Sew Thus is Life...

The upside to having a backlog of things to write is by the time you get to it, the topic is relevant again. Starting now and going through Labor Day scores of young people will be returning to school for the new academic year. Many will be seniors in high school, and with senior year comes the pinnacle of the high school experience: graduation.   PROM. I was one of those girls who obsessed the entire year over what my dress would look like, mostly because I made it myself. I've probably made 12 or 13 prom dresses in as many years, through school, full time jobs, pregnancy and this year I would have an infant on my hands (I'm a glutton for punishment, what can I say.) I was approached by my husbands aunt to help a friend of hers who wanted a dress made for her daughter. As mom explained it, her daughter was a good girl  and had done everything asked/ expected of her, was graduating on time with no babies so she promised she'd get her baby the dress she wanted. As she put ...

Where to Find Help and Support Groups like La Leche League and Breastfeeding USA would be a great place to start (I personally belong to their online groups) but in person the groups tend to cater to the typical white, stay at home mom( I'm usually the only Black mom), and I've yet to find a space that uniquely identifies the challenges of the Black community ( edited to add : I DID learn of 2 such groups, but I've yet to be able to make a meeting, one in DC and one in PG. Info below ). My greatest connections have come from my online Black moms groups, specifically Breastfeeding Support for Black Mom s, the private support network of the Black Women Do Breastfeed campaign. Had it not been for those ladies, I too might have fallen for one of the myths that's killed so many breastfeeding relationships. But here is a non-comprehensive list of resources both in and near Prince Georges County, Maryland that cater to breastfeeding, baby wearing, and general mom support. So...

Gorgeous Prince Georges. Pretty Girl County. Prince Georges County, Maryland is THE most affluent area of Black Americans in the country. Yes, even over Atlanta. Residents tend to be more educated than their peers overall, and Black women the most educated out of almost anyone. These are facts. Black women in America are also most likely to die in childbirth, and least likely to breastfeed in the immediate aftermath of childbirth. These are also facts, and PG is no different. Compared to Hispanic and non- Hispanic White women in the county, we are essentially dead last in breastfeeding rates within the hospital at 78%, compared to 90.6% and 81.1% respectively, despite giving birth to over HALF of the counties new babies(1). Most could easily blame this on culture, historical hangups over wet nursing and the "mammy" trope, and the rate of public assistance (WIC) giving out free formula. But with not much searching you'll find that if you wanted to be a breastfeeding m...