UMass Boston

Advocacy Resources

Organizations Supporting Black Maternal Health

  • Black Mamas Matter Alliance, BMMA (https://blackmamasmatter.org/)
  • Advocating Black Maternal health, rights and justice. Follow on Instagram @blackmamasmatter and Facebook
  • National Birth Equity Collaborative (https://birthequity.org/): Creates solutions that optimize Black maternal and infant health through training, policy advocacy, research and community-centered collaboration. Follow on Instagram @birthequity and Facebook
  • Moms Rising (momsrising.org): Nonpartisan organization pushing for cultural and legislative change. Follow on Instagram @momsrising and Facebook
  • The Black Maternal Health Caucus (https://blackmaternalhealthcaucus-underwood.house.gov/Momnibus): Aims to raise awareness within Congress to establish black maternal health as a national priority and explore and advocate for effective, evidence-based, culturally-competent policies and best practices for health outcomes for black mothers.
  • Black Women’s Health Imperative (https://bwhi.org/): National organization dedicated to black women and girls’ health and wellness. Follow on Instagram @blkwomenshealth and Facebook
  • Black Women Birthing Justice (https://www.blackwomenbirthingjustice.org/): A collective of African-American, African, Caribbean and multiracial women who are committed to transforming birthing experiences for Black women. Follow on Instagram @birthingjustice and Facebook
  • Commonsense Childbirth (https://commonsensechildbirth.org/): Inspires change in maternal child health care systems worldwide. Follow on Facebook
  • Mama Toto Village (https://www.mamatotovillage.org/): non-profit organization devoted to creating career pathways for Women of Color in the field of public health and human services. Follow on Instagram @mamatotovillage and Facebook
  • Sister Song (https://www.sistersong.net/): Achieving reproductive justice by eradicating reproductive oppression. Follow on Instagram @sistersong_woc and Facebook
  • The Blavatnik Family Women’s Health Research Institute (https://icahn.mssm.edu/research/womens-health): Optimizing quality of care for women across the life span and narrowing gaps in treatment and outcomes in underserved populations
  • Every Mother Counts (https://everymothercounts.org/): Working to make pregnancy and childbirth safe for everyone, everywhere. Follow on Instagram @everymomcounts and Facebook 
  • Village Birth International (https://villagebirthinternational.org/): Fostering humane birth practices and increasing access to maternal and infant health through collaborative and equitable international partnerships and trainings. Follow on Instagram @villagebirthintl and Facebook
  • The AFIYA Center (https://www.theafiyacenter.org/): Serving Black women and girls by transforming their relationship with their sexual and reproductive health through addressing the consequences of reproduction oppression. Follow on Instagram @theafiyacenter and Facebook
  • ROOT: Restoring our own Through Transformation (https://www.roottrj.org/): Black women-led reproductive justice organization dedicated to collectively restoring our well-being through self-determination, collaboration, and resources to meet the needs of women and families within communities.
  • Black Women for Wellness: Black Women for Wellness has been working for over 20 years for maternal and infant health for Black women. Programs include nutrition education, chronic disease prevention, breast cancer support, reproductive justice, environmental justice, sexual health education, civic engagement and policy work.

 

Education and Community Resources

  • Black Midwives Alliance Train and organize midwives to serve as advocates to address disparities in maternal health care that impact black birthing people. Central goal is to have a representative voice at the national level that clearly outlines and supports the various needs and interests of Black midwives.
  • My Brown Baby (http://mybrownbaby.com/): Providing service for those who need information and helping sort through the “beautiful struggle that comes with being black parents in America”. Follow on Instagram @mybrownbaby and Facebook
  • Black Maternal Mortality (https://www.self.com/package/black-maternal-mortality): Examining what we know about the public health crisis and where we go from here
  • Black Women Do Breastfeed (https://blackwomendobreastfeed.org/): Making the community of Black breastfeeding visible. Follow on Instagram @bwdbf and Facebook
  • How does Racism Affect Pregnant Women and Babies?: (npr.org) video

 

Mental Health

 

Doula Education and Services for the Black Community

  • Sista Midwife Productions (https://www.sistamidwife.com/): Doula training and education for Black community. Follow on Instagram @sistamidwife and Facebook
  • National Black Doula Association (https://www.blackdoulas.org/): Overall mission is to help fight the Black Maternal Mortality rate in the U.S. and beyond, through education empowerment. Provides a professional business directory and resource for Black Doulas & Trainers in the childbirth industry.
  • Directory of Black doulas worldwide
  • Why maternal outcomes are worse for Black women and what doulas are doing about it: (nyc lens) video
  • Radical Doula (https://radicaldoula.com/): Where social justice and birth activism meet. Follow on Facebook

 

Articles/Reports

  • Setting the Standard for Holistic Care of and for Black Women (Black Mama’s Matter Alliance Report 2018)
  • The Black Birth Bill of Rights prepared by the National Association to Advance Black Birth
  • Advancing Birth Justice: Community Based Doula Models as a Standard of Care for Ending Racial Disparities
  • Why America’s Black Mothers and Babies are in a Life-or-Death Crisis (NY Times)
  • Black Maternal Health Anti-Racist Resources (Black Mamas Matter) on Instagram
  • What’s Behind the Increased Numbers of Black Women Dying During Pregnancy and Childbirth in the United States? (ourbodiesourselves.org)

 

Books

  • Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty by Dorothy Roberts
  • Reproductive Justice: A New Vision for the 21st Century by Ross and Solinger
  • Birthing Justice: Black Women, Pregnancy and Childbirth by Bonaparte and Oparah
  • Radical Reproductive Justice: Foundation, Theory, Practice, Critique by Derkas, Peoples, Toure, Roberts and Ross
  • Having Your Baby: For the Special Needs of Black Mothers-to-be, From Conception to Newborn Care by Hilda Hutcherson

 

Podcasts

  • Natal: A Docuseries about having a baby while Black in the United States.
  • Homecoming Podcast: At Homecoming, we address two myths: 1) Hospitals are the safest place to give birth and 2) Black families don’t birth at home. We broadcast how Black families birth in love and choose to birth at home, unassisted or with midwives.
  • Birth Stories in Color: Birth Stories in Color is a podcast for people of color to share their birthing experiences- a space that specifically celebrates, mourns with and supports people of color and their transformation through birth.
  • Sisters in Loss podcast: Sisters in Loss is dedicated to replacing silence with storytelling around pregnancy and infant loss and infertility of Black women.

 

Prenatal and Postpartum Wellness Resources

Acupressure

Debra Betts – Acupressure for Pregnancy & Childbirth
www.acupuncture.rhizome.net.nz/acupressure
Download Acupressure Booklet  (PDF –English)
Download Acupressure Quick Guide Summary Sheet (PDF)

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Acupuncture

The Domar Center for Mind Body Health
130 2nd Ave
Waltham, MA 02451
https://www.domarcenter.com/

 

Wakefield Wellness
Raffaella Pasquale
333 North Avenue, 4th Flr,
Wakefield, MA 01880
617.863.6187
www.wakefieldwellness.com

 

Collective Healing Center
175 Washington St,
Winchester, MA 01890
85 Essex Street, 2nd Fl  Haverhill, MA 01830
781.729.0495
www.colllectivehealingcenter.com

 

Angela Bell Acupuncture
186 Alewife Brook Parkway, Suite 302
Cambridge, MA 02138
617.714.5333
www.angelabellacupuncture.com

 

Graham Chiropractic Center
Anita Daniels-Galletti
34 Long Pond Road, Plymouth, MA 02360
617.688.2728
www.grahamchiropracticcenter.com

 

Nurture Whole Health & Reproductive Acupuncture
Libby Horesh, LicAc
57 Old Road to Nine Acre Corner,
Concord, MA  01742
978.660.4502
978.610.6247
www.nurturewholehealth.com

 

Mary T. Egan Acupuncture
222 Webster Street,
Hanover, MA  02339
781.264.7015
www.maryeganacupuncture.com

 

WellPoint Healing Center

Sarah Babcock
175 Derby Street, Suite 18A,
Hingham MA 02043
774.313.0094
www.wellpointhealingcenter.com

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Breastmilk Donor Bank

Mothers' Milk Bank Northeast
www.milkbankne.org

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Massage

James Rosenblum, Master Therapist
Equinox Boston/Chestnut Hill
https://www.equinox.com/spa/spa-booking

 

Bonnie Rovics, OBT/LMT
https://prenatalmassageboston.com/
Book now: prenatalmassage.genbook.com
Zenmassage@gmail.com
617-522-3344
By appointment only - located in Jamaica plain (near stony brook t station)

 

Lotus Massage and Wellness
Laurie Anderson, Rae Maglio
20 W. Main Street
Georgetown, MA 01833
978.234.8020
www.lotusmassageandwellness.com 

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Namasté Massage
Jess Watson
238 Bedford Street, Suite 5 
Lexington, MA 02420
781-862-2922
www.namastemassage.com

 

Boston Birth Equity
Boston, MA 02125
617.287.7476
BostonBirthEquity@umb.edu
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