JOHN,

This Black Maternal Health Week, I want to lift up incredible leaders in the movement to improve healthcare for Black moms and their babies.

The Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice (MCRJ) is advancing Black maternal health through grassroots leadership, policy advocacy, and coalition building. MCRJ is committed to ensuring that all people receive the dignified, equitable care they deserve before, during, and after birth.

In my state of Michigan, this is especially needed because Black maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the nation—with Black women more than 4.5 times likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women, and Black infants 3 times more likely to die than white infants.

Solutions to this urgent crisis include investing in more Black healthcare providers and more birth centers, which are midwife-led, home-like places that have been proven to improve maternal and infant health outcomes.

As the policy lead for the Michigan State of Birth Justice Coalition, MCRJ grounds its work in the foundational leadership of Birth Detroit—home to the only Black-led birth center in the state. The coalition’s community-rooted vision has helped shape critical policy wins, including a newly signed law to license and expand access to birth centers, and the “Michigan Momnibus” policy package—featuring vital bills to support doulas and midwives and protect patients from discrimination.

Can you chip in today to support the Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice’s life-saving advocacy to eradicate racial disparities in maternal and infant health? Stand up for Black moms now.

Thanks in part to the relentless advocacy from the Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice, lawmakers introduced the “Michigan Momnibus” package during last year’s Black Maternal Health Week. This week, this set of important solutions will be voted on in the Michigan Senate. Then it’s on to the State House!

While pushing for life-saving policies, the Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice (MCRJ) is also providing education and resources to communities, their families, healthcare providers, and the institutions that shape their care experiences.

This community group’s work is rooted in reproductive justice, which is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, to have children or not have children, and to parent in safe, sustainable communities.

In addition to birth justice, MCRJ advocates for intersecting issues such as environmental justice and housing justice—recognizing that access to clean water, safe housing, and economic stability are essential to achieving true reproductive freedom.

The Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice’s critical work depends on federal resources to expand access to doulas, midwives, and culturally competent care. The federal funding freeze is forcing them to fight harder for every dollar to ensure that communities don’t lose access to life-saving support.

Will you chip in today to help the Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice eradicate racial health disparities and build a more equitable future where Black reproductive justice thrives?

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Thank you. Our systems and institutions have failed to provide Black people with the high-quality healthcare that everyone deserves. But I refuse to accept this status quo, and I thank you for standing with me and the movement for health equity.

In Congress, I’m supporting policies for Black maternal and infant health like the federal Momnibus Act, and I’m working with the Congressional Mamas’ Caucus to center Black mothers and other mothers of color in policymaking.

Together, we will continue demanding and building a society that honors everyone’s safety, dignity, and bodily autonomy.

In love and solidarity,

Rashida