Birth Justice Policy Lab

The Birth Justice Policy Lab advances community-led policy solutions that affirm the right of Black and Indigenous communities to choose if, when, and how to grow a family supported by safe, accessible, and culturally appropriate reproductive health care. The Birth Justice Policy Lab’s work directly confronts systemic discrimination inside and outside the medical system that drives the pregnancy-related mortality crisis in Black and Indigenous communities. This year, the Policy Lab is partnering with the Southern BEE Alliance Cooperative to address barriers to a proven intervention: access to community-based, culturally reflective doulas and midwives. 

NIRH is partnering with organizations to ensure that Black and Indigenous doulas, midwives, and community birth workers are visible, valued, and included in state-level policy discussions and decision-making processes. Through this partnership, NIRH and the Southern Bee Alliance Coalition will develop a shared advocacy agenda, strengthen our ability to engage decision-makers, elevate community voices, and build stronger relationships across sectors so that community experience can more effectively inform maternal health policy and systems change throughout South Carolina.