Black Maternal Health Week (BMHW21) ends today, but perinatal professionals need to acknowledge that this focus is not something that should be elevated one week a year.  The atrocious maternal morbidity and mortality rate faced by childbearing Black people demands attention and action every single day.  There is simply no time to rest, as people are dying while trying to grow their families.

Here are some amazing Black perinatal organizations that are uniquely qualified to serve Black families.  This list is just a small compilation of resources, and identifies those organizations with a national presence. You should identify similar groups that are local to your community, so you can include that information as well and make it easier for Black families to identify the right resources for them.

Black Perinatal and Medical Organizations

National Black Doulas Association

National Association to Advance Black Birth

Black Mothers Breastfeeding Association

National Black Midwives Alliance

Association of Black Women Physicians

The National Birth Equity Collaborative

Sista Midwife Productions and the Sister Midwife Director

Black Mamas Matter Alliance

Mama Glow

Black Women’s Health Imperative

Commonsense Childbirth

Sister Song

Uzazi Village

Health Connect One

Black Women Do Breastfeed

National Association of Professional and Peer Lactation Supporters of Color

Therapy for Black Girls 

Black Therapists Rock 

Additionally the guide published by The New York Times: Protecting Your Birth: A Guide for Black Mothers should be referenced and shared.

The authors of the above guide, Erica Chidi, a doula, and Erica P. Cahill, M.D., an OB, also created a valuable "Anti-Racist Prenatal & Postnatal Care Preferences" document to address the impact of racism on the care of Black pregnant people that share ways to keep them safe and respected.  This list is well organized and on point. The authors state that the goal is to “lessen the burden and build the groundwork for Black women around these difficult conversations.”. You can access it here. 

Make every week of the year Black Maternal Health Week.  It matters.

Published: April 17, 2021

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