A story about Black women told by Black women
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We need to tell our own stories.
Listen to Me is the story of four women and the cost of motherhood. These women stand at the front lines of the Black maternal health struggle as birth workers and public health experts while walking the delicate tightrope of birthing in the United States. This is a story of the deep complexities and troubling challenges that Black mothers experience. Beyond dismal statistics, Listen to Me centers the voices and spirit of Black women.
four women
The One who survives
Shalon
The One we lost
The One Who is finding her way
The One we hope and pray for
Black women are 3 to 4 times more likely than white women to die from pregnacy- or childbirth-related causes
"We've always espoused that nutrition, healthy lifestyle, medical insurance, access to care, healthy family environment are the cornerstones of a healthy pregnancy. This documentary, in real time, delves into the research that examines the complexities of achievement while experiencing discrimination for Black women. We want this research to come to life, beyond academic journal and newspaper articles. Two theories that have been gaining traction over the last 20 years on this issue are the Weathering Hypothesis and Sojourner Syndrome. Both frameworks suggest that the additive effects of surviving discrimination, racism, and healthcare inequities place women at a higher risk for stressors that prematurely "weather" or age their bodies and more specifically their reproductive systems. Sojourner Syndrome acknowledges the constraints, hyper-vigilance, and resilience that have characterized the experience of Black women in America. "Sojourning through" can have lasting impacts on our health and create chronic diseases. The lives and experiences of Black women in the U.S. maternal health system need further exploration to understand these complex issues."
Four women in the struggle for reproductive justice turn the camera on themselves
Four stories about the cost of motherhood triumphs, joy, healing, and finding answers
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Our Creative Team
Kanika Harris
Kanika Harris, PhD, MPH is a Health Behavioral Scientist based in the Washington, DC area. Kanika Harris is a mother, doula and serves as a public health expert for the DC Mayor's Lactation Commission. Kanika's work broadly focuses on social determinants of health, women's health, and HIV prevention. Listen to Me is her first film.
Stephanie Etienne
Stephanie Etienne, CNM, MPH is a New York native of Haitian descent. She is a midwife and believes reproductive justice is a human right. Stephanie also believes that the conditions under which children enter the world should be empowered and honored. She lives in Baltimore, MD with her family. Listen to Me is her first film.
Safidi Tyehimba
Safidi Tyehimba discovered her love of film at a young age while attending a major film premiere with her parents. A graduate of Temple University's film program, Safidi has produced films that have won awards at Cannes, UrbanWorld, Blackstar, and a host of other festivals, as well as directing music videos that aired on major networks.
Bradford Young is an award-winning filmmaker.He was the first African-American cinematographer to be nominated for an Academy Award for the film Arrival in 2017.His most recent work can be seen inSolo: A Star Wars Story directed by Ron Howard. And he just wrapped the Netflix series, Central Park 5, for director Ava Duvernay.
Nefertite Nguvu
Nefertite Nguvu's debut feature Film, "In The Morning," won the Audience Award at The UrbanWorld Film Festival in New York. It won Best International Film At The Terra Di Siena Film Festival in Italy, Best Feature Film at BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia, and Best Feature Film And Best Overall at The Bronzelens Film Festival in Atlanta.
Aisha Jama
Aisha Jama is a writer, director and film programmer that is dedicated to creating responsible images and amplifying stories that examine our interiority. Her first micro-short film, Neefso, was awarded the 2019 Islamic Scholarship Fund Film Grant.
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