What If It Were Your Mothers or You? The Truth About Black Maternal Health: Founder's Corner Blog

Let’s be honest. Black women in America are dying in childbirth at rates that should make every single one of us stop, speak up, and demand change. April is the month we do exactly that-loudly, lovingly, and without apology. 

The Crisis Is Real. And It Is Not Okay. 

Black women in the U.S. are more than three times as likely to die from pregnancy- related causes as white women. Read that again. Three times. And the most painful truth? Most of these deaths are preventable. Behind every number is a name. A woman who showed up to every appointment. Who asked the right questions. Who did everything– and still had her pain dismissed, her symptoms ignored, and her instincts overridden by systems that were never built with her life in mind. Black mothers also face higher rates of severe complications, preterm birth, and low- birthweight babies. These are not the results of bad choices. They are the results of structural racism, chronic stress, and inequitable care – full stop. When Black mothers are not safe, families fracture, children suffer, and entire communities bear the wound. 

There Is a Crisis Inside the Crisis 

Now imagine carrying all of that – and also fighting a battle no one can see. Beneath the physical dangers of Black maternal health lies a quieter emergency: Black maternal mental health. Depression. Anxiety. Trauma. Postpartum overwhelm. Many Black mothers and birthing people experience these conditions during pregnancy and after birth. Yet they are among the least likely to be screened, believed, or treated. Why? Stigma. Cost. Providers who don’t look like them or understand their lives. And a deep, well-earned mistrust of institutions that have historically caused harm. Here is what that silence costs: untreated mental health conditions can worsen physical complications, strain families, and even contribute to maternal death, including from suicide and overdose. Mental health is not a bonus feature of maternal care. It is the foundation.

April is Our Moment 

Every year from April 11–17, the nation observes Black Maternal Health Week – held within National Minority Health Month and anchored by the International Day for Maternal Health and Rights. That alignment is intentional and powerful. It declares what we already know in our bones: safe, respectful, joyful birth is a human right, not a privilege for the fortunate few. Across the country, Black-led organizations, advocates, clinicians, and everyday community members use April to grieve, celebrate, organize, and demand. They honor the mothers we have lost. They lift up those who are still here – still fighting, still thriving, still leading. And they push, loudly and persistently, for the policy changes and systems transformation that Black maternal health requires. April is a spotlight. But it is also a stage – for the Black-created solutions that have always existed and have too often been overlooked, underfunded, and undervalued.