Season 1 Episode 12 is the season finale and features an interview with Evelyn Alvarez: mom, doula, trainer, and the world’s best hypewoman! She’s also the cofounder of Bronx Rebirth and Progress Collective. In this week’s episode Evelyn shares the tales and the tea of being a doula in NYC. She also shares insights on the politics of doula compensation, what is happening in NYC hospitals, how medical routines cause harm, and how our City can do a better job of increasing doula access to clients who want and need them.

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Evelyn Alvarez’s Bio:
Evelyn Alvarez facilitates workshops for educators and parents about Restorative Justice and practices, race and equity, and other topics. She is also founder of Prom King, a nonprofit that donates clothes to urban students to enable them to participate in special life events. She is one of three lead trainers at Radio Caña Negra, where they lead workshops about anti-Blackness in the Latinx community and co-host the Radio Caña Negra podcast. Most recently she is a co-founder of Bronx Rebirth and Progress. This collective donates diapers and formula to families in need. Bx Rebirth offers low cost doula support, mentoring to new doulas, and supports advocacy efforts that seek to improve maternal health outcomes for Black people in New York.

References During the Episode:

• Donate to Bx (Re)Birth and Progress Collective via PayPal and through their registry on Target
• Follow Evelyn and Bx (Re)Birth and Progress on Instagram

Questions to Consider After the Episode:

• How might medical practices and policies, as well as health outcomes, change if we center the experiences of Black women and Black birthing people?
• What are the ways that routines can cause harm?
• What have medical institutions and policymakers named as values that could use more/additional resources?

Created and Hosted by Taja Lindley
Produced by Colored Girls Hustle
Music, Soundscape and Audio Engineering by Emma Alabaster

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For more information visit BirthJustice.nyc

This podcast is made possible, in part, by the Narrative Power Stipend - a grant funded by Forward Together for members of Echoing Ida.