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Black History Year

ReBirth of a Nation: Why These Black Traditions Matter with Linda Jones

Black History Year

PushBlack

History, Society & Culture

4.32.1K Ratings

🗓️ 21 May 2024

⏱️ 54 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How we enter this world matters. But white supremacy has infiltrated even the most sacred aspects of Black culture, including our birthing practices. On today’s episode, we’re uncovering the often-erased historical roots of Black childbirth and the deadly implications of its medicalization. Our guest, Linda Jones, is here to break it all down. Linda, a postpartum birthing doula, birth photographer, and co-founder of Black Women Birthing Justice, has spent three decades serving women of color in their birthing journeys. Her work doesn't stop there, though—she also co-directs the Mothers for Mothers Postpartum Justice Project in the Bay Area and supports similar organizations. Linda's going to help us understand how reclaiming our birthing culture can serve Black families, communities, and our collective liberation. Get ready to explore the power of Black birthing in this episode you don't want to miss! -- Black History Year (BHY) is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school and explore pathways to liberation with people who are leading the way. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work. The BHY production team includes Jareyah Bradley, Brooke Brown, Amber Davis, and Elyse Rawlings. Our producers are Cydney Smith and Len Webb for PushBlack. Engineering and editing the show is Lance John with Gifted Sounds. Our executive producers are PushBlack's Julian Walker and Lilly Workneh. Black History Year's host is Darren Wallace. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Birth is not just a physical event. It's a sacred passage, a moment in time and space where generations past and future meet taking shape in the form of new life.

0:15.2

However, for black mothers and birthing people this journey has often been marked by

0:19.8

systemic oppression and racial injustice.

0:23.2

From the days of slavery to the discrimination in modern health care systems,

0:27.1

the fight for equitable maternal care persists.

0:29.7

And the solution, it might lead us further away from hospitals than you might think.

0:34.0

I'm Darren from Pushing Black and you're listening to Black History Year.

0:38.0

Now embedded in our history and culture of the stories of Black midwives and doula's

0:42.0

rooted in ancestral birthing traditions, of the stories of black midwives and dualists.

0:42.8

Ruded in ancestral birthing traditions,

0:45.2

these caregivers and community leaders

0:46.7

provided not only physical assistance,

0:49.4

but all show emotional and spiritual support

0:51.5

during childbirth.

0:53.7

Their practices were steeped in the cultural wisdom that offered a holistic approach

0:57.1

to birthing that honored the sacredness of the experience.

1:01.2

But white supremacy has a way of creeping into the most sacred of black spaces.

1:05.0

As a result, black merging people really face profound challenges in the medical system.

1:10.0

Their voice is silence, experiences dismissed,

1:13.0

and body subjected to all forms of cruelty.

1:16.0

But the shift is happening, though,

1:18.0

and is providing an opportunity for black burhers to reclaim

...

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