Why more and more Black women are opting for home births
The rise in home births amongst Black women represents a small step in reclaiming their power in maternal health care.
Just as Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) reclaimed her time during Steven Mnuchin’s House Financial Services Committee hearing, Black women across the country are reclaiming their power during their birthing experiences. In recent years, studies have found an ongoing trend—home births. Research published by the Journal of Perinatal Medicine found that the rate of planned home births has increased by 60% over the last seven years, the highest level seen in three decades.
Amongst the rise in women opting for home births, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that Black women have fueled the most interest in this birthing option. While some women cited wanting to have more of a say on how their child is welcomed into the world, others opted for home births to avoid experiencing medical racism. In 2021, the CDC reported a “significant” spike in Black maternal mortality rates, as Black mothers were almost three times more likely than white mothers to die during childbirth. In addition to the harrowing mortality rates, 30% of Black women and women of color reported feeling disrespected while giving birth in healthcare facilities, noting instances where they were scolded, yelled at and ignored, per National Geographic.
“Had I been in a hospital, I would not have been so relaxed,” Asia Dessert, who opted for a home birth, told the publication. “The focus [at home] was on me and my son, rather than having to acclimate myself to people I don’t know, with lighting and temperature out of my control.”
With stars like Serena Williams, Beyoncé, Elaine Welteroth and Naomi Osaka sharing their complicated and sometimes traumatic birthing experiences, there has been a significant push for better Black maternal health care.
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“As a Black woman, a joyful birth looks like planning your birth, not letting your birth plan you. It looks like a birthing person deciding to bring a child into this world,” Toshira Maldonaldo, a Black maternal health advocate and co-founder of Beautiful W.O.M.B. (Women Overcoming Major Barriers) previously told theGrio.
While some experts caution women in choosing an at-home birth plan, others note the benefits of home births. Often, home births are guided by midwives or doulas (a.k.a. birthing assistants) who help ensure that both mother and baby are comfortable and safe throughout labor and delivery. Most families who opt into at-home birthing plans have regular appointments with their selected midwife, just as they would an obstetrician throughout their pregnancy. However, unlike most traditional medical environments where patients only get 15 minutes with the doctor, midwife appointments allow for a more attentive environment, giving families space to ask questions and express concerns.
“These conventional systems do not value autonomy,” Stephanie Mitchell, a certified nurse midwife, told National Geographic. “Birth is not inherently dangerous. It has been made to be dangerous by its medicalization and industrialization,”
“Birth is meant to be a joyful, transcendent, and empowering event,” Latham Thomas, founder of the Mama Glow Foundation,” said per theGrio. “Everyone deserves to have access to safe, affordable, respectful and dignified care throughout the perinatal continuum…doulas approach to care from a trauma-informed framework and can help to support families impacted by injustice and inequity, grounding them with tools for advocacy, healing, transformation and empowerment.”
