As a mother of two, I understand what it means to hope and pray for a smooth pregnancy, safe delivery and healthy baby. I spent many quiet moments wishing for the best while waiting for my children to enter the world.
When I learned that women and babies in America experience some of the poorest maternity outcomes in the developed world, I was stunned. The more I found out, the more compelled I felt to dig deeper.
The personal story of an actor I admired growing up caught my attention a few years ago. Tatyana Ali starred in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air as the lovable Ashley Banks in the 1990s. Seeing a Black girl like me on screen brought me so much pride and joy.
In recent years, Ali has begun publicly sharing the story of her first child's birth. She experienced what she describes as birth trauma at the hands of a hospital maternity care team. I wanted to know more, so I reached out.
After an initial conversation, Ali agreed to meet me at NPR headquarters while she was visiting Washington, D.C., last fall. With emotion and complete candor, she shared her story — and solutions — with me and. Be on the lookout for more on her story on NPR.
Ali’s organization Baby Yams helped Nadia Gramby, the midwife we profiled, cover the final expenses to complete her requirements to become a midwife. I was curious about Gramby’s journey. Her passion and dedication to serving women across Alabama were striking to me. We spoke on the phone a few times and met virtually. Meeting sweet baby River Emmanuel over Zoom was really fun!
In reporting this story, I learned a great deal about midwifery care and efforts to raise awareness of midwives as a valuable solution to address patterns of dangerous birth outcomes for moms and babies and disparities. In the course of my reporting, the March of Dimes alerted me to its new findings on access to maternity care. NPR has covered the issue for a long time. It was clear to me that the story needed to be told again. | 
