Birthing Liberation How Reproductive Justice Can Set Us Free

"Wade’s attention to how personal change can contribute to societal shifts elevates this above other titles that focus on the self, and the solid research drives home the scope of the problem. This deeply empathetic overview of medical racism will outrage and has the power to inspire change." —Publisher's Weekly

Birthing Liberation presents reproductive justice as the pathway to equity and the birthplace of liberation.

Sabia C. Wade, renowned radical doula and educator, speaks to the intersections of systemic issues—such as access to health care, house transportation, and nutrition—and personal trauma work that, if healed, have the power to lead us to collective liberation in all facets of life.

Collective liberation rests on the idea that in order for us all to have equity in this world—from the safety of childbirth, to the ability to bring a baby home to a safe community, to having access to resources, safety, and opportunities over the long term—we must all become liberated individuals.

Birthing Liberation creates a path to social and systemic change, starting within the birthing world and expanding far beyond.

Sabia Wade (she/they) is a radical full-spectrum doula, reproductive justice advocate, equity consultant, and somatic educator based in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2017 she founded the nonprofit For the Village in San Diego, and in 2018 she founded Birthing Advocacy Doula Trainings (BADT). In 2021 she launched The Black Doula Podcast, and Essence magazine listed her as one of “9 Black doulas and midwives to follow now.” Her work has been featured in Insider, the Advocate, Business Equality Magazine, Ebony, Motherly, Well + Good, and Healthline, among other outlets. She has appeared on several podcasts including Evidence Based Birth, Birthful, Happy as a Mother, and Birth Kweens.

Introduction
1. In the Room Where It Happens
2. History of Race and Gynecology
3. Present Day Perspective: The Racial Divide
4. Reproductive Justice as the Path to Collective Liberation
5. Unpacking Trauma as a Personal Responsibility
6. Healthy Community, Healthy Parent, and Healthy Baby
7. Birthing Liberation
8. A Return to Birth: A Different Outcome for All