Radical Doula

This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

Sarah Koehler is a proud feminist and birth doula. She received her training through Natural Resources in San Francisco, California by a local midwife. She is familiar and deeply interested in meditation and homeopathy as resources for pain relief. Sarah has volunteered at hospitals as a birth doula and offers low-cost services to her community. Sarah’s website is www.homegrownheartsbirth.com.

What inspired you to become a doula?

I became inspired to become a doula when I realized how women are treated in the US’s medical care system. There are so many times when having a gynecological appointment that I wished another person was there to provide me strength, comfort and knowledge. I can now provide that for expected mothers in their most life-changing time.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

I identify with the term “radical doula” because I see every doula as doing something radical. Each and every doula is changing the approach to birthing by being present, passionate, and knowledgeable.

What is your doula philosophy and how does it fit into your broader political beliefs?

My doula philosophy is that every birth is spiritual and a celebration. No matter the plans that go astray or the special circumstances that arise, a baby is still coming into this world and that is the joyest of occasions.

What is your favorite thing about being a doula?

My favorite thing about being a doula (aside from just being apart of a beautiful birth!) is helping a person realize their inner strength and that they are capable of birthing.

If you could change one thing about birth, what would it be?

I would change the stigma that birth is a medical event. Birth is natural process that our bodies were built to handle and that it is “pain with a purpose”.

This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

About gracie:

gracie janove is an acupressurist, photographer, writer, sociologist, pro-choice feminist and radical doula. She is proud to offer doula support for all pregnancy options including birth, abortion and adoption as well as care for all families and pregnant people. She recently helped organize the Bay Area Radical Reproductive Workers Alliance. Aside from birth work, she is dedicated to empowering youth through teaching media literacy. She currently resides in the SF Bay Area. Contact her at BirthBeautifullMoments@gmail.com.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

I work with individuals (and families), yet I am committed to creating lasting systemic change in the reproductive health world. I envision a society where all people have all the health care and support they need, and where they don’t need money to get it. This means safe abortion access, midwifery services, any other form of health care. Currently, women in prison, homeless women, queer women and trans people are especially marginalized groups that need access to these services. I’m working towards a world where informed consent and empowered choice are the norm.

What is your doula philosophy and how does it fit into your broader political beliefs?
“In white supremacist capitalist patriarchal Western culture neocolonial thinking sets the tone for many cultural practices.” -bell hooks

I want to inhabit a world where the choices that impact the communities in which we live are made collectively and democratically. People deserve agency over if they want to, when they want to, and how they want to give birth. I provide unconditional support for pregnant persons and every choice they make, because I believe they know best. So many parts of our culture work against women, and as a doula I am there to bestow compassion and support to all involved. One way the culture misguides us is through the use of mainstream media, an inescapable force that is great at playing on our emotions. I’m interested in examining the media’s role in forming people’s lived experiences of childbirth. Someday, I’d like to launch a media campaign with other reproductive justice workers to help reconstruct the way people perceive and experience birth.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

Alese Colehour a graduate student of biological anthropology at University of Oregon in Eugene. She works with reproductive health of the Shuar communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon. You can check out her website here.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

Dar a luz, meaning to give light, is the Spanish phrase meaning childbirth. Through childbearing and rearing, a woman brings forth new light to our world not only through the life of a child, but through her own life as a new mother. I am a strong believer in the rise of the feminine and I believe the way the majority of modern hospitals treat laboring women is an alarming breach of basic human rights. It is a symptom of a systemic problem that despite impressive efforts from female rights advocates continues to infiltrate many aspect of our society. Serving as labor support is my way of advocating for a change. I have a profound respect for the emotional and physical changes a woman goes through during pregnancy and labor (such an incredible thing the human body can do!) and being present to witness and cherish each moment is an incredibly powerful experience. I am very grateful for each woman and family for giving me the honor to attend such a sacred ceremony. Through my compassion and commitment to continuous support, I hope I can inspire hospital staff, new families, and my own personal community to look at childbirth practice in a new light.

What is your favorite thing about being a doula?

I love being able to love so openly and freely. I love learning so much from each of the women I serve. I love meeting other doulas, they are all so warm and wonderful and womanly!

If you could change one thing about birth, what would it be?

First impressions are extremely important, and that includes the first few moments after a baby is born. I believe those first impressions of the world are extremely influential later in the life of the child and even as an adult. Imagine the difference between strangers in latex gloves and a steel table versus a loving human hand and a warm chest!

This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

About Kelly: 

Kelly, C.M.T., CD (DONA), is a massage therapist, a certified birth doula, and Co-Founder of the new Bay Area Doula Project which trains and coordinates abortion doulas to work with women through all of their pregnancy outcomes. Kelly spent years as a community and labor organizer in hospitals working towards health justice and is acutely aware of the challenges that women face seeking dignified health care in the US. As a full spectrum doula, Kelly aims to aide women to empower themselves through education, resources, and continuous, non-judgmental emotional support. When Kelly is not helping women take charge of their reproductive choices, she is Mama to a fiery daughter and enjoys teaching her how to harness her innate powers. Her website is www.ninemoonsdoula.com and the Bay Area Doula Project website is here.

What made you become a doula?

It wasn’t until after giving birth to my daughter that I truly began to appreciate and explore the value of birth pain/intensity and decided I wanted to help women understand the usefulness of these feelings. Before becoming a doula I was a labor organizer for healthcare professionals. In the context of worker’s motivation to collectively bargain I understood that a work force would have to experience great lows (aka, great pain) before they were willing to mobilize for a more equitable workplace. Looking at the birth experience of most women, not only did I begin to see birth pain as a guide towards personal transformation, but I also started to examine birth as a leaping off point for organizing against the brutalities committed towards women by the medical establishment. I love the intimacy of the work. It is an honor to step into women’s lives and witness their exploration of the most private and primal instincts, urges, fears and victories that arise when one is facing abortion, miscarriage, birth, and postpartum life. At the first birth I attended I witnessed a teen-mom deliver her baby while standing up, moaning and quaking and beautiful, and her partner caught the baby (with the assistance of the midwife). I saw that birth experience instantly empower the family and I knew I was hooked.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

Leila Zainab Counihan is a pro-choice feminist, birth doula of color. She recently traveled to La Ceiba, Honduras to work as a birth doula in a public hospital. She is the Director of the Freedom Doula Project, a full spectrum pregnancy doula organization serving Boston, MA. Currently, she is an undergraduate at Clark University in Worcester, MA. Leila spends most of her free time collaging, meditating and honoring her Yoni. You can contact her or Freedom Doula Project at leila@freedomdoulas. Check out Freedom Doula Project on Facebook or at www.FreedomDoulas.org!

What inspired you to become a doula?

I was 18 when I was inspired to be a doula after reading “Half the Sky” by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. I read stories of women all over the world experiencing terrible sexual and reproductive injustices just because they became pregnant. This jump-started my obsession with reproductive justice and international public health. I knew I wanted to have a career as an advocate for women’s reproductive health, but I wanted hands-on experience as well. Becoming a birth doula was the perfect fit.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

When I became a birth doula, I quickly found that I was the only pro-choice, feminist doula of color in my circle, and in many other circles as well. I found that there were disconnects between these identities on many levels. First, the lack of diversity within the birthing community was staggering. I was surrounded by upper-middle class, white women. As a lower middle class, South Asian, immigrant woman, I felt utterly alone. Secondly, I naively assumed that because we were all for the freedom and movement of women, we would all be pro-choice. I soon learned that the topic of pro-choice was almost as taboo as it is anywhere else. In many ways, I am a radical because I chose not to leave my identities behind. Instead, I represent them with pride.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

About Jasmine:

Jasmine Marsh is a birth and postpartum doula and direct-entry midwifery student currently residing in Maine. She ran a popular blog about reproductive heath and justice from 2009 to 2011 called Doula Right Thing. She can be reached at jasmine.marsh@gmail.com

What inspired you to become a doula?

I think it was a combination of meeting a few really inspirational, radical doulas in my community around the same period of time, having a family of strong women who talk a lot about birth and reproductive health and justice, and put a lot of value in those things, and having a natural interest and pull towards holistic/alternative healthcare, feminisim, sexuality, anarchist politics, and the DIY community… interests which, for me, combine well for the role of doula.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

Well, I think being any type of doula, or birth supporter or birth worker for that matter, is pretty radical work. I think I identify with the term ‘radical doula’ because I came to birth work through radical communities, through punk communities, anarchist communities, queer communities, etc.. The first doulas I knew were hanging out in squats I lived in, and speaking at pro-choice rallies. Identifying as a radical doula has just been a natural progression.

What is your doula philosophy and how does it fit into your broader political beliefs?

I believe that how people feel on the day they give birth effects how they feel about themselves, in some way, for the rest of their lives. If they feel that they were heard, that they were in control, that they did a good job (no matter the birthing outcomes), they will feel powerful, strong, beautiful, and like a capable and competent person and parent. And how they feel about their birth experience ripples out, impacting the child, partners, family, friends, community, etc…

But, back to your question—being a doula fits into my broader political beliefs because I believe people need autonomy, respect, and choices (among other things) to thrive… People need to be in control of their lives. Being a doula is just allowing that—holding space and reflecting back to the innate wisdom parents possess.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

About Raeanne:

Raeanne Madison is a young Ojibwe woman living, studying, working, and mothering in the deepwoods of rural northern Michigan. Her obsessions include reproductive justice, rhetoric, Powwow dancing, sewing, playing in jazz band, and greenvegetables. Raeanne is currently working towards certification as a childbirth doula.

What inspired you to be a doula?

I realized that I have been a doula since giving birth to my daughter three years ago. For some reason, many friends come to me for post-partum support, advice, and advocacy. I suppose it’s because I’m a very vocal and passionate advocate. I never realized there was a name for what I have been doing. I chose to pursue certification as a childbirth doula, and eventually I’d like to do the post-partum training, as well. I naturally gravitate towards helping pregnant and child rearing people. Doula work is a way for me to make a difference on an individual, personal level which in turn creates a better community.

Why do you identify with the term “radical doula?”

This is an interesting question. To some, I am radical because I am a pro-choice birth worker. To others, I’m radical because I support the rights to affordable and culturally competent care for all mothers, even those who have been marginalized by mainstream birth work. To others, I’m radical because I’m a young doula and a teenage mother of color. I say I’m radical because I believe in bottom up revolution and anarchy, and this includes birth work. I strongly believe that we will take back our reproductive experiences, no matter what that takes. I would like to see an eradication of all violence and oppression associated with human reproduction. I don’t put a lot of faith in the so called system. This work starts with us.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

About Jessica: Described by Chatelaine magazine as, “emblematic of the new breed of pro-choice activist,” Jessica is both an abortion rights activist and a radical birth doula. As the research coordinator at Canadians for Choice (CFC), she produced the internationally recognized report, Reality Check: a Close Look at Accessing Abortion Services in Canadian Hospitals, and subsequently helped develop a 24/7 national, toll-free hotline, through which people can gain information about abortion services in Canada. Jessica completed a graduate project entitled A feminist discourse on how the concepts of choice, informed consent and empowerment are constructed in medical birthing literature, and more recently completed a study called Labour of love: Women’s experiences giving birth with a doula in Winnipeg. As a doula, Jessica has always offered her services voluntarily with the belief that any woman who wants to have a doula should be able to have one. Currently, Jessica is a doctoral student with the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Calgary. Her research and passion remains focused on women’s reproductive justice.

Jessica lives in Winnipeg, MB Canada and can be reached at jcashaw104@gmail.com

What inspired you to become a doula?

My sister-in-law invited me to be at her birth during a time when I was already becoming more involved in sexual and reproductive health and rights. I was blown away by the power of the female body, and inspired by her strength. Being there to watch my niece be born changed me forever, and lead me to look into becoming a doula.

Why do you identify with the term radical doula?

To me, being a radical doula is about supporting women, in all of their reproductive needs. I identify as a sex-positive, feminist reproductive justice activist, who works on both abortion rights and birth activism issues. Reproductive justice is about making sure that every woman is able to control her body and her reproduction, and feel empowered by her choices. I reject the gender binary that society has placed on people (female/male) and think it is important to consider how the imposed social structures that we live under can affect our experiences. I also think that it is so important to consider how people’s different intersecting identities can impact their reproductive health experiences (ethnicity, ability, marital status, age, sexual orientation, place of residence, socioeconomic status and more). This means recognizing that the majority of the women who use doulas will likely be white, educated, wealthy women. As radical doulas, it is our responsibility to challenge this norm by offering some, or all, of our services voluntarily; by collaborating with communities who tend to have few social supports; and by working to create change in the way women and other minorities are discriminated against in society.

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This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.

Up until now, I’ve always featured Radical Doula’s here who have provided the content for their profile directly. I’m making an exception this time because Claudia Booker is a doula and activist that I’ve admired for quite some time. I also know she was down to be part of this series, but it looks like life and her many pursuits have gotten in the way.

Lucky for me she was recently interviewed for the Midwives of North America (MANA) newsletter, which she posted on Facebook.

Here are some highlights from that interview, which illustrate exactly why I consider Claudia to be a Radical Doula.

Claudia Booker CD (DONA) (ICTC), CCCE, LLLI, BPC, and BPCPA, midwife apprentice, resides in Washington DC, her home town. She comes from a family in which community development, service, and responsibility along with race consciousness and pride were ingrained and are a part of the fabric of her life. Claudia has been on this journey to become a midwife for over five years.

Claudia beautifully articulates that birth is politics. Birth is political because it is an opportunity to create change in our communities. Pregnancy and birth give us ten to fourteen months in which we have the opportunity to educate, guide, and provide a woman with the information, tools, self-esteem, and perspective to empower herself to change her relationship with herself, her children, partner, family, and her community. This change can be replicated throughout her community as this mother leads by example. This has the potential to be a global empowerment, rebirth, and redemption. We are agents of change in society. When I work with a mother, I meet her where she is, whether she wants a natural birth or an epidural. I serve her, support, and am “with her” in the way she needs, without judgment, because maybe this experience has the potential to empower her to walk another step, get a new chance to rebirth herself as a woman, mother, partner, and role model.

“It is imperative that the broader community of midwifery understand, appreciate, value, and support the unique ability of women of color to serve each other. For us, being with women who look at us as their sisters, aunts, cousins, and/or mothers reinforces a care provider relationship that cannot be duplicated with any cultural sensitivity training,” Claudia states. “Every woman of color I come into contact, be she a “round the way girl,” soul-sista, earth mother, or up and coming corporate woman, all are viewed though my eyes as a long lost cousin, niece, aunt, sister, and I treat them accordingly.”

Learn more about Claudia on her website.

This is a series highlighting folks who identify as Radical Doulas. Are you interested in being part of the series? Email me.
This week’s Radical Doula Profile is a fun joint edition. Charlie Rae and Megan are part of the Barefoot Birth crew and are being profiled here together.

About Charlie Rae and Megan:

Charlie Rae Young is a mother, doula, natural birth advocate, and aspiring midwife. She began her work in the birth field with the Coalition for Improving Maternity Care Services (CIMS) as a grassroots ambassador for The Birth Survey.  Currently, Charlie works as both a Birth Assistant and Childbirth Educator for several home birth midwives near Tampa, FL.  Charlie believes that women still have an innate ability to give birth without intervention and strives to make a positive difference in the total birth experience for new mothers.

Above being a loving stay-at-home mother to her beautiful daughter Lydia, Megan D’Orazio currently teaches private childbirth education classes and works as a birth and postpartum doula.  Megan’s kind-hearted nature and gentle disposition make her an ideal partner and asset for birthing mothers. She intends to inspire confidence in women by helping them trust their bodies while assisting in the creation of the total birth experience they are looking for.

What inspired you to become a doula?

Megan: After an unsatisfactory hospital birth, I began to further my education on maternity care in the United States thus leading me into a whirlwind of negative emotions regarding my care. After my realization that I was still dealing with issues surrounding my birth, physical and mental, I needed a way to reach out to other women who were going through the same thing. With a background in education and working with women in other women’s rights arenas such as The National Abortion Rights Action League, and Ohio Citizen Action I found birth to be a common ground on which women connect and need support in different ways- regardless of their background or previous circumstances.

Charlie Rae: I went into the birth of my daughter feeling very educated and at peace with my decisions on my care provider and plan to have a natural birth in a hospital setting. Her birth was a rude awakening for me, and left me feeling betrayed- like I had been completely misled by members of the birth community that were supposed to help to educate and support me. I felt intense anger towards the system that I had just been another number in. The only way for me to channel that negative energy was to drown myself in education regarding birth and simple human rights in maternity care. Doula work found me, more than I found it.

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