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Black Midwives

#black history #black midwives #midwives #blacklivesmatter #black lives matter #maternal #black people #black women #racial injustice #africa #black health #pregnancy

(clip from “Bone Black: Midwives vs The South” by Imani Nikyah Dennison)

Y’all remember these ads? Circa 2011.

Something never felt right about it — it was very unsettling (but at the time, I absolutely did not have the knowledge then to know why).

Never once was it mentioned on that ad the maternal & infant mortality rate amongst Black women being the highest because of racism in the medical industry. Never once was it stated that because of implicit bias, Black women aren’t believed or taken seriously when in pain. Never once was it stated that preventive care to prevent the high risk of preeclampsia and eclampsia and miscarriages was totally misdiagnosed or under-diagnosed or flat out not recommended. Never once was it stated that because of all this, Black soon-to-be mothers are afraid to enter hospitals to give birth in fear they and their unborn child won’t make it out alive because of these implicit biases and overall racism.

#Bone Black: Midwives vs The South #Imani Nikyah Dennison #Harriet Washington #midwives #midwifery #Black mothers #Black babies #Black midwives #Black doulas

KWhole Apoethecary Rescriptions -- Rx #8

KWhole Apoethecary Rescriptions — Rx #8

Rx #8: Black Midwifery History and Current Black Midwife/Doula Organizations Black women, non-binary/genderfluid people and transmen face many challenges when it comes to birthing, reproductive health and maternal and infant mortality rates. Healthcare systems are embedded with problematic practices and education based on medical and scientific racism. A few days I was fortunate enough to take a…

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#Birthing #Black doulas #Black midwives #Black Reproductive Health #Black Women #Reproductive Health

These birth workers are on the front lines.

#childbirth #Black maternal mortality #Black health care #Doulas #Health care #Black midwives

These birth workers are on the front lines.

Roach had an uncomplicated birth with her first child, but her second was born preterm. For her third pregnancy, she says, care providers made her believe another preterm birth was inevitable because of her previous preterm delivery—and the fact that black parents have a higher rate of preterm births than white ones. In reality, her third child was born at home, full-term, and at a healthy weight.

After that experience, “I decided I needed to become more involved in birth care,” Roach says. “I didn’t believe the story, which [was] that we were broken.”

#birth justice #black midwives #black doulas #black birth workers #black maternal health #black health

Ina May Gaskin is often referred to as the “mother of modern midwifery.” But when Gaskin was asked at an April 22 birth seminar in Forth Worth, Texas, about the effects of systemic racism on high infant and maternal mortality, her response left many in the Black birthing community questioning her competence. “Drug overdoses, cause number three—that’s a biggie—and I presume these are illegal drugs. Not prescription drugs, but those are also going to be a problem,” said Gaskin, who then offered Black women simplistic solutions like praying and growing food to reverse mortality rates. The comments have sparked criticism from Black birth workers on social media, including a petition to boycott events that feature Gaskin. In that moment, Gaskin did two things: She denied the reality that Black mothers are disproportionately affected by poverty, crime, and other causes of stress that undermine infant and maternal health; and she bypassed the fact that not only are Black birth workers competently serving our communities now, but they were also historically responsible for serving Black and White families in the South, delivering and raising White babies as their midwives and caretakers. Historically, Black women provided most of the birth services in the South in the form of “Granny midwives.” These women were often past childbearing age and gained their experience through having and witnessing many births. But as with most things, institutional racism found a way to rob Black birth workers of their freedoms. The Sheppard-Towner Act of 1921 provided matching funds to states for prenatal and children's health centers. Although the act had positive effects—like increasing funds to health care—it discouraged the practice of midwifery, particularly Black midwifery, and portrayed midwives as too uneducated and unclean to direct births. All midwives soon saw a decrease in activity, but Black midwives were especially targeted by Sheppard-Towner. Consequently, they lost their positions as birth leaders and became “birth assistants. In 1920, there were 5,000 African American midwives in Georgia alone, but the Sheppard-Towner Act led to a gradual end to lay midwifery. By 2002, there were only 15 practicing African American midwives in the state, according to The International Center for Traditional Childbearing, a nonprofit based out of Portland, Oregon. And now, in the U.S., Black women account for fewer than 4 percent of registered members of the American College of Nurse-Midwives. Unfortunately, maternal mortality rates are increasing and the United States is the only developed nation that is headed in the wrong direction. Regardless of socioeconomic status, Black mothers are three times more likely to die and babies are two times more likely to die than their White counterparts. A likely culprit is the stress that comes with being a Black woman (often caused by continued exposure to overt and subtle racism and misogyny). Gaskins’ insensitive comments are a strong reminder that White birth workers lack the knowledge to appropriately deal with the environmental (and economic) stressors that plague the Black community. ”

Just So We’re Clear: Black Mothers Aren’t to Blame for High Infant Mortality by Ambreia Meadows-Fernandez

#ina may gaskin #antiblackness #misogynoir #midwifery #black midwives

From National Black Midwives Alliance on Facebook:

Happy International Day of the Midwife!

This year for International Day of the Midwife 2020, NBMA is partnering with Everyday Birth Magazine to send PPE to Black midwives.

Apply for your kit if you are a Black midwife, or support midwives by making a donation to help us reach the goal! More information at www.everydaybirth.com/giving or www.supportful.com/ppeformidwives

#black midwives #black birth workers #birth justice #covid19 #racial disparity

Our grandmothers knew what modern medicine is still discovering. 🌿🤰✨ Ancestral midwifery isn't about rejecting progress—it's about remembering that we have always been the medicine. This May, we reclaim the wisdom keepers. Read our newest piece on how Black maternal healing begins with trust, community, and the knowing hands of our lineage. #Ubuntu #BlackMaternalHealth #AncestralWisdom #BirthJustice #BlackWomen #UbuntuVillage