Black History Month: Honoring the Legacy of Black Birthworkers

Black women have been the foundation of birthwork for centuries. The knowledge, care, and advocacy they have provided—often in the face of systemic racism and exclusion—have shaped the work that doulas and midwives do today. And yet, their contributions have been overlooked, erased, or actively pushed aside by the medical system.

Before hospitals became the norm, Black midwives were the primary care providers for birthing people, especially in the South. They weren’t just birth attendants—they were pillars of their communities, ensuring that Black families had safe, skilled, and culturally competent care. They passed down generations of wisdom, adapted to meet their communities' needs, and fought for birthing autonomy long before it was a mainstream conversation.

But as hospitals medicalized birth, Black midwives were systematically excluded through licensing laws, hospital policies, and outright racism. Their practices were dismissed as outdated, their presence was pushed out of maternal care, and the consequences of that erasure are still felt today—especially in the U.S., where Black women face disproportionately high maternal mortality rates.

Today, Black birthworkers are reclaiming that space. Organizations like the National Black Midwives Alliance and Black Mamas Matter Alliance are fighting for birth equity, and people like Sabia Wade, the Black, queer, nonbinary founder of Birthing Advocacy Doula Trainings (BADT), are training a new generation of doulas to center cultural awareness, reproductive justice, and community support. BADT isn’t just about teaching the technical skills of doula work—it’s about addressing the systems that make birth inequitable in the first place.

Birthwork as we know it exists because of Black women. And it’s on all of us in this field to not just acknowledge that, but to make sure their legacy is honored, their contributions are amplified, and their work continues.

If you want to support Black birthworkers, donate to Black-led doula organizations, hire Black doulas, and listen to the Black voices leading these conversations. Let’s make sure their impact is recognized—not just in February, but every single day.