Exploring Black Women’s Pathways to Motherhood Within a Reproductive Justice Framework

2022 ◽  
pp. 104973232110668
Author(s):  
Seanna Leath ◽  
Patrice Wright ◽  
Bianka Charity-Parker ◽  
Erica Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
Family Planning ◽  
The United States ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Reproductive Decisions ◽  
Reproductive Justice ◽  
Consensual Qualitative Research ◽  
Black Mothers ◽  
Empirical Knowledge ◽  
Health Practitioners

Amidst the increasing push to address racial disparities in maternal health equity, fewer studies have considered Black women’s perspectives on their needs, concerns, and priorities regarding family planning care. Such evidence might help address the lack of support and information that many Black women report in patient–provider encounters, and broaden empirical knowledge on the contextual factors that influence Black women’s reproductive decisions. In the present qualitative study, we explored Black women’s pathways to motherhood within a reproductive justice framework. We drew on individual, semi-structured interview data from 31 Black mothers (25–50 years, Mage = 35 years) across the United States. Using consensual qualitative research methods, we elaborated on three themes: (1) intentional family planning, (2) unintended pregnancy, and (3) othermothering. The findings challenge deficit-based stereotypes of Black mothers’ reproductive choices and illuminate how health practitioners can facilitate humanizing conversations that prioritize Black women’s family planning goals and decision-making.

Screening for Substance Use Disorders during Pregnancy: A Decision at the Intersection of Racial and Reproductive Justice

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Kravitz ◽  
Michelle Suh ◽  
Matthew Russell ◽  
Andres Ojeda ◽  
Judy Levison ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Social History ◽  
Drug Screening ◽  
Racial Bias ◽  
The United States ◽  
Reproductive Justice ◽  
Black Mothers ◽  
Legislative History ◽  
Screening Policy ◽  
Screening Study

Objective: Improve racial equity with routine universal drug screening / Study Design: Commentary on the medicolegal and social history of the United States and the field of obstetrics and gynecology regarding drug screening policy / Results: Critical aspects to inform an equitable drug screening policy include (1) racial bias and stigma related to substance use, (2) the legislative history surrounding substance use during pregnancy, (3) the relationship between substance use and mass incarceration which disproportionately affects persons of color, (4) propensity toward punitive measures for Black mothers with substance use, including termination of parental rights, (5) the role of the medical field in fostering mistrust among our patients / Conclusion: new practices in screening for substance use during pregnancy are needed. Key Points

What Happens If They Come for You? An Exploration of Mothers’ Racial Socialization on Discrimination With Black College Women

2020 ◽  
pp. 036168432097967
Author(s):  
Seanna Leath ◽  
Sheretta Butler-Barnes ◽  
Raven Ross ◽  
Zenobia Lee-Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
College Women ◽  
Racial Discrimination ◽  
Racial Socialization ◽  
Black Family ◽  
The United States ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
Black College ◽  
Black Mothers ◽  
Self Advocacy

Few scholars have considered the racial socialization that Black mothers offer to their daughters on racial discrimination and violence or how mothers’ other social identities (social class and ethnicity) may influence their discourse on these topics. To address this gap, we used consensual qualitative research methods to explore the racial socialization that 47 Black college women recalled from their mothers on racial discrimination and violence during their formative years. The following themes emerged: (a) the nature of Black mothers’ socialization on racial discrimination (consistent messaging, messaging focused on sons, more socialization in response to police shootings, anti-Black messaging from immigrant mothers, and absence of messages) and (b) the ways that mothers socialized their daughters to respond to racial discrimination (self-advocacy, get home safe, code switching, and take the high road). Participants described how their mothers’ socialization messages reflected their personal race-related beliefs and experiences including perceptions of the United States racial climate. Our findings highlight the need for socialization in Black family contexts that addresses the unique and intersectional experiences of Black girls. In particular, scholars and practitioners must draw attention to how racism and sexism contribute to the state-sanctioned violence that Black women and girls experience.

Why Reproductive Justice Matters to Reproductive Ethics

2021 ◽  
pp. 17-28
Author(s):  
Melissa Gilliam ◽  
Dorothy Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
Women Of Color ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ethical Principle ◽  
Indigenous Women ◽  
Safe Motherhood ◽  
Reproductive Justice ◽  
Reproductive Ethics ◽  
Long Acting ◽  
Disproportionate Burden

This chapter addresses the historical and current attempts by physicians and legislators to regulate the reproduction of Black, Latina, and Indigenous women, with a particular focus on Black women. It connects the contemporary language promoting long-acting reversible contraception for “risky” populations to past policies coercing Black, Latina, and Indigenous women to use contraception and undergo sterilization. At the same time, these efforts to regulate the reproduction of women of color coincide with a rising number of abortion restrictions and lack of access to abortion and safe motherhood, which affect women of color disproportionately. Black women bear a disproportionate burden of the staggering and rising maternal mortality rate in the United States. These topics are often omitted from discussions about reproductive ethics, and social justice is often neglected as a major ethical principle. Approaching the reproductive freedom of women of color from a reproductive justice perspective, therefore, offers an important way to expand our understanding of reproductive ethics.

White House, Black Mother: Michelle Obama and the Politics of Motherhood as First Lady

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (03) ◽  
pp. 460-483
Author(s):  
Gloria Y. A. Ayee ◽  
Jessica D. Johnson Carew ◽  
Taneisha N. Means ◽  
Alicia M. Reyes-Barriéntez ◽  
Nura A. Sediqe
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
Black Woman ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
The United States ◽  
Black Mothers ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
First Lady ◽  
White House ◽  
Michelle Obama ◽  
History Of

AbstractIn 2008, for the first time in the history of this country, a black woman became First Lady of the United States. During Barack Obama's presidency, Michelle Obama was ever present in the public eye for her advocacy on issues related to health, military families, education, and for promoting the interests of women and girls. This article contributes to ongoing scholarly discourse, as well as extensive media coverage and analysis, regarding Obama's role as wife and first lady by critically examining how the particular model of motherhood she embraced and exhibited, a model firmly rooted in the black American community, was designed to challenge negative stereotypes of black women, maternity, and families. We address the following questions in this work: How did Obama's identity as a black woman influence the policies she championed as first lady? Does Obama's mothering relate to stereotypes of black mothers and help (re)define black motherhood, and if so, how? What does it mean to be a black mater gentis or mother of the nation? Drawing on her speeches and policy initiatives, we reveal how Michelle Obama defied dominant and oppressive stereotypes of black women and mothers while simultaneously (re)defining black womanhood and motherhood for the nation.

Pre-conceptual sex selection

2014 ◽  
Vol 155 (46) ◽  
pp. 1815-1819
Author(s):  
Máté Julesz
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
The United States ◽  
Criminal Code ◽  
Sex Selection ◽  
Reproductive Justice ◽  
Medically Assisted Procreation ◽  
Family Balancing ◽  
European Health ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Catholic Church

According to Article 14 of the Oviedo Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine of the Council of Europe, the use of techniques of medically assisted procreation shall not be allowed for the purpose of choosing a future child’s sex, unless serious hereditary sex-related disease is to be avoided. In Israel and the United States of America, pre-conceptual sex selection for the purpose of family balancing is legal. The European health culture does not take reproductive justice for part of social justice. From this aspect, the situation is very similar in China and India. Reproductive liberty is opposed by the Catholic Church, too. According to the Catholic Church, medical grounds may not justify pre-conceptual sex selection, though being bioethically less harmful than family balancing for social reasons. In Hungary, according to Section 170 of the Criminal Code, pre-conceptual sex selection for the purpose of family balancing constitutes a crime. At present, the Hungarian legislation is in full harmony with the Oviedo Convention, enacted in Hungary in 2002 (Act No. 6 of 2002). Orv. Hetil., 2014, 155(46), 1815–1819.

scholarly journals I’m Every Woman: Advancing the Intersectional Leadership of Black Women School Leaders as Anti-Racist Praxis

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 7-28
Author(s):  
April L. Peters ◽  
Angel Miles Nash
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
The United States ◽  
Women's Leadership ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Race And Gender ◽  
Leadership Framework ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Resisting Oppression ◽  
Epistemological Basis

The rallying, clarion call to #SayHerName has prompted the United States to intentionally include the lives, voices, struggles, and contributions of Black women and countless others of her ilk who have suffered and strived in the midst of anti-Black racism. To advance a leadership framework that is rooted in the historicity of brilliance embodied in Black women’s educational leadership, and their proclivity for resisting oppression, we expand on intersectional leadership. We develop this expansion along three dimensions of research centering Black women’s leadership: the historical foundation of Black women’s leadership in schools and communities, the epistemological basis of Black women’s racialized and gendered experiences, and the ontological characterization of Black women’s expertise in resisting anti-Black racism in educational settings. We conclude with a four tenet articulation detailing how intersectional leadership: (a) is explicitly anti-racist; (b) is explicitly anti-sexist; (c) explicitly acknowledges the multiplicative influences of marginalization centering race and gender, and across planes of identity; and (d) explicitly leverages authority to serve and protect historically underserved communities.

Racial Disparities in Pregnancy-associated Intimate Partner Homicide

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052199083
Author(s):  
Aaron J. Kivisto ◽  
Samantha Mills ◽  
Lisa S. Elwood
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
Ethnic Minority ◽  
Racial Disparities ◽  
White Women ◽  
The United States ◽  
Intimate Partner ◽  
Intimate Partner Homicide ◽  
Homicide Victimization ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Pregnancy-associated femicide accounts for a mortality burden at least as high as any of the leading specific obstetric causes of maternal mortality, and intimate partners are the most common perpetrators of these homicides. This study examined pregnancy-associated and non-pregnancy-associated intimate partner homicide (IPH) victimization among racial/ethnic minority women relative to their non-minority counterparts using several sources of state-level data from 2003 through 2017. Data regarding partner homicide victimization came from the National Violent Death Reporting System, natality data were obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics, and relevant sociodemographic information was obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau. Findings indicated that pregnancy and racial/ethnic minority status were each associated with increased risk for partner homicide victimization. Although rates of non-pregnancy-associated IPH victimization were similar between Black and White women, significant differences emerged when limited to pregnancy-associated IPH such that Black women evidenced pregnancy-associated IPH rates more than threefold higher than that observed among White and Hispanic women. Relatedly, the largest intraracial discrepancies between pregnant and non-pregnant women emerged among Black women, who experienced pregnancy-associated IPH victimization at a rate 8.1 times greater than their non-pregnant peers. These findings indicate that the racial disparities in IPH victimization in the United States observed in prior research might be driven primarily by the pronounced differences among the pregnant subset of these populations.

Centering “Grace”: Challenging Anti-Blackness in Schooling Through Motherwork

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 142-157
Author(s):  
Terri N. Watson ◽  
Gwendolyn S. Baxley
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Black Children ◽  
The United States ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
Racial Biases ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Patricia Hill Collins ◽  
Educational Advocacy

Anti-Blackness is global and present in every facet of society, including education. In this article, we examine the challenges Black girls encounter in schools throughout the United States. Guided by select research centered on Black women in their roles as mothers, activists and school leaders, we assert that sociologist Patricia Hill Collins’ concept of Motherwork should be an essential component in reframing the praxis of school leadership and in helping school leaders to rethink policies, practices, and ideologies that are anti-Black and antithetical to Blackness and Black girlhood. While most research aimed to improve the schooling experiences of Black children focuses on teacher and school leader (mis)perceptions and systemic racial biases, few studies build on the care and efficacy personified by Black women school leaders. We argue that the educational advocacy of Black women on behalf of Black children is vital to culturally responsive school leadership that combats anti-Blackness and honors Black girlhood. We conclude with implications for school leaders and those concerned with the educational experiences of Black children, namely Black girls.

Creating Intersectional Subjects: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Health Science Breastfeeding Research

2021 ◽  
pp. 233264922098109
Author(s):  
Shannon K. Carter ◽  
Ashley Stone ◽  
Lain Graham ◽  
Jonathan M. Cox
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Black Women ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Race Disparities ◽  
Breastfeeding Policy

Reducing race disparities in breastfeeding has become a health objective in the United States, spurring research aimed to identify causes and consequences of disparate rates. This study uses critical discourse analysis to assess how Black women are constructed in 80 quantitative health science research articles on breastfeeding disparities in the United States. Our analysis is grounded in critical race and intersectionality scholarship, which argues that researchers often incorrectly treat race and its intersections as causal mechanisms. Our findings reveal two distinct representations. Most commonly, race, gender, and their intersection are portrayed as essential characteristics of individuals. Black women are portrayed as a fixed category, possessing characteristics that inhibit breastfeeding; policy implications focus on modifying Black women’s characteristics to increase breastfeeding. Less commonly, Black women are portrayed as a diverse group who occupy a social position in society resulting from similar social and material conditions, seeking to identify factors that facilitate or inhibit breastfeeding. Policy implications emphasize mitigating structural barriers that disproportionately impact some Black women. We contribute to existing knowledge by demonstrating how dominant health science approaches provide evidence for health promotion campaigns that are unlikely to reduce health disparities and may do more harm than good to Black women. We also demonstrate the existence of a problematic knowledge set about Black women’s reproductive and infant feeding practices that is both ahistorical and decontextualized.

scholarly journals Urban specters

2021 ◽  
pp. 026377582110302
Author(s):  
Asha Best ◽  
Margaret M Ramírez
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Black Women ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Women Artists ◽  
Social Life ◽  
The United States ◽  
Spatial Method ◽  
Urban Futures ◽  
Black Life ◽  
The Relationship

In this piece, we take up haunting as a spatial method to consider what geography can learn from ghosts. Following Avery Gordon’s theorizations of haunting as a sociological method, a consideration of the spectral offers a means of reckoning with the shadows of social life that are not always readily apparent. Drawing upon art installations in Brooklyn, NY, White Shoes (2012–2016), and Oakland, CA, House/Full of BlackWomen (2015–present), we find that in both installations, Black women artists perform hauntings, threading geographies of race, sex, and speculation across past and present. We observe how these installations operate through spectacle, embodiment, and temporal disjuncture, illuminating how Black life and labor have been central to the construction of property and urban space in the United States. In what follows, we explore the following questions: what does haunting reveal about the relationship between property, personhood, and the urban in a time of racial banishment? And the second, how might we think of haunting as a mode of refusing displacement, banishment, and archival erasure as a way of imagining “livable” urban futures in which Black life is neither static nor obsolete?

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