Ex-Cheerleader Studying Black Maternal Crisis Dies Giving Birth

By Jennifer Porter Gore Originally appeared in Word in Black When she died during childbirth, Krystal Anderson became the latest reminder that Black women are at the center of a global maternal health crisis.& Krystal Anderson seemed to move easily between two worlds as an NFL cheerleader and a college-educated computer scientist. For nearly a decade, she split her time cheering and dancing for the& Kansas City Chiefs& and her career job as a software engineer for a medical tech company.& Her passion for cheerleading and dance, friends say, was exceeded only by Anderson’s desire to help solve the riddle of disproportionately high rates of Black women who die during childbirth. Indeed, she won a patent for software that can assess a woman’s risk of postpartum hemorrhage.  Tragically, however, Anderson — a married, expectant mom herself — fell victim to the very problem she tried to solve. She died of sepsis on March 20, shortly after doctors delivered her stillborn daughter.  Tragically, however, Anderson — a married, expectant mom herself — fell victim to the very problem she tried to solve. She died of sepsis on March 20, shortly after doctors delivered her stillborn daughter.  She was loved and adored....