BY AMBER CORRINE
JUNE 20, 2022 6:03PM
Aftershock is an eye-opening new documentary that is pushing to educate the world about a major healthcare issue in America’s Black community: maternal mortality.
According to the CDC, Black women’s chances of dying from pregnancy-related causes are three times higher than white women. The reasons are broad ranging from limited resources available to the systemic bias and racism in the healthcare field that Black women experience. These statistics prove that the Black maternal mortality crisis is an urgent matter and the upcoming documentary will serve as a step in the right direction in terms of shedding light on the matter.
The inspiration for the Aftershock documentary came about after seeing an increase in Black maternity mortality, particularly that of two late mothers Shamony Gibson and Amber Rose Isaac, who both succumbed to preventable childbirth-related complications.
Aftershock follows the partners and families of both Gibson and Isaac, along with activists, and birth workers who are fighting against this systemic racial issue. The film’s creators Tonya Lewis Lee and Paula Eiselt, both experienced their very own unfortunate dealings with healthcare neglect, and are now on a mission to help other mothers-to-be.
Courtesy of Hulu Courtesy of Hulu
Lee shared her personal reasons for creating this film. She told ELLE, “My inspiration for making Aftershock came from the numerous stories I heard firsthand from women across the United States about too many Black women needlessly dying from childbirth complications that could have been prevented.”
She added, “My hope is that viewers will come away from the film empowered to discover and explore the best birthing options available to them and inspired to do what they can to ensure all women have dignified safe births in the United States.”
Click here to read the full article: A First-Look At Aftershock A Documentary On Black Maternal Mortality – VIBE.com
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