The 32nd edition of the New York African Film Festival (NYAFF), currently running through May 31, is the biggest-ever, featuring a record number of films this year. African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) is screening 125 contemporary and classic films from Africa and its diaspora in partnership with Film at Lincoln Center (FLC), the Maysles Documentary Center, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
Under the banner “Fluid Horizons: A Shifting Lens on a Hopeful World,” this edition of the festival celebrates the African youth who have turned to their cameras to document their experiences and the influence of those who came before them. Genres include comedies, dramas, thrillers, documentaries, experimental films, and more.
“In a world of uncertainty, this year presents a vision of the future through the eyes of Africa’s youth—bold, determined, and endlessly creative. As the youngest and fastest-growing continent, Africa is brimming with stories that demand to be told, not just as reflections of today’s challenges but as blueprints for a future shaped by resilience and possibility,” said Mahen Bonetti, NYAFF founder and AFF executive director.
“This year’s festival is a testament to the power of cinema to inspire, provoke, and remind us that hope is always in motion.” Special programs include a free panel presented by AFF and OkayAfrica, this Sunday, May 10 entitled “From Then to Now: Celebrating 15 Years of African Cinema.” Panelists include NYAFF alums Fatou Cissé, who also honors the profound legacy of her father, the late Souleymane Cissé; Congolese animator and filmmaker Jean-Michel Kibushi; and Afolabi Olalekan, director of the festival’s Opening Night film Freedom Way.
Two free art exhibits ongoing through May 13 in the Amphitheater at the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center include “Congo RE-Vue: A Fresh Perspective by Emerging Congolese Talent,” a dynamic digital photo exhibition dedicated to highlighting the vibrant talent of the next generation of Congolese artists; and Bereket Adamu’s “All Night We Waited for Morning, All Morning We Waited for Night,” a welded steel light sculpture and animated video that reflects on African resistance, migration, and global interconnectedness. For FLC film tickets, visit filmlinc.org/african.
The festival continues at Maysles Documentary Center from May 15 to 18. At this Harlem venue, the NYAFF will invite audiences into the backyard of our communities — specifically those of the Senegalese, wider African and African-American communities — illuminating our commonalities, calling out our distinct issues and celebrating our dynamic cultures. The Opening Night film, The Man Who Plants Baobabs by Michel K. Zongo, brings viewers into the world of climate champion El Hadji Salifou Ouédraogo, who has spent the past 50 years of his life planting baobab trees in his village in Burkina Faso, transforming barren lands into thriving ecosystems.
This segment will also feature the North American premiere of The Last Shore by Jean-François Ravagnan, a poignant documentary about the viral drowning death of a young Gambian migrant in Venice’s Grand Canal while onlookers hurled racists taunts; the U.S. premiere of Timpi Tampa a debut by Adama Bineta Sow, a social critique of colorism; and a wide range of documentary films. For tickets, visit https://www.maysles.org/.
On Friday, May 23, NYAFF lands at the Brooklyn Academy of Music under the name FilmAfrica, during DanceAfrica and runs through May 29. Similar to DanceAfrica, this leg of the festival shines the spotlight on Mozambique, with the African nation’s first feature film Mueda, Memória e Massacre (Mueda, Memory and Massacre), a 1979 film by Ruy Guerra.
Other Mozambiquan titles include Kuxa Kanema: The Birth of Cinema by Margarida Cardoso and Granma Nineteen and the Soviet’s Secret by João Ribeiro Opening Night at BAM will see the North American premiere of Angèle Diabang’s So Long A Letter, the stirring adaptation of Senegalese author Mariama Bâ’s celebrated 1979 feminist novel, which won the first Noma Award for Publishing in Africa and which was rated among the top 12 in a tally of Africa’s 100 Best Books of the 20th Century at the Zimbabwe International Book Fair in 2002.
Katanga: The Dance of the Scorpions, Étalon d’Or de Yennenga (Best Film) at FESPACO 2025 by Burkinabé director Dani Kouyaté, which interprets Shakespeare’s Macbeth through an African lens, will have its New York premiere. For tickets, visit https://www.bam.org/film/2025/filmafrica.
By Mary Alice Miller Day Two of the Black Brooklyn Empowerment Summit II promised solutions. And it delivered. The Honorable Annette Robinson addressed the morning plenary session by telling the attendees that we must strengthen our community.
“When you come to my house, I would ask if you are registered and voting. I’d stop a party at my house to let the children know that this is what you are supposed to be doing. You have an obligation and a responsibility,” said Robinson. “We can’t have people lying on our couches and all kinds of stuff, lying around the house, not being productive, not having jobs, not going to school. We can’t allow for that. Our ancestors worked too hard for that. If they are not going to school, they will work. They have to be doing something.”
Nailah Amaru, Advocacy and Policy Strategist, Women Creating Change, spoke of building community power through advocacy. She stressed having a diverse coalition to push your advocacy forward. Amary said one of her most notable advocacy achievements was in 2018-19 when she helped raise awareness for Early Voting which was enacted in New York State.
When opening the Economic Agenda workshop, Dr. Zulema Blair said, “We are trying to get Black venture capitalists, people who invest, to give us that jump-start.” She told of plans to establish a satellite Small Business Development Center at Medgar Evers College under the DuBois-Bunche Center and the School of Business.
Dr. Darlene Williams, CEO of Union Settlement, spoke of succession planning to ensure Black businesses are not just one generation. “In my business, my husband and children are part of it, so that, god forbid, something would happen to me, the business would stay in the family, and we can turn it over to our grandchildren,” said Williams.
Johnny Celestin, Senior Vice President M/WBE, EDC, said financial literacy – budgeting, estate planning, putting structures in place to protect our businesses – is essential. “A lot of businesses in Brooklyn, particularly in the Haitian community that I know, could not get the free [COVID] money because you cannot show the taxes that you paid for your employees because they are paid off the books,” he said. “As a result, you are essentially locked out.” In addition, Celestin spoke of the succession challenges with small businesses, particularly restaurants.
“I know a number of, particularly restaurants, that the parents worked very hard to build. I think what happens is we want to protect our children and don’t want to involve them in the business, so when the parents retire or pass away and the kids get the business, they don’t know how to run it,” Celestin said. “And then you run into issues like tax problems and that kind of stuff. There are lawyers available to read that contract and protect your interests.”
Jean Pierre, Assistant Vice President, Strategic Investment Group, EDC, spoke of the importance of cultural competency. “Show us your track record and how you understand the needs of that community,” said Pierre. “This is not vulture capitalism where you come in to extract.”
Harry Wells, Small Business Development Center, CUNY, recalled a situation about ten years ago during the development of a JFK Airport project. “In order to get a concession, you need to have $1.6 million,” said Wells. “These people had a chance to get a concession stand, but the owner did not have the financial strength to move forward. So my advisors suggested that the family invest so that the whole family owned the concession to take advantage of this opportunity.”
“This week, a guy wanted to buy a recording studio that cost about $3 million. We talked to him about getting his whole family to invest in the project,” said Wells. “My grandfather was illiterate, couldn’t read or write, and he died a millionaire. There is always hope.” Wells added that Congressman Meeks was an active participant in making sure M/WBEs got contracts at the JFK redevelopment project.
Celestin said that when the EDC “puts RFPs out, we are there at the beginning to make sure that small businesses are not put in the position where they are excluded.” He added that “When there is a policy decision that needs to be made (related to the RFP process), you need to engage with your city council member so that they can make policies that can be done fairly across the board for everybody.” The closing plenary, moderated by Dr. Divine Pryor, Executive Director of People’s Police Academy, focused on hard solutions.
Rev. Dennis Dillon, founder and president of New York Christian Times, talked about how he takes African Americans to Africa every year to do business and brings Africans to the United States to do business with African Americans. “It is time for Black people in America and around the globe to develop a culture of commerce,” said Dillon. “Our attitude ought to be around business and ownership. We have to switch from the consumer mindset.”
Dillon emphasized that “Black people have to go to Africa. We have to understand that the economic resources are in Africa. There are tons of Black billionaires in Africa. We have to get them to America. We have yet to create collaboration between Black billionaires who are American and the Black billionaires in Africa.
We have to create those Partnerships. Expanding on the idea, Dillon said, “We in America have to buy African-made products. We can’t buy them because they barely exist. The only way they are going to exist is if more of us are creating partnerships so that we are manufacturing in Africa and in the Caribbean and bringing them here.”
“We have to start putting our pennies, our nickels, our dimes together,” said A.T. Mitchell, NYC Gun Violence Czar. “There have been occurrences in our history, but when we unite and unify, we are unstoppable. Whether we put together our dollars or our coalition building, we have to put aside our differences. I have overwhelming confidence in us as a people.
I built a family-based organization, a community-based organization,” said Mitchell, referring to ManUp Inc. Rev. Conrad Tillard, African American Clergy for Economic and Political Power, said “In 2025 NYC, do not give away political power. To me, it doesn’t make sense that a city full of Black folks would turn out Black political power. Hold the line. Hold what you got. You can’t say you want power and when you get it, you just throw it away.”
In addition, Tillard said we must embrace certain principles: faith, family, positive culture, political engagement, economic empowerment, and coordination with each other. Dr. Blair closed the Summit by outlining the next steps. “We are going to convene a working group to put this policy agenda together. We are going to submit it to our Black leaders on the city, state, and federal levels, and we are going to circulate information to get people’s input,” said Blair. “We want people involved.”
Fern Gillespie New York City tenants facing eviction in Housing Court have access to free legal representation thanks to the 2017 Right to Counsel law. Black and Hispanic New Yorkers are more vulnerable to eviction. They are more likely to live in rent-stabilized or low-income housing, work in lower-wage jobs, and face barriers to legal representation.
The Right to Counsel NYC Coalition is an advocacy, tenant-led group with organizers, advocates, and legal services providers. It was formed in 2014 to challenge the role of the Housing Court and fight the eviction crisis. In 2017, the Right to Counsel NYC Coalition was instrumental in the Right to Counsel law.
Unfortunately, the courts are currently prioritizing moving cases forward regardless of whether a tenant has an attorney. Ultimately, prioritizing landlord profits over tenants’ rights. Our Time Press interviewed Brooklyn-based Khadija Hussain, Campaign Organizer for Right to Counsel NY Coalition, about New York City tenants facing eviction being entitled to free legal representation.
OTP: Why was it important to have the Right to Counsel Law in New York? What has been the impact of the Right to Counsel law on NYC tenants facing eviction? Khadija Hussain: 84 percent of tenants with Right to Counsel (RTC) win their cases and can remain in their homes. When RTC is properly implemented and upheld, landlords are less likely to initiate eviction lawsuits. Tenant associations and community organizations have used RTC as a powerful organizing tool to defend and advance tenants’ rights. It has helped shape a more just body of housing case law, reduced rents, re-stabilized apartments, and compelled landlords to make necessary repairs. Evictions and housing instability disproportionately impact people of color, especially Black women, as well as children, seniors, and people with disabilities.
These disruptions have far-reaching consequences on individuals’ education, employment, family life, and both physical and mental health. RTC is critical to achieving greater economic, gender, and racial justice. Today, Black and brown folks are more likely to live in rent-stabilized or low-income housing, work in lower-wage jobs, and face barriers to legal representation, making them more vulnerable to eviction. Without RTC, a profound power imbalance remains in NYC Housing Court—one that prioritizes landlords’ profit motives over the fundamental need to keep New Yorkers safely housed.
OTP: Are tenants aware of this free legal counsel, and are they utilizing it? KH: The courts are supposed to make tenants aware of this right, but they are currently not upholding their responsibility to tell tenants about their right to counsel. That’s why our Coalition is doing Court Watch – every week, RTC organizers, tenant leaders, and our Court Watch Outreach volunteers are at housing courts in The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens talking to tenants about their rights. We make sure tenants know they have the Right to Counsel and that they can ask the judge for an adjournment to ensure that they have the time they need to connect with an RTC attorney. We also let tenants know they are not alone – That there are thousands of tenants across NYC fighting for tenants’ rights and that they too can join the fight to defend Right to Counsel and stop evictions. This year, we’ve talked to more than 7,000 tenants in NYC housing court.
Many tenants who are facing eviction in housing court don’t know they’re being denied RTC and are therefore negotiating directly with the landlord’s attorney, defending themselves alone, or agreeing to things they don’t want to agree to. Court Watch Outreach volunteers talk to tenants as they stand in line waiting to enter the courthouse and in the hallways of the courts, letting them know about their rights and how to get involved. Doing Court Watch is essential for the tenants facing eviction alone AND it also helps build the political power and pressure we need to win our administrative, budget, and legislative demands that would force the courts to uphold the law, so we don’t have to fight to defend our rights.
OTP: Is it difficult for tenants facing eviction in NYC to get a free attorney? KH: It is currently difficult to get a free attorney because the courts are violating tenants’ rights by scheduling eviction cases faster than tenants can access legal representation. The Office of Court Administration (OCA) and Chief Judge Rowan Wilson have refused to pause these cases until eligible tenants can receive Right to Counsel (RTC). As a result of this inaction, over 55,895 tenants have faced eviction proceedings without legal representation, despite many of them qualifying for RTC.
This approach prioritizes speed over due process and justice. New York City’s Office of Civil Justice (OCJ) was created because of the tireless efforts of the tenant movement. However, OCJ has been unresponsive, ineffective, and, at times, even obstructionist under the Adams administration. One of the fundamental challenges is that state housing courts are not legally required to implement the city’s RTC law unless compelled by state legislation. Yet OCJ has shown little political will to demand that OCA, the Chief Judge, the state legislature, or the city take the necessary steps to fully defend, fund, and uphold RTC.
In August 2023, OCJ issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) that undermines the intent of Local Law 53, which mandates that the city work directly with tenant organizing groups to educate tenants about their right to counsel. Instead of contracting directly with these organizing groups, the city has funneled funds through legal services providers, weakening the vital role that community organizers play in ensuring tenants know and can exercise their rights. OCJ has also implemented an Administrative Pilot in Brooklyn Housing Court that requires tenants to first apply for emergency assistance with the Human Resources Administration (HRA) before being connected with an RTC attorney.
This effectively turns housing court into a debt collection tool for landlords and erodes tenants’ ability to use the court system to secure critical repairs and safe living conditions. Finally, the city is severely underfunding RTC, compromising tenants’ ability to access the protections they are legally entitled to.
OTP: When a resident receives an eviction notice, what should they do? KH: Only a judge can evict you. Do not self-evict. Respond to the eviction notice as soon as possible by going to your local housing court and filing the relevant documentation (as directed by the clerk), and ask for an adjournment to have time to seek legal counsel. The tenant should seek legal counsel or advice. Utilize Housing Court Answers, the Met Council, and other legal services and tenants’ rights groups.
by Taryn Finley Celebrities, stylists and journalists flocked the navy carpet at the 2025 Met Gala on Monday evening, pristinely dressed in an effort to pay homage to Black dandyism. Though it’s always a treat to see our favorite celebrities dressed to the nines, the sweetest glory lies in the halls of the museum with “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
Finley photographed British Sierra-Leonean designer Foday Dumbuya’s wearable art for his LABRUM brandChristian Latchman, 19, photographed by Tyler Mitchell for the Metropolitan Museum of Arts “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” exhibit catalogue book cover, is the “face of the campaign,” this year. Our Time Press interviewed Latchman and family members at the Press Preview, the morning of The Met’s evening gala, May 5. (Bernice Green)Brooklyn held court at The Met Gala, all day. In the morning, OurTime Press met two exhibit stars, world-class culture artists and creatives Mr. Dandy Wellington, in patchwork jacket, far left, and Mr. Naeem Douglas, far right, and introduced them to Mr. Green, (no relation) who matched them in style and appreciated the center staging.
Upon walking into the exhibition, co-curated by professor and author Monica L. Miller, it’s hard to see anything or anyone else but the art. The walls, painted a deep black, absorb the overhead light, leaving attention preserved specifically for the furniture, accessories, paintings and clothing on display.
The story of how Black folks went from being deemed “luxury slaves” to using their fashion as a tool of resistance, protection, and rebellion is on full display. The exhibition explores the evolution of dandyism through the years with works from André Leon Talley, Virgil Abloh, Grace Wales Bonner, Dapper Dan and more on display.
But one of the most interesting things about the exhibition is how it’s displayed. Patrons must tilt their heads and look up at the mannequins to truly see the clothes. This isn’t by accident. By putting the mannequins on a pedestal literally, the curators create a metaphor about their value and how they used clothes to assert themselves. Once — and often still — treated and seen as subhuman, the Black people wearing these clothes take their agency, their freedom and their worth into their own hands and deny the labels society puts on them. Black dandyism is just one expansive way we’ve risen above.
(Taryn Finley is an award-winning multi-media journalist, host, and producer. Her reflections on Ryan Coogler’ blockbuster “Sinners” film can be found at refinery29.com)
Strangers Meet, Lives are Changed
This spring, the African American experience in the history of resistance is being explored, everywhere, and through the prism of the African spiritual aesthetic and creative impulse. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” boldly takes the concept to the front of the catalogue book, a visual display of the evolution that revolution can wrought.
At the current exhibition, on view through fall, Elegance tips a derby to the Everyday, Superfine embraces Superfly, “Rags” outpaces Riches, and the life of a young man, Christian Latchman is changed and enhanced.
Before we move on, it must be noted that 30 blocks north of the museum, The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem is celebrating its centennial. A May 1925 exhibition of scholar Arturo Schomburg’s vast collection marks the center’s birth, and links Brooklyn inextricably to the Harlem Renaissance.
Over the Bridge in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a Kosciusko Street property, once owned by Mr. Schomburg, now demolished and replaced by a public pool, was the womb where the great collector’s treasures gestated for more than two decades.
At The Met’s Monday morning press event, this writer connected with Brooklyn in yet another way. Taryn Finley and I were strangers sharing the same interest: a Brooklyn designer’s fashion statement. My Android jammed. I asked her to take the picture, seen on this page, of the mannequin. She studied the angle before taking the shot. I inquired about her profession. “I’m a journalist.” A few minutes later, we were walking out of the building with fashion icon Lana Turner.
For now, a Mother’s Day salute to Mrs. Latchman is in order. Her son, Christian, landed the cover of The Met exhibit book a week after being discovered by a sharp-eyed model agent. And just for the record, Christian’s father was born in Brooklyn. — Bernice Elizabeth Green
The Rev. Dr. Valerie Oliver-Durrah, president and founder of the Neighborhood Technical Assistance Clinic, helped put a spotlight on Black maternal health when she co-organized Brooklyn’s first Black Maternal Health Awareness Walk, Apr. 11, in downtown Brooklyn. Below is her opening statement that kicked off the event at Borough Hall.
I am so proud to share and to stand with you today alongside my daughter, Brooke Remel Oliver-Durrah—yes, I say all of her names— as hope visionaries of Brooklyn’s first ever Black Maternal Health Awareness Walk. This walk was inspired by the early vision of Concrete Communications [Marketing Agency].
It is because of that inspiration and through the power of collaboration that we proudly stand here today, walking in partnership with incredible organizers, Brooklyn Collaborative, Downtown Brooklyn Partnerships, City Point, and most importantly, walking in honor of the thousands of Black women who have endured, survived, and continue to fight against maternal health disparities every single day. This is more than a walk. This is a witness. This is a movement. This is history in motion.
This morning, we will hear from many speakers, experts, and leaders in this work, and later today, at our Resource Activation Zone at City Point, we will have access to tools and resources that community partners are ready to talk with you about. This moment going forward, as an ordained minister, I like to think of this day in two parts. This morning is like the Old Testament, full of truth-telling and guidance and hard facts. This afternoon is like the New Testament, a space for transformation and for solutions and for action. But before we move forward, we want to start our morning the right way, with intention, with prayer, and yes, music.
It is my joy to welcome our very own Violin Diva [Charrisha Rowe], who will minister to us in her own beautiful way, through music. And to be followed by the Rev. Dr. Karen Daughtry, pastor of the House of the Lord Church, and First Lady of the Rev. Dr. Herbert Daughtry. And finally, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to ABC-TV, and to one of their very own reporters, Crystal Cranmore, a journalist, storyteller in her own right, whose heart for our community is as powerful as her voice. Cris is back home in Brooklyn today to tell our story.
The story of how one Black woman-led nonprofit, it’s my organization, in partnership with so many extraordinary women-leaders created the first ever Black Maternal Health Awareness Walk in the history of Brooklyn. Crystal, we are so proud to have you with us today. And last, but not least, in my opening statement, I would be remiss if I did not introduce the chairman of my board of directors, the Rev. Sylvia Gill-Kinard, Esquire. – Yvette Moore
Testimonies of a Violin Diva
Charisa Dowe Rouse, aka the ViolinDiva, is a noted progressive jazz artist who has collaborated with Wynton Marsalis, Savion Glover, Quincy Jones, Kim Burrell, Common, Diana Krall, Musiq Soulchild, William McDowell, and more. She shared a liturgical offering of string music and song at Maternal Health Awareness Walk event in Brooklyn’s Borough Hall. She also shared her own sobering story of childbirth.
Charisa Dowe Rouse
“On May 14, 2016, my son was two weeks overdue. He tells me now—he’s eight now—he tells me, ‘Mom, I just didn’t want to come out. I was enjoying it in there.’ Which is used to explain why he’s still attached to my hip all the time. I went to the hospital to be induced. They gave me a ribbon, nothing they gave me Pitocin, nothing. They gave me the hardcore stuff, nothing. Twenty-seven hours later, I was only one and three-quarters centimeters dilated. And with every contraction, his heart started to fail. They said, ‘Girl, we’ve got to go in an do an emergency C-section.’ I said, ‘OK.’ I wasn’t ready for it, but my mother talked me off the ledge. She said, ‘Baby girl, you’re a mom now. It’s time to go into mommy mode. It’s not about you anymore. It’s about this baby.’ I just lost it.
“God is awesome, because I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. C-sections are often mistaken as the easy way out. They are not. They strap you down to the table. They remind you of Jesus on the cross. They strap you down to the table. All of your business is out in the streets. And they cut you from hip to hip. I remember talking to the anesthesiologist and telling him, ‘Hey, something’s wrong. I don’t feel right inside.’ He said, ‘No, it’s fine. I haven’t even given you the good stuff yet. I said, ‘No, something is very, very wrong. I’m about to… I’m about to…’ And they pulled out my son, and I heard them scream, ‘It’s a boy!’ “Then the room went black.
“My sister was on the other side of the door, and she says that my heart stopped three times, and they had to bring me back. All she could do was hit the ground and start to pray. I woke up 16 hours later. Normal is about four, maybe three. I woke up 16 hours later not knowing what had happened, not understanding why, and to this day no one in the hospital could tell me what went wrong. But I know that I am here, by the grace of God. He had a greater plan for me. He had a greater plan for my baby boy, who is the light of my life, a joy. … “If it can happen to me, if it can happen to Serena Williams, it can happen to any of us. And in what I still believe is the greatest country in the world, it’s a disparity and a shame that Black maternal health is what it is. It’s literally taking your life in your hands, just giving someone else life in this country in 2025. So, we have to do something to change it. But again, I stand here because of the grace of God and the goodness of God. And I want to sing that song for you today.”
Deputy Boro Prez Kim Council Shares Her Perilous Story
The Rev. Kimberly Council is Deputy Borough President of Brooklyn, NY. Ms. Council welcomed event participants to Borough Hall—and share her own perilous story of birthing a child. Her testimony is below.
Kim Council
As I was listening to Charisa [Dowe Rouse, the ViolinDiva] tell her story, I thought about my own; because not only am I the deputy borough president, not only am I assistant pastor of Greater Mount Pleasant Baptist Church, I’m a Black woman, and I’m a mother. I’ve given birth twice. And the first, the first time that I gave birth was incredibly challenging. I’ve never really shared that story publicly.
I went into labor. It was June 5th of 1998. I went to see my doctor, and he told me what was going on. He sent me to the hospital. He sent me to the care of a midwife. That midwife sat with me all night long because I broke my water, but I wasn’t in labor, so I thought, “Everything’s good.” I’m listening to the young ladies down the hallway moaning and groaning. I was like, “O, God has got me through everything’s going to be good.” Around 5 am in the morning, my doctor comes in and checks on me, and he sees that there is meconium present in my uterus.
I have no idea what he’s talking about, but then he explains to me. I’m sure that OBGYNs can get up and tell you what that meant was that my daughter had a bowel movement inside of me before she was born, and so she was actually ingesting … poison that was inside with the amino fluid. He gives me rest, and then he speeds up the labor and takes me … into the room where I’m going to give birth. When my daughter was born, she was not breathing, but he had a neonatal unit waiting right there. He gave [her] to me for two seconds, and then they were working on her.
Then my temperature spiked. They could not control my temperature. I gave birth at 1:20, and they took me into recovery, but they would not release me until they could get my temperature down. They tried everything, and they could not get my temperature down.
While I was in the recovery, they told me that the only person that was going to be able to come back was my husband. My husband never came back. I never saw him. I did not see my mother. I was not able to talk to anybody. And then they came in and told me that my daughter was really, really sick, and I had to sign paperwork for her to have a spinal tap. She was born with jaundice down, and she had she wasn’t breathing. They put her into an incubator.
I was in recovery until about 8 o’clock at night, and I was not able to see my child. When I came out of recovery, my mother was there, my husband was there, and I told them to pray and go check on our daughter. There were so many different things that happened. My daughter ended up staying in the hospital for two weeks. But it was by God’s grace and God’s mercy that I couldn’t see my daughter for probably 48 hours because I had to go 24 hours without having a temperature. Nothing they were giving me was keeping my temperature down.
There’re so many stories, and I’m thankful to God that she had stayed in the hospital for two weeks, and we took my home. She’s 27 now. She’s good. Everything is great. The next birth was a cesarean.
But there’s so many stories that don’t end that way. My great grandmother used to say to me—my great-grandmother Helen Clemons was born in 1909— and she said, “When women gave birth, they have one foot in the grave and one foot upon the earth.” And I did not understand where she went until I actually went through that process, which is why I feel so honored to work with the borough president who has put maternal mortality as a priority in his in work.
His first year in office, he took all of his capital in $45 million, and he did not give it to the nonprofits that really, really needed it all throughout the borough. But he gave all $45 million to the three public hospitals to create state-of-the-art neonatal units. Woodhall, and Kings County, and South Brooklyn Health will have state of the art neonatal units where we can give birth.
He didn’t stop there. He created a Maternal Mortality Task Force. He had doctors and midwives and doulas and women coming together meeting once a month to talk about the things that were important, to have the conversations that so many of us don’t want to have, to address the racism in the way that the doctors treat women of color when we talk about what our pain is.
Because when we were running for office, we found out that a Black woman, a black woman, is eight to nine times more likely to die during childbirth than her white counterparts, and a woman of Haitian descent is 12.1 times more likely to die during childbirth. If it were any other race of people, it would be national news, and people would be trying to figure it out. This is why I’m eternally grateful to Dr. Durrah and all of the organizations that are here today; Dr. Thomasina Ellison Clark, Dr. Denise Howard, who are OBGYNs and they are chairing departments and hospitals in Brooklyn.
It’s so important that we know who our doctors are, that we have representation, that we have relationship with the people who are touching us and giving or and helping us to bring life into this, into this world, that we know what types of questions to ask, and that can bring awareness to what is happening. So, let’s continue to ring the alarm. Let’s continue to work together to eradicate this issue. We are in a first world country. We can eradicate Black maternal mortality. We can make it so that women who are giving birth live to raise their children. God bless you.
