The Pasadena Birthing Project

A couple weeks ago, I read an article that stated that minority babies have four times greater chance of dying than their counterparts (Caucasian babies). When I initially heard of this, I was shocked to hear such a grave statistic. Then when I read that it was caused from stress experienced by pregnant mothers that resulted from racism, I really wanted to look into the issue a little bit more to understand it for myself.

I learned of a local group called the Pasadena Birthing Project through the Black MBA Association’s New Member’s meeting and decided to look them up to apply as a volunteer.  I received an email confirmation to come in today for an orientation for new volunteers.  When I showed up this morning, I was really impressed with the amount of space at such a location that looked so inconspicuous from the outside.   It was colorful, roomy, and inviting to children.  As the volunteers entered, one by one would ask if they could look around.  We did so together during the group tour.

There was an agenda for us to follow for the two hours that we would be there. First up on the list was Nancy Brimhaw to speak about Fundraising and the different parts to it. Toni, who runs the Literacy Center, one of three parts of what they call The West Adams Healthy Learning Collaborative, gave us all the tour we had been itching to go on.  There were several different rooms used for the purpose of teaching the youth who need their services. Wenonah Valentine then spoke about the Pasadena Birthing Project.  She spoke about the mission, why they are there, and what their purpose is.  One could say that they serve as an extended family for pregnant women who do not have the immediate love and support that is needed in order to have a healthy baby.

The Pasadena Birthing Project was literally a project that began in Pasadena to examine racial disparities around birth outcomes and women’s health and has recently come to service the Los Angeles area. According to the California Department of Public Health, “the infant mortality rate for African Americans in Los Angeles County is about twice as high as the overall Los Angeles County rate, and three times that of White babies” (1997-2006). Also, “in 2007, more than 16% of both African American babies and Native American babies were born preterm” (1997-2006). The Pasadena Birthing Project’s goal is to examine solutions to the infant mortality rate in Los Angeles, County.

To learn more about the Pasadena Birthing Project, visit www.pasadenabirthingproject.org.

with Wenonah Valentine (middle) and Anita Reuben