NATAL
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ABOUT NATAL
NATAL is a podcast about what it means to have a baby while Black in the United States, premiering April 15, 2020. The series is produced by You Had Me at Black and The Woodshaw, and in thought partnership with Black Mamas Matter Alliance .
WHY ARE WE MAKING A DOCUSERIES ABOUT BLACK PERINATAL HEALTH?
The statistics are staggering: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black parents are 243% more likely to die from pregnancy or child-birth related issues than white women.
Black parents are also more likely to face complications directly associated with pregnancy and/or childbirth, such as preeclampsia or fibroids. And while there’s less clinical research about trans and non-binary parents, individual anecdotes detail the dangers faced due to general lack of preparedness and training for non-cis births.
Of course, the story isn't all grim. There is a robust network of advocates working tirelessly to ensure the health and well-being of Black laboring persons.
For example, more and more families are pairing with Black doulas, whose expertise, studies show, result in better birthing outcomes . States like New York and California have passed legislation to examine race-based maternal mortality and require providers to complete implicit bias training, respectively.
And last spring, Democratic Congresswomen Lauren Underwood and Alma Adams launched the first-ever Black Maternal Health Caucus “to raise awareness and develop legislation to combat disparities in maternal health outcomes experienced by Black women.”
But at the core of these statistics and policies are people: survivors, loved ones, and parents, with intimate stories about their birthing experiences. These stories have the power to educate the public, medical practitioners, and lawmakers alike about what it truly means to have a baby while Black in this country.
And because Black parents' stories are rarely centered as experts of their own experiences, we're handing the mic over to them to tell their stories, in their own words.
OUR GOALS
Our hope is that NATAL will empower Black pregnant and birthing parents with information and resources to navigate their parenthood journeys; hold medical systems accountable for the well-being of Black pregnant and birthing parents; create space for Black parents to share the lessons learned within a supportive community; and provide audiences with new tools and language to amplify the national conversation about the state of Black perinatal care — and the solutions that birthworkers, advocates, and communities have long championed for, and that parents and families deserve.
WHY WE'RE RAISING FUNDS
We are a small but mighty team of Black creatives (predominantly womxn, and even two parents!), who have taken on this project as a labor of love in addition to our day jobs.
While we have received partial grant support from USC Annenberg's Center for Health Journalism and the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, NATAL is only 15% funded at this time. Our hope is that everyday people connect with this work to help ensure that this is a people-powered endeavor.
We wholeheartedly believe in paying our production staff fair rates. We are also committed to producing a high-quality docuseries. With your donations, NATAL will be able to these much-needed stories to life, amplify the project’s impact through broader distribution and pay Black creatives what they are worth.
HOW THE FUNDS WILL BE USED
Funds will be used to pay for key expenses such as: personnel stipends, mental health support for parents featured in the series, transcription services, website hosting, and much more.
NATAL is a podcast about what it means to have a baby while Black in the United States, premiering April 15, 2020. The series is produced by You Had Me at Black and The Woodshaw, and in thought partnership with Black Mamas Matter Alliance .
WHY ARE WE MAKING A DOCUSERIES ABOUT BLACK PERINATAL HEALTH?
The statistics are staggering: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black parents are 243% more likely to die from pregnancy or child-birth related issues than white women.
Black parents are also more likely to face complications directly associated with pregnancy and/or childbirth, such as preeclampsia or fibroids. And while there’s less clinical research about trans and non-binary parents, individual anecdotes detail the dangers faced due to general lack of preparedness and training for non-cis births.
Of course, the story isn't all grim. There is a robust network of advocates working tirelessly to ensure the health and well-being of Black laboring persons.
For example, more and more families are pairing with Black doulas, whose expertise, studies show, result in better birthing outcomes . States like New York and California have passed legislation to examine race-based maternal mortality and require providers to complete implicit bias training, respectively.
And last spring, Democratic Congresswomen Lauren Underwood and Alma Adams launched the first-ever Black Maternal Health Caucus “to raise awareness and develop legislation to combat disparities in maternal health outcomes experienced by Black women.”
But at the core of these statistics and policies are people: survivors, loved ones, and parents, with intimate stories about their birthing experiences. These stories have the power to educate the public, medical practitioners, and lawmakers alike about what it truly means to have a baby while Black in this country.
And because Black parents' stories are rarely centered as experts of their own experiences, we're handing the mic over to them to tell their stories, in their own words.
OUR GOALS
Our hope is that NATAL will empower Black pregnant and birthing parents with information and resources to navigate their parenthood journeys; hold medical systems accountable for the well-being of Black pregnant and birthing parents; create space for Black parents to share the lessons learned within a supportive community; and provide audiences with new tools and language to amplify the national conversation about the state of Black perinatal care — and the solutions that birthworkers, advocates, and communities have long championed for, and that parents and families deserve.
WHY WE'RE RAISING FUNDS
We are a small but mighty team of Black creatives (predominantly womxn, and even two parents!), who have taken on this project as a labor of love in addition to our day jobs.
While we have received partial grant support from USC Annenberg's Center for Health Journalism and the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, NATAL is only 15% funded at this time. Our hope is that everyday people connect with this work to help ensure that this is a people-powered endeavor.
We wholeheartedly believe in paying our production staff fair rates. We are also committed to producing a high-quality docuseries. With your donations, NATAL will be able to these much-needed stories to life, amplify the project’s impact through broader distribution and pay Black creatives what they are worth.
HOW THE FUNDS WILL BE USED
Funds will be used to pay for key expenses such as: personnel stipends, mental health support for parents featured in the series, transcription services, website hosting, and much more.
Fundraising team: NATAL Production Team (2)
Martina Abrahams Ilunga
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY
Gabrielle Horton
Team member