Member Profile: A Personal Perspective From Simmone Taitt on being a Black Woman and CEO
Finally Home Member Profiles a series of profiles honoring Jersey City locals making meaningful contributions to our Community and Beyond.
Community member, Simmone Taitt shares a personal note about being a black woman and CEO and shines a light on institutional racism within the maternal healthcare system.
A P E R S O N A L N O T E
I did not want to write this note. Frankly, I’ve been too sad, upset, scared and hurt to even put words properly into a sentence.
Yet, here we are.
I am a black woman, born to immigrant parents (Indian and Black) and I have two black siblings, a brother and a sister, who are raising black and biracial children. I am the youngest of the three and by default was also the most protected and, yes, coddled of the three.
In 2019, over half a million black babies were born in the United States and we are still fighting for the same equality and equity as some of our parents and grandparents - black and white - were fighting for in the Civil Rights era in the 50’s and 60’s.
Yet, even after 41 years of my family building a home, building economy, paying taxes (faithfully) and contributing to the legacy of our communities, my family can’t protect me from being profiled by the police as I walk or drive down the street.
I am a black founder and CEO of a transformative telehealth solution that has changed the lives of hundreds of mamas and mamas-to-be around the country of all races, socioeconomic backgrounds and identities.
Yet, I am 5x more likely to die during childbirth in my own backyard because I am a black woman who dared to give life in a maternal healthcare system where implicit bias and racial disparities might kill me before I may ever meet my child.
Yes. Black Lives Matter.
For me, black lives have always mattered, not because it is trending on social media, whispered in private conversations or sprawled across our television screens. It matters because I was born into systematic and institutionalized racism that is as complex as the day our country was born.
In 2019, over half a million black babies were born in the United States and we are still fighting for the same equality and equity as some of our parents and grandparents - black and white - were fighting for in the Civil Rights era in the 50’s and 60’s.
Let that sink in.
When the public parks opened up a few weeks ago on Sunday, May 2nd, I could not get my running shoes on fast enough. By Friday, May 8th, I was running 2.23 miles in solidarity with thousands of other runners on what would have been Ahmaud Arbery’s 25th birthday. Just a couple of weeks later on May 25th, I went for a glorious Memorial Day run in the morning and by that evening, George Floyd was crying out for his mother as he was being murdered by four Minneapolis policemen.
The next day, on May 26th, I had a hard time focusing during my run. I couldn’t stop thinking about Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old black woman that was killed by police in Louisville, Kentucky while she slept in her home. It could have been me, kept replaying in my head. On May 27th, with protests in full swing, I put my running shoes back in the closet, too scared to step out of my own home because of the color of my skin.
“I am a woman who has struggled to get pregnant and carry to term and now I sit here in the throes of how I can protect my future children from the injustices of systematic racism.”
What did I do when Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, who look like me, were murdered by policemen who are supposed to be here to protect us?
I did the only thing that I could do in my moment of despair. I called my mother.
I asked her: “How in the world did you raise three black children and not worry every day of your life?” Turns out, she did and she does.
It is the mothers that are heavy on my mind. It is becoming a mother that is heavy on my heart.
I am a woman who has struggled to get pregnant and carry to term and now I sit here in the throes of how I can protect my future children from the injustices of systematic racism. And, yet, It is because of who I am that Poppy Seed Health even exists.
In 2016, I sat in my doctor’s office, as I received the devastating news that I had a miscarriage. It was a cold, clinical and impersonal interaction that made me feel invisible and isolated. I was booted out of the doctors office ten minutes later with a lack of medical resources, no aftercare plans and no resources for the emotional and mental health support that I needed the most.
I found myself on “Dr. Google” looking for comfort - of all things - and coincidentally found it. I happened upon a Reddit board of doulas and in reading through that thread I felt seen, heard, loved and, most importantly, not alone.
It was that evening that I made the decision to become a birth doula and where Poppy Seed Health was born.
We created Poppy Seed Health as a telehealth service for all mamas and mamas-to-be with the purpose-driven mission to give back to the communities that need funding, protection and uplifting the most. With “Poppy Promise'' our give-back initiative allows for a portion of every monthly membership to be donated directly to an organization that is doing the work to solve the maternal healthcare crisis for black and brown womxn in our country. When you look at our logo, I hope that you see yourself reflected back in the multi-colored, flesh-toned petals of our bloom. That was not a branding strategy, it was a requirement.
We are a community of all races, ethnicities, backgrounds and love orientations. We’ve experienced the highs, lows, laughs and cries along with our Poppy mamas. We are the keepers of your secrets and the champions of your birth. Pregnancy and postpartum journeys are raw, real and powerful experiences and it doesn't matter what is going on in the world, babies and mamas will be born. We represent the best there is in mamas and advocates and we are a force to be reckoned with.
We’ve heard from so many of you directly seeking information on how our powerful community of mamas and advocates can take action that is sustainable and at times, uncomfortable.
We are excited to introduce “Mama’s Forum” as an online live chat with mamas, advocates and brands that are real conversations with real people about real topics that are on our hearts and minds. Each session in the series will provide an opportunity to fund, learn and uplift the causes that are timely and relevant. We will be posting primarily on Instagram @poppyseedhealth and our website so please make sure to follow us.
We’ve also made it easier to participate in our give-back initiative “Poppy Promise” by making it possible to purchase our telehealth support for underserved and uninsured womxn who are disproportionately black and brown mamas. We have teamed up with agencies and organizations who are committed to ensuring equitable maternal healthcare. Visit us at Poppy Seed Health and click the “Donation” box with your purchase and our powerful emotional and mental health support will be gifted to a womxn who would not otherwise have access to our technology.
Finally, please consider joining us in supporting the efforts below by making a donation and taking action right away.
Support @blackmamasmatter a movement dedicated to supporting black motherhood. Listen to @natalstories to hear from black mothers about their birth stories. Donate to @bailfundnetwork because supporting a mama’s child is fighting for equality. Sign the petition for Emerald Black who lost her baby in California due to police violence @changedotorg.
With Love,
Simmone Taitt
Founder + CEO, Poppy Seed Health
Navigating pregnancy and postpartum - together.