Buckeye Reporter

The Ohio Black Maternal Health Caucus (OBMHC) is pleased to announce that it will recognize and participate in the fifth Annual Black Maternal Health Week (#BMHW22). Founded by the Black Mamas Matter Alliance (BMMA), Black Maternal Health Week is a week of awareness, activism, and community- building aimed at amplifying the voices of Black Mamas, bringing visibility to Black-led maternal health initiatives, and centering the values and traditions of the reproductive and birth justice movements. The 2022 theme of “Building for Liberation: Centering Black Mamas, Families and Systems of Care” reflects BMMA’s work in centering Black women’s scholarship, maternity care work, and advocacy across the full-spectrum of sexual, maternal, and reproductive health care, services, programs, and initiatives. 

“As I like to say, I am not the expert, I am an ally and advocate who is determined to get things done to make motherhood an equitable experience for every woman in Ohio,” said Rep. Catherine Ingram (D-Cincinnati), co-chair of the OBMHC. “The members of the Ohio Black Maternal Health Caucus and I stand committed to our goal of eliminating maternal and infant mortality. We will continue to push for legislation that uplifts Black mothers, and thus our Black families, communities, and our state as a whole.”  

This year for Black Maternal Health Month, OBMHC will be supporting the efforts of BMMA and local organizations in our state that are doing great work on the ground, and hosting events, in the pursuit of eliminating maternal and infant mortality. BMHW comes at an exciting time because OBMHC has been building in both membership and partnership, while also being proactive in addressing the issues impacting Black maternal health in Ohio. In honor of BMHW22, OBMHC founding members, State Reps. Tavia Galonski (D-Akron) and Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo), will introduce targeted legislation that would create an eviction defense fund and provide funding for legal representation for defendants in eviction proceedings.

“The celebration of motherhood requires policies and practices that eliminate barriers and provide opportunities for mothers, especially Black mothers, to birth healthy babies.  We must also remove the unnecessary stress and trauma that so many Black mothers face because of societal and racial inequalities,”  said Rep. Hicks-Hudson, co-chair of the OBMHC.

Be sure to connect with OBMHC on social media to get up-to-date information on Black Maternal Health Week Events and Updates.