Christy Turlington Burns has blogged about the fight to stop pregnancy-related deaths.
“Despite the 13th Amendment to our Constitution and the Abolition of Slavery in 1865 well over a hundred years ago, and an African American President in The White House, there continues to be a racial divide in our country,” she wrote. "And when it comes to birth outcomes, African American mothers and infants are taking the biggest hit.
“Each day in the U.S., two women die from pregnancy related complications. Each year, more than 19,000 newborns die during their first month of life. A large percentage of these deaths happen to African American women and babies. It’s simply unacceptable that in 2014 an African American woman is more than four times as likely to die in pregnancy and childbirth than a Caucasian woman.
“Where is the worst place to give birth if you are a black woman? Africa.
“In sub-Saharan Africa a pregnant woman stands a 1 in 39 chance of dying in childbirth. The first country I chose to film in “No Woman, No Cry” was Tanzania. It was one of the first African countries I visited in the early 90’s and one with a President who was a leader amongst his peers and dedicated to reducing maternal and infant deaths. Unfortunately, many African countries, including Tanzania have not realized their Millennium Development Goals.
“In 2012, Every Mother Counts became a founding partner in an initiative called Saving Mothers, Giving Life. Through this partnership EMC has been providing transport to pregnant women in western Uganda through Baylor Uganda so they can deliver their babies in the care of a trained provider in a safe and hygienic facility. This year we have plans to do much more in Uganda and in a few other countries on the Continent.
“We hope you will join us in celebrating achievements and advances this month and an increasing number of safe births and healthy lives going forward as together we strive to make every mother count.”
Read the full blog here.
Source: Every Mother Counts
