Survival isn’t Black or White

In continuation with the theme of this blog, being race, I wanted to talk about a topic that
as a female I feel is important: childbirth. While this is one of the beautiful phenomenons
that happens on a daily basis, it should be one of the happiest times for a new mother
and family; but that is not the case for all. Black mothers are way more likely to die in
childbirth than white women1 to die

The mortality rate of black women in childbirth is

significantly higher than other groups

(photo credit: CDC.gov)

in childbirth. I would have never imagined there to be inequality in an event such as

childbirth, for every woman goes through it; it is a milestone in all people’s lives. The
fact that race is a factor in such a natural event is upsetting, but not shocking to any
degree.

According to the CDC, research showed that black women in the United Stated are 3-4
more times likely to die in childbirth than white women in childbirth.2 These numbers are
a contributing factor to why the overall rate of pregnancy-related deaths has climbed
over the past 2 decades, making the maternal mortality rate in the United States one of
the worst industrialized countries in the world. The big question surrounding this issue
is, ‘why is this happening?’ And like every issue, there are 2 ways to answer this

1
https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2019/p0905-racial-ethnic-disparities-pregnancy-deaths.html
2

https://www.npr.org/2017/12/07/568948782/black-mothers-keep-dying-after-giving-birth-shalon-irvings-sto
ry-explains-why
question: the ‘easy’ way and the ‘hard’ way. The easy answer would be that historically,
there had been a lack of access to healthcare for these black women. Even when they
would get access, the quality of care was poor, in comparison to what the normal
standards of care are. Most of the ‘easy’ answers can be summed up with one word:
money. It all comes down to how much money one has, and what that money can get
you.

But to move onto the ‘hard’ way, this is an issue of racial discrimination. This issue at
hand is not only a severe public health issue but also one of human rights.3 It was
estimated that many of these deaths of black women in childbirth were preventable, so
why weren’t they prevented? It has become evident that on the most basic of levels,
black women

Tennis superstar, Serena Williams, also experienced racial discrimination

post-childbirth (Photo credit: theguardian.com)

are undervalued. They are not monitored as carefully as white mothers and when they
do show symptoms of something wrong, those are often dismissed and easily

https://www.heart.org/en/news/2019/02/20/why-are-black-women-at-such-high-risk-of-dying-from-pregnan
cy-complications
overlooked. Tennis superstar, Serena Williams,4 is a prime example of this induced
racism. One day after giving birth to her daughter via a C-section, she realized that
there were blot clots blocking one or more arteries in her lungs. While gasping for air,
she alerted the medical workers immediately, and originally dismissed her concerns.
Only when those symptoms started to become severe was there an official diagnosis
and correct medical treatment given to her. I think that Williams’ story is a perfect
example of how racism is not exclusive to anyone. Even a star as big as 23 Grand Slam
titles Serena Williams experiences these life or death situations, which was completely
preventable if she had received the right attention initially.

With this issue at hand, there are so many negatives that can be pulled from it, but there
are also some positives. One positive, which should not even have to exist, is that a
black mother is more likely to live through childbirth if they have a black OB.5 Though
very unsettling to think of the fact that the color of one’s skin determines a basic human

Black mothers are more likely to survive childbirth when they have black
doctors and OBs (photo credit: cbc.ca)

right that everyone should have, it is somewhat comforting to hear that the black
community looks out for one another. The reason for this is that black doctors and OBs
are aware of the inequalities within this issue, so they have more of an ability to prevent.
They tend to the mothers’ every concern, for they know those would usually be
neglected. My mom, being a neonatal nurse practitioner, told me that this issue is not as
talked about as it should be. During her career in the field, she has seen the mortality
4

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/08/07/beyonce-serena-williams-open-up-ab
out-potentially-fatal-childbirths-a-problem-especially-for-black-mothers/
5

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/08/19/black-babies-more-likely-live-when-treated-black
-doctors-study/3389521001/
rate of black mothers decrease in her hospital, but they should be lower. This is not only
a matter of life or death, rather an issue of treating everyone with the same human
decency.