Advocating for Health Equity

My first bus ride back home to Detroit from Ann Arbor was shocking. We left the manicured streets of Ann Arbor, full of trees and operating businesses to eventually arrive in Detroit, with concrete, litter and abandoned businesses. It wasn’t until that moment that I realized how impoverished Detroit was compared to Ann Arbor. The income and racial makeup of the two cities was evident and I felt torn between the two places. 

In Detroit, I was a Medicaid beneficiary who attended doctor appointments in crowded offices that were greatly underfunded. In Ann Arbor, I was a curious undergraduate student shadowing pediatricians at Mott Hospital, which was colorful, spacious and full of technology. I also learned to not share my Medicaid status while at college, as it was embarrassing.  

As a college freshman at the University of Michigan, I was introduced to a shiny new world full of possibilities. I learned a lot in my classes, and eventually stumbled upon public health and the Black maternal mortality crisis. I learned that Black women were 2 to 3 times more likely to die in childbirth and the year following compared to white women. The only explanation for this difference was racism. Learning this fact scared me. I feared for myself, my loved ones and my friends that could give birth and be at higher risk for complications and death. I could not stand idly by knowing Black women were senselessly dying, so I had to work to change this. 

I explored the field of public health through internship opportunities and jobs. I was in the inaugural summer cohort for the UCLA Public Health Scholars Program, where I was able to present at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about Black maternal mortality. Simultaneously, I worked as a Black AIDS Institute intern where I focused on the sexual health needs of Black women. 

As a research assistant at the University of Michigan, I continued to learn about public health. I worked on projects involving social determinants of health and diabetes management. Finally, I worked for two years as a project associate on kidney research projects. One project assisted with implementing a federal policy about dialysis centers. 

I was shocked by how powerful this policy was and how it commanded change within the kidney disease section of the healthcare field. I knew I had to write and influence policy in order to improve the health of Black women. This led me to earning a master’s degree in health policy. 

For the past eight years, I have worked hard to figure out how to make an impact on the Black maternal and infant mortality crisis. Now that I am a health policy analyst at the League, I’ll be able to advocate on behalf of women and children in Michigan. My work is focused on healthcare, Medicaid, maternal and child health, and the state budget. Advocating for Michigan residents is a privilege that I have worked hard to earn and I am excited to continue learning. I finally have the opportunity to make a difference in my community thanks to the League.