We commit to assembling the Black Infant and Maternal Health Task Force to address the essential outcome that every Black child is born at a healthy weight. The Task Force will produce a nationwide study that focuses exclusively on the unknown comorbidities and ecological factors that account for the disparate phenomenon of low birth weight among Black babies. NBCDI will center the lived experiences of Black women, birthing people, and their partners to identify the intersecting inequities they face as well as the powerful community assets and protective factors they currently employ.
The Task Force will gather a group of experts—including those with lived expertise—who have the requisite skills and knowledge to plan for the coordination, scale, outcomes, interventions, participants, correlational design, technique, mechanisms, and methodology of the study. Task Force members will design a study that can successfully translate to Black maternal health interventions in federal, state, local, and community settings. The study will also address the linkages between anxiety, depression, stress, weathering, and Black maternal birth outcomes. Once research is completed, NBCDI will use it to develop actionable policy solutions that can shift practice, reform systems, and improve outcomes for all Black birthing people and their babies.
NBCDI will convene the Commission on Black Child Safety, which will be charged with developing meaningful mechanisms for parents and caregivers to provide insight into how Black children are experiencing their care and learning settings. The Commission will serve as a national driving force to ensure that the Eight Essential Outcomes are achieved for children aged 0 to 8 years. Composed of 20 to 24 members, the Commission will bring together thought and movement leaders, policy and practice experts, advocates, and practitioners to collaborate and develop strategies that safeguard the well-being and safety of Black children.
The Commission will address various dimensions of safety—including protecting children from physical harm, mitigating the overuse of disciplinary measures, fostering positive self-identity and belonging, and ensuring that learning environments are inclusive and affirming—and empower Black parents and caregivers to hold institutions accountable.
NBCDI will convene the Air and Water Justice Roundtable, uniting experts, advocates, community leaders, and policymakers to address critical environmental justice issues. This Roundtable will focus on advancing systemic solutions to ensure equitable access to clean air and water and mitigate the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on Black children, families, and communities.
