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This design is inspired by a proverb on a kanga, a cloth worn by women in Kenya and other parts of East Africa. Ninety-nine percent of babies are breastfed in Kenya, according to the World Health Organization, yet the proverb celebrates the value of women and the value of breastfeeding, even in a place where there is little competition from infant formula.

Typically, kanga have bright colored designs and contain a proverb, written in Swahili. Usually made of lightweight cloth, women wear a kanga around their waist like a skirt and often use a second kanga to wrap their baby on their back, or as a headscarf in Muslim areas. According to expert Julia Hilger,* many women select a kanga based on its proverb, of which there are scores. The design accompanying "Maziwa Ya Mama Ni Tamu" (Mother's milk is sweet) typically has a circle in the middle and often has cashew designs in the border (paisley shapes which symbolize wealth).

According to Hilger, kanga are also used for other forms of communication, such as to deliver health warnings or political messages.

Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition's kanga design was created by one of our members who worked in Kenya, and it contains typical graphic elements of the kanga, including bright colors, a border, and hand-drawn elements.

* Hilger, Julia, "The kanga: an example of East African textile design," in The Art of African Textiles: Technology, Tradition, and Lurex (Barbican Art Gallery Exhibit, 1995). London: Lund Humphries, Barbican Art Gallery, 1995.