“The relationship doulas have with clients extends far beyond the birthing and postpartum time, since clients have trusted their doula to witness the most significant experiences of their lives.”

 – Health Affairs

Persistent disparities in maternal and newborn health outcomes continue to raise concerns in the South Florida Community. At the heart of the conversation emerges a beacon of hope – doula care. Doulas are advocates, educators, climate workers and empathetic pillars of support during childbirth. As we strive to bridge the gap in maternal and infant mortality and morbidity outcomes , doula care is a powerful tool, addressing challenges pregnant people face, especially those from underserved communities.

What Your Need To Know: As hospitals, nonprofits, and policymakers increasingly begin to recognize the value of doula care, it is imperative to address the challenges that doulas face in sustaining their work. A newly released report on Doula Care by Human Rights Watch, validates the reality that compensation remains a hurdle for many doulas, making it challenging to serve low-income communities where their presence is most needed.

This event took place virtually via Zoom Webinar on Thursday, September 7, from 9:00 am- 10:00 am . An enlightening conversation on the pivotal role doulas play in reshaping the narrative of maternal health in Miami-Dade and across the country. As well as, learning ways in which we can help foster fair compensation and respect for their vital work.

KEYNOTE

As emergencies researcher for the Women’s Rights Division, Skye Wheeler monitors and documents women’s rights abuses during human rights crises including situations of armed conflict and attacks on civilians, mass displacement and crisis following disasters. Skye Wheeler is currently researching the impact of extreme weather events like hurricanes, flooding and forest fires—worsened by global warming—on women and girls, especially from poor and marginalized communities.

PANELISTS

Jamarah Amani, LM is a community midwife who believes in the transformative and healing power of birth and that every baby has a human right to human milk. Her mission is to do her part to build a movement for Birth Justice locally, nationally and globally. Jamarah is the architect of the Birth Justice framework, the Black Midwives Model of Care and the Birth Justice Bill of Rights. Jamarah identifies as Black, Femme and Queer.

A community organizer from the age of sixteen, Jamarah has worked with several organizations across the United States, the Caribbean and in Africa on various public health issues, including HIV prevention, infant mortality risk reduction, access to emergency contraception and access to midwifery care. As a birth worker and activist, Jamarah has been tackling issues of racial justice, including the epidemics of Black maternal and infant morbidity/mortality for over fifteen years. She is currently the Executive Director of Southern Birth Justice Network, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization working to expand the Birth Justice movement and to make midwifery and doula care accessible to marginalized communities. She is also the co-founder of National Black Midwives Alliance, the only national professional association in the U.S. specifically for midwives of African descent, and a founding member of the Queer and Transgender Midwives Association.
Jamarah is the recipient of the 2019 Trailblazer Award from the City of Miami, which proclaimed a day in her honor- Jamarah Amani Day, celebrated annually on March 14. She has been featured in a variety of media outlets including PBS, NPR, NBC and publications such as Vox, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Washington Post, among others. She has written for news outlets including the Miami Times and Miami Herald. Jamarah recently received the inaugural Umm Salaamah Sondra Abdullah-Zaimah Birthworker Award from Black Mamas Matter Alliance. In addition to parenting four children and watching the sunrise whenever possible, Jamarah offers midwifery care to families in South Florida and teaches workshops on Birth Justice to organizations across the United States.
Jamarah is currently producing a documentary entitled Legacy Power Voice: Movements in Black Midwifery with her partner, filmmaker Karyl-Lyn Sanderson.

Recent work and features:
1. Companies can’t support healthcare equity while backing Florida lawmakers who undermine it | Opinion by Jamarah Amani. https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article266841531.html
2. Birth Justice Workshop facilitated by Jamarah Amani: https://www.healthconnectone.org/increase-power-improve-health-outcomes-amani-says/
(May 2020)
3. Jamarah Amani Receives the Trailblazer Award City of Miami Commission on the Status of Women: https://sflcn.com/jamarah-amani-receives-trailblazer-award-city-of-miami-commission-on-the-status-of-women/
4. NBC6 Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0tvjjOi-mE

As emergencies researcher for the Women’s Rights Division, Skye Wheeler monitors and documents women’s rights abuses during human rights crises including situations of armed conflict and attacks on civilians, mass displacement and crisis following disasters. Skye Wheeler is currently researching the impact of extreme weather events like hurricanes, flooding and forest fires—worsened by global warming—on women and girls, especially from poor and marginalized communities.