Standing Together for Black Maternal Health

To support this work click the link below!

https://donorbox.org/byrd-barr-place-good-black-birth-support

The recent proclamation of Black Maternal Health Week (April 11–17, 2026) by

Governor Bob Ferguson marks more than a calendar designation. It is an

acknowledgment of truth, an affirmation of dignity, and a call to action rooted in

community-led advocacy.

This proclamation was driven by the vision and leadership of SURGE Reproductive

Justice. SURGE is a founding partner of the Good Black Birth Initiative and works

alongside 16 thought partners across Washington state. That network was called upon to

support this proclamation, bringing collective voice and community credibility to the

effort.

The proclamation speaks plainly about what Black families have long known. Most

pregnancy-related deaths are preventable, and systemic and structural racism continues

to shape who lives and who doesn’t. It also affirms what Black birth workers have always

carried — ancestral knowledge, cultural wisdom, and an unwavering commitment to

safe, joyful, and self-determined birth.

Why Byrd Barr Place is committed to this work

Byrd Barr Place founded the Good Black Birth Initiative with a clear purpose: to bring

community together to achieve better birthing outcomes and create space for learning

from one another. This work is already happening. Across Washington, Black families,

birth workers, and organizations are building something real, and the Initiative is a

home for that collective effort.

We believe meaningful change requires deep investment in the communities and leaders

already doing the work. Through partnerships like the Black Perinatal Health Study and

our work with Cardea, we engage in research and relationship-building that honors both

data and lived experience. We know that numbers matter, and so does the story behind

them.

Equity in birth outcomes is inseparable from equity in economic opportunity, housing

stability, and community wellbeing, the very areas where Byrd Barr Place has worked

for decades. Black maternal health is woven into the fabric of everything we do.

A week that calls us toward sustained action

Black Maternal Health Week is a moment to listen, to learn, and to act, all year long. It

asks each of us to understand the realities Black families face, to support the

community-led work already creating change, and to advocate for the systems-level

shifts that make safe, supported birth possible for every Black family in Washington.

One meaningful way to engage is by joining us for a community event during Black

Maternal Health Week. My Time for Massage and SURGE Reproductive Justice are

hosting a free evening centered on Black mothers, birthing people, and families,

sponsored by Byrd Barr Place.

The evening included a screening of The Ebony Canal, an NAACP Image Award-winning

film narrated by Viola Davis, followed by a panel discussion and Q&A with the film’s

director. The event also featured a community resource fair with local Black vendors,

food, and free wellness and prenatal bags for the first 30 expecting parents, and we were

also able to give out over 1000 diapers.

We are grateful to SURGE Reproductive Justice for their leadership in making this

proclamation a reality and honored to walk alongside them, the birth workers,

advocates, and families committed to this vision.

When Black families are able to birth in safety, dignity, and joy, all of us are stronger for

it.

Click the link to support this work!

https://donorbox.org/byrd-barr-place-good-black-birth-support

Tiffany Kelly-Gray

Director of Strategic Initiatives

Byrd Barr Place