by CHICAGO (WLS) — Black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women.
Tragically, more than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths in the US are preventable.
This public health crisis is bringing together celebrities and state officials like Illinois Lieutenant Governor Julianna Stratton to sound the alarm.
The Chicago Chapter Charities Foundation (CCCF) will host their sixth annual Power & Purpose luncheon with keynote speaker Tonya Lee Lewis, award-winning filmmaker, author and entrepreneur whose work often explores the personal impact of social justice issues. Co-director and co-producer of AFTERSHOCK (HULU), a documentary about America’s maternal mortality crises that has received numerous awards, including a 2024 DuPont-Columbia Award, a 2023 Peabody Award, a 2022 Sundance Special Jury Impact for Change Award, and a Emmy Award nomination in 2023. AFTERSHOCK explores the tragic implications of a healthcare system that neglects maternity patients in need of help. From an often overlooked perspective, the documentary follows two families who must raise their children without a mother due to avoidable complications during childbirth.
The event Hear me! See me! Empower me: Promoting Black maternal health: Highlighting the Impact on Chicago’s Black Community, will take place on Tuesday, October 8 at the Union League Club of Chicago – 65 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois, beginning with a VIP reception at 11 a.m., followed by the lunch program and expert panel at 12:00 noon. Other speakers include Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton, Congresswoman Lauren Underwood and Dr. Joy West.
The purpose of the luncheon is to promote, advocate and provide financial support to community organizations working to improve the health of Black mothers, increase efforts to raise awareness and provide greater access to services and support with the overarching goal is to reduce the impact of the disease. this public health crisis, on the physical and mental well-being of families and communities.
“Black women are 2.6 times more likely to experience maternal mortality than white women. We need to ensure that the wider community understands that these women are dying at an alarming rate and that there are things we can do together to stop that trend.” says Annette Johnson, chair of this year’s event. “I am thrilled that we at CCCF can provide impactful grants to organizations working to save mothers from death during and after childbirth.”
According to the World Health Organization, 287,000 women died during and after childbirth in 2020. Nearly 95% of all maternal deaths occurred in low- and lower- to middle-income countries and communities, and most could have been prevented. In 2022, there were 817 women who died from maternal causes in the United States alone.
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