incident, the theme park management says.
(CBC)

Tom Schroeder, a spokesman for the theme park, said Universal Studios has a policy that allows breastfeeding anywhere in its theme parks.

He said the company has apologized to Cruz and that she can expect more.

"We're going to have the specific team members involved in this incident apologize to her, and we're going to make sure that our team members know how to proceed in these kinds of situations, moving forward," Schroeder said.

Schroeder said Universal has talked to employees about the issue before.

He would not say whether Cruz will be compensated.

This story is now closed to commenting.

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Audio

CBC Radio producer Todd O'Brien interviews Universal Studios spokesman Tom Schroeder (Runs: 2:12): Play: Real Media »

Video

Lynda Calvert reports for CBC-TV on a St. John's woman's encounter at a Florida theme park (Runs: 2:04): Play: Real Media »; Play: QuickTime »

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