Black Birth workers (a meme)
(Look, ya’ll! I made my first meme! 😅🤣
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There are so many misconceptions about what a Black birth workers do. I wanna clear it up.
What my associates think we do: Some associates think we are coming to “save the day” in a “woo woo” way. They don’t understand our roles and don’t see how we are here to support Black birthing folks. Some associates don’t understand that Black birthing bodies are 4x likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white birthing bodies. They can’t understand how Black birth workers are here to educate and advocate for our clients. So, associates may reduce us to mystical ‘love and light’ creatures. Supporting Black birthing folks is work, ya’ll.
What hospitals think we do: Some Dr.s and nurses think we are here to step on some toes, and overstep our scope of practice. But we are here to protect Black birthing bodies. We are here to educate clients on their patient rights while at the hospital. We want to EMPOWER clients and make sure they have the BEST birthing outcome.We are here to hold hospitals accountable for their treatment of Black bodies, too.That’s it.
What we actually do: Offer evidence-based support, educate and empower clients & their families before, during and after their pregnancy journey, offer comfort measures to help support birth, offer continuous labor support, assist in birthing & postpartum plans, etc. Pretty much all the things!