The unconscious racism of doctors

112

Transcription:

The infant mortality rate for African American mothers in America, is higher than some Third World countries. There's a reason for that. When we walk into a doctors office and a doctor assumes that don't have money or don't have insurance or that we don't really need the information that it takes to have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby, you set a mother up for failure. If she doesn't know that she needs to put her baby to sleep on their back, for instance, she is automatically increasing the chance that her baby will die of SIDS. If a doctor doesn't take the time to tell her to put your child to sleep on their back, maybe breastfeeding would be a better choice for your child because it makes your child healthier, stronger, makes you stronger and healthier. If they are not getting that information, then chances are that something will go wrong with their baby. The reason they are not getting that information is because of the stereotypes of black mothers. What it is really going to take is to start teaching these doctors, as soon as they get into medical school, how to treat black mothers. How to treat a woman who comes in who has skin like mine. Give her that information. Show her the resources where she can get that information, and really take care of her child.

Video Categories: ALL PARENTS, Family Life, Racial and Cultural Differences, PREGNANCY, Pregnancy and Prenatal Health, Choosing Practitioners

Denene Millner, Bestselling Author & Founder of MyBrownBaby, shares advice for pregnant African American women on overcoming the stereotypes of black mothers

Transcript

Expert Bio

Denene Millner

Author & Founder of MyBrownBaby.com

New York Times best-selling author Denene Millner is a hotly sought after award-winning journalist whose insightful and captivating pieces have secured her foothold in the entertainment, parenting and book publishing industries. Millner spent the last decade working as a columnist, contributing editor and blogger for Parenting, a national magazine for which she provided witty, engaging, mom-to-mom advice on ethics and etiquette in everything from childrearing and marriage to work and friendship. Currently, she also is the founder and editor of MyBrownBaby.com, a critically acclaimed, award-winning blog that examines parenting and motherhood through the multi-cultural experience. Millner frequently contributes as an entertainment writer for Essence, the most well-read and respected magazine for African American women, and has written for a plethora of national publications and prestigious websites, including Parenting, Health, Ebony, Jet, Heart & Soul, Real Health, Money, iVillage, Parenting.com, TodayMoms, and The Root, among others. Her extensive television experience includes regular appearances on the The Today Show, CBS Early Show, The Nate Berkus Show, HLN, CNN, MSNBC, VH1, and the Rachel Ray show. Millner also is the author of 21 books. The former political reporter and entertainment journalist lives in the Atlanta area with her husband and their two daughters.