Midwife Dr. Janell Green Smith dedicated her life to protecting Black mothers and babies in a healthcare system she knew too often failed them. Over the course of her career, she helped bring more than 200 children safely into the world, advocating fiercely for informed care, vigilance, and maternal safety. She understood the risks intimately—not in theory, but through daily practice.
When Janell became pregnant with her first child, she did everything she had long taught others to do. She prepared. She spoke up. She recognized warning signs and sought care. Still, she died shortly after giving birth—the very outcome she had spent her life working to prevent.
Her death has become a painful reminder that expertise, education, and advocacy do not always shield Black women from systemic failures in maternal healthcare. Janell’s legacy now stands as both a testament to her life’s work and a call to confront the inequities that continue to cost lives.
Source: @beingblackislit
