Maternal mortality
On Monday evening, we learned of the death of Olympic runner Tori Bowie due to complications related to childbirth. My heart sank as I read this coverage. Only 48 hours earlier, Maternity Care Coalition, where I serve as CEO, hosted our annual event with close to 450 attendees exploring what it means to parent with autonomy in a country faced with racial and social inequities, and where Black women face a crisis of maternal mortality. We honored the incredible Black female doctors of the Twin Sister Docs Foundation, and renowned Olympic gold medalist Allyson Felix.
It was even more heartbreaking when I learned that Bowie ran with Felix. At our event, I had spoken with Felix about her experience as a mother and listened to her advocate for Black women, stating that her adverse pregnancy and birth experience shows that fame and education do not protect you from racial disparities that make childbirth so dangerous for Black women in America. We refuse to become complacent with the grim reality of the maternal mortality crisis. It is unacceptable that Black women are three to four times more likely to die from complications during and after childbirth than white women. Today, we remember Tori. She deserved to have a better pregnancy, a better birth story. We must keep advocating for a world where all birthing people have the care and resources to support healthy birth outcomes.
Marianne Fray, CEO, Maternity Care Coalition, Philadelphia
Reform education
The most recent report from The Nation’s Report Card shows that at the eighth-grade level, civics and history scores have dropped across the board. For years, there have been concerns surrounding the state of our nation’s education, but the adverse effect of COVID-19 on our schools is quickly becoming apparent. The drop in test scores coincides with an era of education in which we are plagued by teacher shortages, mass shootings, and the weaponization of school boards for political gain, among other things. What this means for our students is that the future is bleak. Without broad education reform, students across the nation are likely to suffer further decline in their learning. What kind of world are we really creating for our kids? In Aristotle’s words: “The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead.”
Owen Long, Horsham
Small potatoes
Far be it from me to criticize any effort to hold Donald Trump accountable for any of the many violations of the law and basic decency that he may be guilty of, but why is it that he’s being indicted for mishandling documents, rather than, say, fomenting an insurrection and participating in a conspiracy to achieve the violent overthrow of the U.S. government? Can we hope that that indictment is coming down the track? As an American, I am way more offended and horrified by that action than whatever he did — or didn’t do — with some documents.
Linda Falcao, North Wales
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