Given recent conversations about the state of obstetrical care in Santa Barbara, I feel compelled to share my experiences and perspective about what is lacking and what could be improved for birthing people in our community. My daughter was delivered via emergency C-section at Cottage Hospital when I was 25 weeks pregnant. She weighed less than two pounds and spent nearly four months in the NICU.
As a Black woman in this country, my story is unfortunately not unique. Preterm birth and low birth weight are the second leading cause of infant mortality in the U.S. and the leading cause of death for Black babies. Black women are three times as likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than white women and 60 percent more likely to give birth prematurely. These statistics are devastating but hardly surprising, given the way structural racism impacts health outcomes.
The history of reproductive violence against women of color is a long one: forced sterilization, mass sexual assault and violence, and the systematic separation of babies and children from their families. Black and Native women in particular have struggled for autonomy over their reproductive lives and ability to mother their children for most of U.S. history. The continuation of this struggle is reflected in the reproductive health disparities that exist today. These disparities will surely be exacerbated by the overturning of Roe vs. Wade.