Argentina police officer breastfeeds malnourished baby in viral photo, receives promotion

Celeste Ayala was captured breastfeeding a malnourished child. (Officer Marcos Heredia)

An Argentine police officer received a promotion Friday after a photo showing her breastfeeding a malnourished baby at a hospital went viral.

Celeste Ayala, a mother of three, was on duty at the Sor Maria Ludovica Children’s Hospital in Buenos Aires last week when she heard the baby’s cries, according to The Guardian. Marcos Heredia, one of Ayala’s colleagues, captured the moment and posted a photo to Facebook.

“I want to make public this great gesture of love that you made today with that baby, who you did not know, but for who you did not hesitate to act like a mother,” Heredia wrote on Facebook. “Things like that are not seen every day.”

The baby seen with Ayala was one of six siblings who were malnourished, local media reported. Ayala said she noticed the baby was hungry before asking to breastfeed him.

“It was a sad moment, it broke my soul seeing him like this. Society should be sensitive to the issues affecting children; it cannot keep happening,” she told Cronica.

Ayala was promoted from officer to sergeant, Cristian Ritondo, Buenos Aires provincial security minister, announced on Twitter.

“We wanted to thank you in person for that gesture of spontaneous love that managed to calm the baby’s cry. That’s the type of police we’re proud of, the police we want,” he said.