Introduction: The Situation and the Story

The larger global crisis of maternal mortality is presented within a human rights framework, including why pregnant women are dying when there are standards of safe practice that could promote maternal health. The chapter then looks at the crisis within the US and its racialized health system, the only high-income country that has tripled its rates of maternal mortality, with women of color bearing the greatest burden. Lastly, it focuses on the South Bronx, New York, and how a midwifery-led birthing center tackled building a place for safe maternal care that reflected the communities and cultures of the women and families it served.