Ina May's Safe Motherhood Quilt Project

Did you know…that the United States ranks behind at least 20 other nations in maternal mortality rates according to the World Health Organization. In 1996, the United States reported 12 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, up from 8 per 100,000 in 1991.

Did you know…that black women in the United States have 4 times the risk of dying from childbirth or childbirth related complications. Hispanic women in the United States, similarly, are 1.6 times more likely than non-Hispanic white women to die from pregnancy-related causes.

The Safe Motherhood Quilt Project is a national effort developed to draw public attention to the current maternal death rates and to honor those women who have died of pregnancy-related causes during the past twenty years. The Project was the vision of Ina May Gaskin, midwifery pioneer and author of the classic book Spiritual Midwifery, who has been instrumental in bringing this issue to the public light.

The Quilt Project's sponsor is the Safe Motherhood Initiatives, USA, an organization founded to improve maternal mortality rates in the United States.

The Quilt

The quilt is made up of individually designed squares; each one devoted to a woman in the U.S. who has died of pregnancy-related causes since 1982. One quilt square is designed and dedicated to each mother's memory and may mention the date and place of death and the name of the woman. The Safe Motherhood Quilt is the voice for women who can no longer speak for themselves.

To be honored and remembered on The Safe Motherhood Quilt:

• The woman died as a result of a complication of pregnancy or birth
• The woman's death occurred since 1982
• The woman died within a calendar year after the end of her pregnancy (documented by an obituary, death certificate, or relative's account).

Do you know of a woman's story you'd like to share? Get more information on how to prepare your quilt block and submit it for inclusion in the Safe Motherhood Quilt.

For More Information

The Safe Motherhood Quilt Project
PO Box 30955
Bethesda MD 20824
info@rememberthemothers.net

Website: www.RemembertheMothers.net

Comments

[Demetria]

Birth Arts, Heart of Herbs and myself feel that this organization is one of the most provocative and challenging to the mainstream ideas of the safety of hospital birth.
Thank you for adding this to the page. Ina May Gaskins work on this project is tireless and selfless. I know this personally and I encourage all reading to learn more about this project.