Fellowship Story Showcase by Priska Neely
Black babies in the United States are far less likely than white babies to reach life's simplest milestones: to form words, to learn to crawl, to take their first steps.
That's because black babies born in America are two times more likely to die before their first birthday than white babies. The numbers are even worse in Los Angeles, where black babies are three times more likely than white babies to die in their first year of life. Nationwide that means more than 4,000 black babies are lost each year.
Powerful articles, as well as stories from celebrities like tennis star Serena Williams, have been a stark reminder that even the most wealthy and healthy black women and their babies are vulnerable.
The truth is that the gap in mortality rates between black and white babies has existed for decades. And it has not budged.
TO READ THIS COMPELLING STORY by Priska Neely HERE
This project received support from the Center for Health Journalism's California Fellowship and its Fund for Journalism on Child Well-being.
Comments (0)