Reproductive and Birth Justice

Reproductive Justice (RJ):

SisterSong defines Reproductive Justice as the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities.

The term was invented in 1994 by a group of Black women.
RJ is rooted in the internationally-accepted human rights framework.
RJ is about access, not choice. There is no choice where there is no access.
RJ is not just about abortion. Abortion access is critical, and women of color and other marginalized women also often have difficulty accessing: contraception, comprehensive sex education, STI prevention and care, alternative birth options, adequate prenatal and pregnancy care, domestic violence assistance, adequate wages to support our families, safe homes, and so much more.
RJ is intersectional. Meaning, that people’s social identities (self-reflection activity) overlap with modes of discrimination and privilege. As Audre Lorde said, “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.”

Citation: SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective

Birth Justice:

Birth Justice recognizes that all peoples can birth and be parents. People of color, immigrant peoples, and LGBTQ+ communities, in particular, have survived a history of trauma and oppression around our decisions to have and not have babies. Birth Justice aims to dismantle inequalities of race, class, gender, and sexuality that lead to negative birth experiences, especially for women of color, low-income women, survivors of violence, immigrant women, and queer and transfolk. We know that when we, mothers and parents, are empowered, our community is transformed.

Birth Justice includes access to health care during the childbearing year that is holistic, humanistic, and culturally centered. This health care is across the pregnancy spectrum including abortion, miscarriage, prenatal, birth, and postpartum care. Birth Justice includes the right to choose whether or not to carry a pregnancy, to choose when, where, how, and with whom to birth, including access to traditional and indigenous healers, such as midwives and other birth workers, and the right to breastfeeding support. The complete range of pregnancy, labor, and birth options should be available to everyone as an integral part of reproductive justice. Working for Birth Justice involves educating the community, and challenging abuses by medical personnel and overuse of medical interventions.

These are our rights as mothers and parents: Birth Justice Bill of Rights.

Citations: Southern Birth Justice Network and Black Women Birthing Justice

Pregnancy-Related Death

Pregnancy-related death is the death of a woman while pregnant or within 1 year of the end of a pregnancy –regardless of the outcome, duration or site of the pregnancy–from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, but not from accidental or incidental causes.

Citation: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020

Infant Mortality

Infant mortality is the death of an infant before their first birthday.

Citation: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019

Breastfeeding

Fewer non-Hispanic black infants (74.0%) are ever breastfed compared with non-Hispanic white infants (86.6%) and Hispanic infants (82.9%)

Citation: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019

Strategies to advance the human right to safe and respectful maternal health care: Black Mamas Matter and Center for Reproductive Rights Toolkit

Eliminating Racial Disparities in Maternal and Infant Mortality by the Center for American Progress