When birthing our babies, death is the equalizer for Black women giving birth

(PRNewswire) – The best day of your life shouldn’t be the most fearful. Women like me, Abby Phillips, Elain Welteroth and others know what it means to manifest the life we’ve always dreamed of. But when it comes to being a mom, income doesn’t matter. For Black and Brown women, our greatest dream can often be our worst nightmare because, regardless of our station, when it comes to healthy births for mothers and infants, the statistics are staggering: Black women are three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes as are White women. Related Stories As a mature woman deciding to be a single mom, I knew that having my first child at age 49 via IVF – also known as in vitro fertilization – would have its challenges: no husband and being self-employed running my own marketing agency for 24 years. I assumed Mr. Right would come, and I would be a mom of four. I waited years for “the dream,” but it never happened. I was happy and horrified at the same time. I was scared of the potential nightmare that me and/or my baby might not survive. You see, for me and many other Black women,...