Jump to Main ContentJump to Primary Navigation

Not Just Serena: Why Black Mums In The UK Are Fighting For Their Lives

Since the arrival of Baby Alexis six months ago, Serena Williams has fully embraced modern motherhood. She's hit up other mamas for teething advice on her social and she even started an Instagram account for everyone to admire her baby girl. I see her online and I’m reminded that she may be a multimillionaire international athlete, but she’s going through it just like every other mum.

But when she shared the awful truth of her birth and post labour complications, it brought home the fact that even with all the privilege money can buy, she is just like every other Black mother. Knowing her body and her needs, she asked her doctors for care and was ignored and dismissed. The time they wasted could have killed her and actually did contribute to further complications weeks later.

Her story has sparked a conversation in America about the maternal care of Black women that is long overdue, but what of the plight of Black Mums in the UK? No one’s talking about that, so it must not be an issue, right?