OkayMedia CEO and former CNN anchor Isha Sesay made national headlines last month after she revealed she was set to give birth without a partner at the age of 46. Now as she awaits her delivery date she says she is leaving Los Angeles and moving to New York due to “concerns in healthcare” specifically as it relates to the morbid statistics about Black women and childbirth.
“Most of you know I’ve been in LA but I’m actually heading to New York and I’ll be there through the final trimester until my little one arrives,” she said in a video posted on Instagram. “The reasons for the move are complicated. They revolve around my concerns in healthcare and specifically Black women’s experiences here in the US with childbirth.”
She continued: “The data shows terrible things…that we’re three to four times more likely to die in childbirth than our white counterparts. Even when you strip our education and wealth, things more often go wrong for us.”
She’s right. Data finds that Black women are over three times more likely to die in pregnancy and postpartum than White women, according to the Population Reference Bureau.
Furthermore “late maternal deaths—those occurring between six weeks and one year postpartum—were 3.5 times more likely among Black women than White women,” and “postpartum cardiomyopathy was the leading cause of late maternal death among all races, with Black women having a six-times-higher risk than white women.”
“It’s a really important issue that I’m definitely going to be talking about more in the days ahead,” Sesay wrote in the video’s caption “We all need to shine a light on on this terrifying reality for pregnant black women in the US, so I hope you’ll join me for these critical conversations.”
Fans flooded her comments with support.
“Wishing all the best sis, you’ll be fine. God’s got you. Safe Travels,” one supporter wrote.
“Yes for doing everything you can for you & the bambino. I hope you feel all of our prayers & well wishes undergirding you,” wrote another.
Follow Isha Sesay’s riveting pregnancy journey here.
