Why Money Can't Protect Black Mothers | Khiara M. Bridges

Black maternal mortality is not a poverty problem. Black mothers in the US are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white mothers — and for Black women, that risk goes UP as income goes up.

Khiara M. Bridges is a law professor at UC Berkeley and author of Expecting Inequity: How the Maternal Health Crisis Affects Even the Wealthiest Black Americans (MIT Press). She has testified before the U.S. Senate on this. In this episode, she explains why wealth doesn't protect Black mothers, what racism looks like inside a delivery room, and what would actually have to change.

What you'll learn

• Why wealth does not protect Black mothers during pregnancy
• How racial disparities in maternal outcomes actually grow with income
• Why blaming Black culture for these deaths is both wrong and dangerous
• What racism looks like inside hospitals and delivery rooms
• Why naming racism out loud matters
• What would actually have to change to save Black mothers' lives

Why this matters

This is a family issue. If you are raising Black children, or you love someone who is pregnant, this is something you need to know.

About BACKtalk

BACKtalk is the interview series from Successful Black Parenting Magazine, where Janice Robinson-Celeste speaks with experts about the issues affecting parents raising Black children and the families who support them.

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Watch the full video conversation: https://youtu.be/znd164NzsEs

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