This may be perpetuating the problem, but it seems to me that she would cover herself if only to avoid the stares she would otherwise obviously attract. But I guess when you come right down to it, it should be a choice made by the woman in question.

Maybe it's just a question of ones opinion of modesty, for example, I can tell you that my wife would not have breastfed in public without some sort of cover over her and the baby. Conversely, my brother-in-laws mother did breastfeed all her children, and while she was not completely exposed she didn't make any heroic attempts to cover herself either. She did, however, draw a lot of attention, especially from young boys/men when she was feeding her baby in public. So while my wife is someone who almost actviely avoids drawing attention to herself, my brother-in-laws mother didn't seem to mind.

Draw what conclusions you like...

On a side note, I do have to say Taj, I have a lot of respect for you for being so forward and upfront about all this. It's not something you would normally see discussed on a forum full of guys. Props to you.