A collective of over 50 Black-led organizations has presented lawmakers with a detailed guide to help them better address the reproductive concerns of Black women, girls, and those who are gender expansive.
The Black Reproductive Justice Policy Agenda uses a reproductive justice framework to assess how lawmakers can better craft policy that works to improve and highlight reproductive outcomes for Black women and girls.
From maternal health issues to the lack of diversity among medical professionals, the Black Reproductive Justice Policy Agenda goes into detail about pressing health issues that are affecting Black women and girls. The guide outlines over 30 solutions that can be taken to address reproductive justice issues.
“Reproductive Justice (RJ) is a collective framework grounded in human rights and Black Feminist theory that centers the intersectional impact of race and gender in one’s ability to live free from individual-, community-, and state-sanctioned oppression so that we can create and nurture the family of their choosing and achieve optimum mental, physical, community and economic health,” said the collective in a statement on its site.
Specific Actions for Tailored Results
The Black Reproductive Justice Policy Agenda has been in development since 2021. Organizations like Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, Interfaith Voices for Reproductive Justice, and SisterLove Inc. contributed to the final guide.
Within the guide, the collective is asking for specific action to be taken by the government to address reproductive health concerns.
The guide calls for the full passing of the 12-package bill, called the Momnibus, that features protections for pregnant individuals.
The guide is also requesting that the government create an Office of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Wellbeing. It also asks to expand funding for doulas and midwifery care in federal health care programs. The guide includes calls that the government reassess practices faced by pregnant people who are incarcerated. One practice includes the shackling of pregnant women, which the collective is asking the government to pass a federal law that bans this action.
“Too often, policies are formulated and written into law without a full understanding of how those policies may impact the everyday life of real people,” said former In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda President and CEO Marcela Howell in a statement on the collective’s site. “This Black policy agenda presents proactive solutions grounded in a human rights framework and Black feminist theory, which we believe provides a clearer view of the needs of Black communities.”