Tina Sherman

Campaign Director, Breastfeeding/Paid Leave

Tina is the Campaign Director for the Breastfeeding and Paid Leave Campaigns at MomsRising. Tina has dedicated her professional life to supporting and empowering moms and families. She has served as a legislative aide in the United States Senate, has worked with several child and women's advocacy organizations, is an active advocate on the North Carolina MomsRising Steering Committee and is a certified birth doula.

Tina and her husband JP are raising four boys ranging from 2 to 11 years, including 8 year old twins. She is active in her small town and serves on the board of the local farmers market.

Follow her on Twitter or Facebook.

Blog Post List

MomsRising

December 5, 2018

Intense does not begin to describe last week's staff retreat. Anti-oppression and anti-semitism training, visits to the The Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarcerationand and The National Memorial for Peace and Justice exploring enslavement and lynching, and a dance party (because sometimes you just have to release) stirred all the emotions. From visceral and raw sorrow to heart-exploding love to pure exhaustion, I mean all. the. Emotions! I am grateful to be apart of an organization that is committed to growing and continually examining its own practices to ensure that it is living...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

August 29, 2018

Throughout the month of August, MomsRising has been celebrating National Breastfeeding Month and this week (August 25-31) we are delighted to celebrate Black Breastfeeding Week . Black Breastfeeding Week is a national awareness campaign promoting and celebrating Black breastfeeding families. This year’s theme, #LoveOnTop, speaks to how love encompasses everything black parents do from breastfeeding to nurturing others. As I participated in Black Breastfeeding Week events over the weekend, I was inspired and humbled joining in community and celebrating together. Hearing each mothers’ story the...

Breastfeeding

August 1, 2018

¡Estamos en el Mes Nacional de la Lactancia y estoy sumamente molesta! ¿Por qué? En todas partes pareciera que las mamás y bebés están siendo atacados y en el Mes Nacional de la Lactancia, las mamás que dan el pecho no son la excepción. En la primavera, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield redujo la tasa de reembolso de algunas de los extractores eléctricos de leche más populares del mercado haciendo que sea más difícil que las mujeres tengan los extractores que necesitan y la administración Trump se opuso a una resolución que promovería la lactancia durante la Asamblea Mundial de la Salud de las...

Breastfeeding

August 1, 2018

It’s National Breastfeeding Month and I am fired up!! Why? Everywhere I turn moms and babies are under attack and as we kick off National Breastfeeding Month, breastfeeding moms are no exception. From earlier this spring when Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield reduced reimbursement rates for some of the most common types of electric breast pumps on the market making it harder for women to get the pumps they need,to when the Trump Administration opposed a resolution supporting breastfeeding at the United Nations affiliated World Health Assembly in a move that put corporate wealth over moms’ and...

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Breastfeeding

July 13, 2018

Shocked. Infuriated. Dismayed. I went through the range of emotions when I heard about the United States’ opposition to a resolution supporting breastfeeding at the United Nations affiliated World Health Assembly . Once again, in this Administration, corporate interests are being put front and center ahead of babies and families. We can, and we must, do better! → Tell formula companies to back off because the health and well-being of moms and babes must always come first. Earlier this week, The New York Times published a stunning piece detailing how in May, the Trump Administration attempted...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

April 27, 2018

Hacking breast pumps AND talking public policy solutions to support breastfeeding moms!?!? I am looking forward to this weekend's Make the Breast Pump Not Suck Hackathon & Paid Family Leave Policy Summit !! I'll be surrounded by moms, babes, engineers, advocates, and innovators all working to support and empower breastfeedings moms. Back in 2014, the first Hackathon explored improving the breast pump and the pumping experience for breastfeeding moms.The Hackathon unearthed that the breast pump was not the only thing that needed to be hacked and that moms face many struggles in trying to...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

April 22, 2018

I am a planner. I plan for everything. From my weekly dinner menu to my annual physical, I schedule, prioritize, and plan out every last detail I can. But sometimes the unexpected happens - a family member falls severely ill or a spouse is diagnosed with cancer. That’s where paid leave comes in. Paid family and medical leave allows families to deal with the unexpected and care for family without fear of losing a paycheck. → Tell Congress: We need paid family leave for ALL working families! American workers need a national comprehensive and robust paid family and medical leave...

Breastfeeding

March 23, 2018

After the premature birth of my twins, I felt like I spent more time with my breast pump than anything else. My boys spent the first 8 and 9 weeks of their lives in the NICU until they were healthy and strong enough to go home. That first week I pumped every 2 hours, around the clock, sometimes just getting tiny droplets of milk. My breast pump made it possible for me to feed my sons breastmilk--the best possible thing I could give them according to doctors--and without insurance, I wouldn't have had the pump. Many breastfeeding moms depend on insurance to cover their breast pumps which is...

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Paid Family Leave

March 6, 2018

The fight for paid family and medical leave in Massachusetts is on fire in Boston right now! We have a real chance of winning in Massachusetts this year, but only lawmakers keep hearing from you. → Sign here to ask your state legislator to make enact paid family and medical leave for Massachusetts for families. Here’s the scoop: Recent Increased attention about the paid family leave campaign in the Bay State has put additional pressure on legislators. That means the time is now to step up our efforts and let lawmakers’ offices know that Commonwealth families need a comprehensive and robust...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

January 26, 2018

The second day of the the 8th Annual California Breastfeeding Summit on Advocacy, Breastfeeding, and Communications ! Today, I cried, I learned, I laughed, and I danced. Like yesterday's recap , I attempted to capture some of the conversations and will share a few snippets. Camie Goldhammer, MSW, LICSW, IBCLC shares her work in her presentation - Culture, Trauma and Breastfeeding: How it is all Connected. Camie's journey through birth and breastfeeding stirs everything in me like a surge of oxytocin. She stresses that we must gain a better understanding of how is trauma passed to from...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

January 24, 2018

I am excited to be at the 8th Annual California Breastfeeding Summit on Advocacy, Breastfeeding, and Communications ! Today's conversations were engaging and thought provoking. I attempted to capture some of the conversations and will share a few snippets. Karen C. Ramstrom from the CA Department of Health spoke about the Status of Improving Hospital Breastfeeding Support Policies and Practices. I was awfully excited to see that the Vision for Breastfeeding in California 2035 included an expansion of paid leave and workplace accommodations for breastfeeding moms. We know that while 4 out of 5...

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Breastfeeding Childcare & Early Education Family Economic Security Maternal Justice MomsRising Politics & Policy

October 23, 2017

Stunned. Outraged. That’s how I felt yesterday when I saw the news that Councilwoman Catherine Emmanuelle in Eau Claire, Wisconsin was illegally barred from breastfeeding her baby at the council dais during council meetings--because the council president decided that breastfeeding didn’t meet “our standards of decorum” for meetings.

Breastfeeding

August 29, 2017

ipumpedhere.jpg Earlier this month MomsRising members and their kiddos went to Capitol Hill to drop off your signatures and stories, along with some liquid gold (chocolate) to demand better workplace pumping accommodations for breastfeeding moms. 20664469_10154649047486610_6879721043897483867_n.jpg One of the most rewarding parts of my job is the opportunity to lift up the voices of moms and families on issues that affect their everyday lives. As a doula and an advocate, the #IPumpedHere campaign has been particularly near and dear to my heart not only for my own personal struggles with...

Breastfeeding

August 25, 2017

It’s National Breastfeeding Month and today, August 25th, kicks off Black Breastfeeding Week . It is a time for celebration, as well as an important moment to take stock of what work still needs to be done to ensure that more moms, particularly moms of color, are able to meet their breastfeeding goals. Let’s take a good look at the state of breastfeeding across the country. The reality is that while the majority of moms start out breastfeeding, many women stop breastfeeding sooner than they’d like and struggle to meet their breastfeeding goals. < Take a sneak peek at our video that...

Breastfeeding

August 8, 2017

Babble says, "Badass Moms Take to Capitol Hill to Demand Better Workplace Pumping Accommodations."

Breastfeeding

August 1, 2017

August is here and you know what that means - It is National Breastfeeding Month!! Every August I take time to reflect on my own breastfeeding journey with my four boys - From my oldest who was a comfort nurser to my twins who I initially pumped for every 2 hours and tube feed breastmilk in the NICU to my youngest who weaned earlier this spring after nursing for 2 years, 5 months and 27 days (not that I was counting). I also reflect on the joys and struggles that my friends, my colleagues, my peers, and my community face meeting their breastfeeding goals. How public policies like paid family...

Breastfeeding

July 21, 2017

Airplane bathrooms. Parked cars. Utility closets. In a cubicle with absolutely no privacy. These are just some of the places that breastfeeding moms have had to pump breastmilk because they didn’t have access to anything better. Let's bring mothers out of the bathroom stalls and into the pumping rooms they deserve. → Click here and add your name to our letter calling on Congress to support working moms who don’t have adequate spaces to pump and store breastmilk at work. We’re going to hand deliver your signatures and more to Congress on Monday, August 7th. ** We know that Congress will still...

Paid Family Leave

June 22, 2017

Good afternoon everyone, and thank you to Congresswoman Frankel and the Democratic Women’s Working Group for inviting me to speak today. My name is MacKenzie, I’m a proud MomsRising member from, New Hampshire. I’m a mother of two – a four-year-old son (whose birthday is today!) and a five-month-old baby girl. I also help care for my 62-year-old mother, making me a member of the sandwich generation. Over the past several months, my family has experienced both the joy of a new birth and the stress of an elderly family member’s serious illness. My husband and I did everything we could to prepare...

Paid Family Leave

June 13, 2017

Good afternoon, and thank you for allowing me to speak today. My name is Sonja Darai and I'm from Somerville, Massachusetts. I’m a member of the group MomsRising and I'm the mom of two teenage boys. I'm also a daughter, and I’m here today to tell you how paid family and medical leave helped me care for my dad when his health faltered. A few years ago, my father broke his hip and required hip replacement surgery. Because my workplace offered paid leave to it employees, I was able to take a month off from work to help him with his daily needs. This was instrumental in keeping my family afloat...

Breastfeeding Paid Family Leave

June 10, 2017

Yikes! We have a bizarre, tricky, and urgent situation with President Trump and paid family and medical leave -- and we need your help letting Congress know what’s going on so they aren’t fooled. The lowdown: While we were heartened that President Trump’s proposed budget recognized the need for paid family and medical leave, which is, indeed, an urgent priority – the administration’s approach is not only terribly flawed, but also is coming at the same time as Trump is proposing massive cuts to the programs that lift families and our economy the most. In other words, name-checking this policy...

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Love Works

Real Life, Real Support for Breastfeeding Moms

¡Estamos en el Mes Nacional de la Lactancia y estoy sumamente molesta!

It's National Breastfeeding Month & I'm Fired Up!

QUICK SIGNATURE: Urge formula companies to put the health of moms & babes above profits!

Breast Pump Hackathon & Policy Summit

Paid leave that works for families, business & the economy!

ACTION NEEDED: Anthem wants to limit access to breast pumps

TAKE ACTION: TELL MA LAWMAKERS → Enact paid leave!

CA Breastfeeding Summit 2018 Recap Day 2

CA Breastfeeding Summit 2018 Recap Day 1

Councilwoman’s Right to Breastfeed Being Challenged

When you take action, we deliver!

Let's empower breastfeeding moms!

#iPumpedHere Featured Everywhere!

In Celebration of National Breastfeeding Month!

Breastfeeding Moms Need Places to Pump

SuperMom MacKenzie Nicholson testifies before Congress on the importance of paid leave

SuperMom Sonja testifies before Massachusetts lawmakers about the importance of paid leave

We need paid family leave that works for families, business, and our economy!

Tina Sherman

Blog Post List

#KeepMarching: It’s a Year End Match!