The fight for racial justice
begins with birth justice
#DeliverBirthJustice is an effort to help people understand what Black pregnant people and Black people who are having babies are facing on a day-to-day basis so that we can move into recognizing that if racism is the problem, dismantling racism is the only solution.
Dr. Zea Malawa
Pediatrician
San Francisco
We deserve to have healthy births, for our babies to be taken care of, and to not be overlooked and treated as a statistic. See us, hear us, know our stories and help uplift us.
Goapele
Singer, songwriter, activist
Los Angeles
Five Bay Area counties — Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, and Solano — have joined forces to launch #DeliverBirthJustice, a campaign that puts birth justice front and center in the fight for racial justice in the Bay Area.
Black women and birthing people in the Bay Area face challenges during pregnancy and the postpartum period that result from policies rooted in structural racism. For example, Black women and birthing people in the Bay Area are twice as likely to live in poverty than other county residents, and report experiencing more hardships during pregnancy — such as homelessness, loss of a loved one or food insecurity. Almost half of African Americans in California report that they have experienced unfair treatment when getting medical care due to their race.
Science shows that these experiences lead to a cumulative, racialized stress that moms face before and during their pregnancies, taking an undue toll on Black births. Health equity is about more than just access to health care. Health equity begins when people have access to everything they need, from health and childcare, to economic security and housing. That’s why this campaign aims to mobilize all corners of the Bay Area — from health professionals to policy makers to community members — to end racism and birth justice for Black families.
To get in touch or to find out more about #DeliverBirthJustice, please reach out to [email protected].
ABOUT OUR Partners
#DeliverBirthJustice is part of the Perinatal Equity Initiative (PEI) — a statewide effort to address the causes of persistent inequity and health disparities that threaten Black maternal and infant health. Our Bay Area County partners include:
