Doulas and birth centers are considered part of the solution to Missouri’s ‘unacceptable’ maternal mortality crisis. But current law makes it difficult to help mothers most in need. Click here to read more.

Rosie Warren is an advocate, grower, and herbalist with years of experience who oversees the Uzazi Village Peace Garden. She creates medicinal herbal products from the things she grows. Her love of holistic herbal remedies was sparked by successes healing herself and...

Black people who give birth in the United States have a maternal mortality rate that is 2.6 times higher than white and Hispanic people. Black infants are twice as likely to die. And babies who survive are about 50% more likely to be born dangerously early. Read more...

How one U.S. city is looking at using reparations to redress structural racism and boost community health outcomes. Read more here.

The KCMO Doula Initiative will provide direct doula service to Kansas City residents allowing them to choose from the network of doulas available through Uzazi Village. These trained professionals will offer emotional, physical, and informational support to pregnant...

VOICE FOR EVERYONE | Share your voice with KSHB 41’s Rachel Henderson Uzazi Village, a Kansas City-based nonprofit aimed at providing community-based maternal care, is hosting its ninth annual Black Infant Mortality Awareness Walk on Saturday. “We really just want to...

For the last 5 years, Black documentary filmmaker Emmett Williams has been producing a project titled SISTER DOULA, a one-hour documentary about Black infant and maternal health in America. SISTER DOULA is the story of Hakima Payne, a nurse in Kansas City who tackles...

Announcing our next speaker for our Sept. 29 maternal health workshop, Hakima Payne! Hakima Tafunzi Payne is the founder and Executive Director of Uzazi Village, a nonprofit dedicated to eliminating disparities in maternal and infant health in African American...

Hakima Payne founded Uzazi Village, a nonprofit that trains doulas and focuses on reducing birth inequities for Black mothers and infants in Kansas City. BY ANNA SPOERRE| JILL TOYOSHIBA Editor’s note: During the month of February, in honor of Black History Month and...