I recently got a post from one of my local lawmakers supporting #BlackMamasMatter.
I went off on it, as I should have. Yes, they Black Women die more often when giving birth. That is a fact.
I pointed out that it is a fact that Black Children die at a higher frequency as well. Therefore, were we going to get #Black1YearOldsMatter, #Black2YearOldsMatter, etc.
I got flack. I deserved it. I wanted it.
Because here is the point.
Yes, Black Mamas Matter. All Mamas Matter. But the problem with high death rates has nothing to do with race. It has everything to do with poverty and accessibility to health case. We need to deal with that and not try to marginalize the situation once more.
The reason I believe this is because I see the death rates among poor people everywhere being high, astronomically high. And, it knows no damned color. Black, While, Asian, Semite, Indigenous, you name it. Poor people without access to health care die. If they are pregnant the die. Their children die far too early. I had one well-meaning individual who thought by singling out Black Mamas and getting some support and traction it would also help the other people who were affected. I totally disagree. You do not solve the issue by trying to be politically correct. I have seen this before. They band aid the problem being presented and ignore the real issue.
While I have no problem using any group, in this case Black Mamas, to help start the discussion on how to improve health care, I will be damned if I want to support some campaign that singles some group out when it is a people problem.
This is not #BlackLivesMatter. That is a whole different issue. Black people are being singled out for mistreatment by society, especially police, and are dying because of it. I support this movement but as for #BlackMamasMatter, it is a whole different story.
