For hundreds of years, our Black siblings have suffered under a cultural and systemic racism that has affected them from all angles. Healthcare, particularly pregnancy care, shows staggeringly high disparities. These disparities are just one of many glaring examples of how centuries of racism, both covert and open, have affected the very fabric of our civic systems; how Black people have long been treated inappropriately even from birth.
I also acknowledge that I have built a career in a field that is currently dominated by white women, but stands on the shoulders of generations of knowledgeable and respected Black midwives and community healers. Black midwives of the past were vilified and criminalized and their collective knowledge all but eradicated. Midwifery is now taught from texts written by white male doctors and modern white midwives. I practice the art of midwifery from a place of social privilege but educational deprivation because of this history.
Now is the time to engage in public conversation and begin the work that has to be done to create sweeping change. I stand with Black Lives Matter against violence and systemic racism towards Black people. I stand with Black birth workers against racist medical traditions and policies, bias, neglect, and medical violence towards Black people. I stand with Black pregnant people in the demand for thorough and compassionate care. I stand with the black community in their demand for justice in all sectors for themselves and their children. I welcome the opportunity to learn and grow, as I am aware that my knowledge is incomplete, my bias is inborn, and my privilege insulates me from many of the issues affecting my Black clients and colleagues. I commit to use my voice and my resources to effect change within
