Blackswell Birth Foundation

Astoundingly high rates of Black maternal deaths in NYC. 

Black women are 12 times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women in NYC, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The dangers Black women face in pregnancy and childbirth, are compounded by racism, unconscious biases in health care and the long-term anxieties, regardless of economic status, that come with being an African American woman. 

… and its NOT about the money.

NY Times: Childbirth Is Deadlier for Black Families Even When They’re Rich, Expansive Study Finds

By Claire Cain Miller, Sarah Kliff and Larry Buchanan, Produced by Larry Buchanan and Shannon Lin, Feb. 12, 2023

Empower BIPOC Birthing Professionals

To solve this problem Blackswell is committing to train and certify 50 new doulas in NY, so they can work with BIPOC birthing people and co-create safe, educated and brave birthing experience

The Blackswell Team

Hillary Lopes: Hillary is a mother to triplet sons, full spectrum doula and movement facilitator. She has been teaching yoga and mindfulness since the summer of 2010. She believes in the relentless pursuit of joy for all beings. Always ready to laugh and eat a nourishing snack…she tackles each day full of gratitude and grit.

Rachel Nicks: Rachel is a mother of two beautiful sons and resides in Harlem, NY. Rachel founded Birth Queen to combat the Black maternal health crisis. Birth Queen is a resource that Black women and birthing people can trust. They can be confident knowing there is someone advocating for them and breathing new life into the birth world with funding, education, and support.

Sarah Workneh: Sarah is a fierce community herbalist that leads her life with a passion for equity and respect for all living beings. She is a founder of The People's Cauldron, a biocentrist spiritual community that operates an herbal clinic and community apothecary in upstate NY. 

Nicole Reyes: As a twin, as the daughter of immigrants, as a biracial person, as an artist and a finance nerd, an athlete and a poet, as a low-road Capitalism critic and system breaker generating abundance, I am a bridge builder, and my work is to help you bridge the gap between where you are right now, and where you’d like to be. My work is centered around sovereignty (SOV-REN). I believe in freedom in the design and practice of life. All of our work begins with this question.

Jasmine Edwards: Jasmine Edwards (she/her) is a music therapist and educator based in Brooklyn NY. She is a Doctoral Fellow within NYU’s music education program with a focus in music therapy and has served as an adjunct faculty member in the music therapy departments at Howard University, New York University, Montclair State University, Nazareth College, and Duquesne University. Related to the work of Blackswell, Jasmine's clinical experiences include utilizing music therapy to support infants and their families in the neonatal intensive care unit. She has also developed and facilitated child-caregiver music therapy groups in several different settings. Jasmine has a vested interest in elevating dialogues about cultural humility within music therapy education and clinical practice. Jasmine is a Black woman.

Jenna Petrone: Along with her involvement in the arts, Jenna has several years of experience in management roles where she became an operations guru and an empathetic team leader. Her work, professionally and creatively, is driven by collaboration, connection, and inclusion. Jenna is humbled to bring together the aspects of her creative process and her operational expertise to Blackswell Birth and support its mission to broaden access to thoughtful doula services.

You can help by…

Supporting us on this journey to eradicating maternal deaths in birthing people of color in NY. We are seeking $108,000 in order to fully educate and certify 50 new BIPOC doulas in NY. With this level of funding we are able to provide full support to these doulas, including mentoring for their first year of working in the birth field, along with transportation and food stipends during their training weekends.

Blackwell is fiscally sponsored by The World Education Endeavor 501c3. Your donations are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

Every dollar counts. No donation is too small.

Brand Sponsorship

Working with their own creative teams brand sponsors get the opportunity to create a social media video series following our students on their journey to become doulas. Connect with your audience in a mutually inspired space while making real change for BIPOC birthing people.

How your donations are spent:

Doula Certification Course for 50 Doulas: $75,000

Course Materials: $1,000

Legal: 1,000

Insurance: $500

Annual Studio Rent: $11,000

Website: $2,500

Transportation and Food: $10,000

Program Management: $10,000

Fiscal Management: $7,000