Black Mamas Matter
I was listening to a report on the history of the celebration of Black History month last night. I was struck by how much things are the same for Black folks in the US as during the civil rights struggle. As a nation, white supremacy ideals continue to grow unchecked; while for those of us who are white, we continue to act unaware of our role in its perpetuation.
As a country, we are arguing about the need for a border wall identifying immigration as a national emergency. Those of us living here on the border know this is no emergency, but the beauty of life in the borderlands.
The truth is we ARE in the middle of a national emergency and it is not the border or immigration:
IT IS MATERNAL DEATH IN GENERAL AND THE DEATH OF BLACK WOMEN IN PARTICULAR
Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force confirm what many other reports have done:
Maternal Mortality is at crisis levels in the US, in particular for Black women:
The US is one of only 13 countries worldwide with a rising maternal mortality ratio (MMR), and is the ONLY country with an advanced economy where the MMR is getting worse. (WHO, 2018)
Black women are dying at a rate three to four times higher than white women, a pattern that has persisted across the US for generations.
In Texas like other parts of the US, Black mothers mortality is high across all levels of socioeconomic status and education level.
This should be a wakeup call for our birthing settings but it is not. California is the only state that has implemented interventions that have decreased maternal mortality. Yet even with this evidence the rest of the country remains stagnant.
Story after story is available online of how the health care workers ignore or minimize Black women’s symptoms and complaints. It is not only individual health workers, but also the health care system responsible for these appalling outcomes. For those of us who are birth workers, we must demand changes in our health system. As midwives, we must change ourselves and our practices. We know the midwifery model of care helps improve outcomes, but we have not invested in finding a way to provide that care for the majority of the population who plan hospital births. We must:
Identify the systemic and structural racism in our practices and create a plan of action;
Identify the individual and collective macro and micro aggressions in our work, between our staff, and with our clients;
Provide patient-centered care that is responsive to the needs of Black women
Demand changes in health policy and health coverage to cover until one year postpartum.
Find information from Black Mamas Matter on https://blackmamasmatter.org/ and Black Mamas Matter Tool Kit