Michelle Rodriguez

MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ, then a graduate student at Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, was approved funding in April 2024 to aid research on “The Art of Mothering,” supervised by Dr. Laurence Ralph. Amidst escalating Black maternal and infant mortality rates in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bay Area birthworkers of color emerged as leaders, pioneering innovative approaches to address issues related to reproductive justice, care, and public health. the dissertation delves into the de-medicalized practices of a collective of Black midwives based in Oakland, California, called Oakland Better Birth Foundation (OBBF). Specifically, this study is concerned with OBBF’s implementation of a radically de-medicalized birthing model the grantee refers to as “centering.” Centering promotes a self-empowered approach to childbirth, emphasizing a deep understanding of the individual’s embodied experiences during prenatal, labor, and postpartum care. This approach valorizes the birthing person’s knowledge of their own body rather than deferring authority to medical professionals. Through archival research, surveys, interviews, and participant observation of birthwork in Oakland, the grantee developed an ethnographic account of how a diverse group of midwives, doulas, and birthing individuals mobilize embodied and de-medicalized care methods to combat the shortcomings of reproductive care services provided by the state. Using the “centering” model as a point of departure, the research examines how childbirth practitioners working outside of hospital spaces draw on people’s embodied histories to inform their de-medicalized approaches.