Dear families,
I wanted to reach out to let the community I serve know that I am personally committed to using my business and privilege to stand up for Black lives and social justice issues. In the field of maternal, perinatal health, the gap in health equity, including infant feeding, for Black parents and babies is enormous and unacceptable. The challenges my Black patients and colleagues face is enormous and unacceptable. We have to do better! I am actively listening, reading, donating, engaging, and learning to do better. Please join me in actively participating in ways to end racial injustice and health inequities. Consider following and supporting the following organizations. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Melissa Cole, MS, IBCLC, owner and clinician at Luna Lactation & Wellness
- Black Mamas Matter Alliance is a Black women-led cross-sectoral alliance. We center Black mamas to advocate, drive research, build power, and shift culture for Black maternal health, rights, and justice.
- The Perinatal Health Equity Foundation is a grassroots community organization dedicated to actively working towards eliminating health care disparities in black infant and maternal health through advocacy, education, community engagement, research, collaboration, and direct clinical support.
- Black Breastfeeding Week: August 25-31
- Black Mothers Breastfeeding Association is working to reduce racial inequities in breastfeeding support for black families.
- Reaching Our Sisters Everywhere (ROSE) Inc. was founded to address breastfeeding disparities for communities of color.
- Ancient Song Doula Services focuses on the whole and not the parts. Through community, advocacy, reproductive/birth justice and education, they aim to tackle some of the issues effecting communities of color.
- Black Women’s Health Imperative is the first nonprofit organization created by Black women to help protect and advance the health and wellness of Black women and girls.
- Black Women Birthing Justice is a collective of African-American, African, Caribbean and multi-racial women committed to transforming the birthing experiences for Black women.
- Commonsense Childbirth is building a network of support to transform maternity care in the US. Be a part of the movement for change!
- Jamaa Birth Village is located in Ferguson and for the last three years has implemented Midwifery and Doula based care that has been proven to eliminate disparities that are contributing to the rising rates of infant-maternal mortality and prematurity in black communities.
- Mamatoto Village is devoted to creating career pathways for Women of Color in the field of public health and human services; and providing accessible perinatal support services designed to empower women with the necessary tools to make the most informed decisions in their maternity care, their parenting, and their lives.
- National Birth Equity Collaborative aims to reduce Black maternal and infant mortality through research, family-centered collaboration, and advocacy.
- SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective is building an effective network of individuals and organizations to improve institutional policies and systems that impact the reproductive lives of marginalized communities.
