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Newly released statistical data suggests that babies in Ohio
are being born under a death sentence. The rate that black
babies in Ohio die prior to their first birthday is the
worst in the nation and also worse than some third world
countries.
On June 22, 2014 the United Pastors for
Social Empowerment (UPSE), hosted a forum at Bethlehem
Baptist Church called The Moses Project: Saving Babies,
Ensuring Lives. The presentation focused on Ohio’s
ranking as well as that of Lucas County, which has one of
the 10 highest infant mortality rates among Ohio counties.
United Pastors, a group of urban pastors and institutional
representatives, has been quietly working in the community
to provide an effective, relevant response to the critical
issues that plague marginalized and communities of color.
For the past four years UPSE has operated under the radar
attempting to eliminate disparities and achieve equity in
the areas of health, education and criminal justice.
Among the group’s capable and committed allies are the Ohio
Department of Health (ODH) and the Ohio Equity Institute (OEI).
In 2013, ODH targeted eight communities in
Ohio (including Lucas County) with the worst infant
mortalities rates for special attention.
Headed by the Toledo-Lucas County Health
Department and the Hospital Council of Northwest Ohio, a
team of maternal and child health experts and concerned
citizens was created to specifically address black infant
mortality and move toward equity in birth outcomes for black
and white babies.
The OEI is beginning year two of a three
existence. The first year was spent collecting and analyzing
the Lucas County data in order to understand the problems
with birth outcomes specific to our community. The team
learned that,
locally, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and accidental
suffocation are significant preventable causes of death.
Currently, the OEI is exploring
evidence-based initiatives to address the findings in the
data. The third year involves putting the chosen initiatives
in place in our community and ensuring that they are
sustained well beyond the three-year timeframe of the OEI.
United Pastors has joined in a co-equal
partnership with the OEI to access the resources of Lucas
County and the State of Ohio in order to bring those
initiatives into the
black
community. The vehicle for achieving this objective is The
Moses Project,
an ongoing effort to give our babies the best possible
chance to survive and thrive.
The partnership with the Toledo-Lucas County Health
Department will not go away after the next two years. Dennis
Hicks, of the Health Department’s Office on Minority Health
has a specific, ongoing charge to help end infant mortality
disparities in Lucas County. ODH and the Lucas County
commissioners have also committed to ongoing support.
The decision to name the initiative The Moses Project goes
back to the biblical narrative of Moses, a figure known more
as a liberator, but often overlooked as being a recipient of
liberation himself.
Moses, an ethnic minority, was born at a time when state
policies dictated the killing of babies of his race and
gender. Moses, however, was able to survive as a result of
the political resistance and efforts of a multi-cultural
collaboration. Additionally, with the opportunities provided
by his government sponsored education and upbringing, Moses
developed a multi-consciousness and a unique bi-cultural
perspective that enabled him to become a freedom fighter who
would eventually lead his people from oppression to freedom.
The original Moses moment continues to inform our present
infant mortality intervention efforts and provides the
determination to give our babies in Lucas County the best
possible start.
The most notable lesson of the Moses account is that
interventions to end infant mortality and ensure the futures
of our children will require the collaboration of capable
and committed allies. Just as Moses’ deliverance took the
quiet activism of the midwives, the oversight and cultural
knowledge of Moses’ sister Miriam, and the compassion and
resources of Pharaoh’s daughter, it also takes the
coordination of faith organizations, community members and
government to work collaboratively across boundaries of
ethnicity, gender and privilege.
Ultimately, however, at the core, The Moses Project is about
the health of our community—our babies, young people,
adults, and the elderly—the entire spectrum of birth, life
and death. United Pastors is committed to improving the
health of our community at all levels. One of the best ways
to do this is to give our babies the best possible start.
Contact Rev. Donald Perryman, D.Min, at
drdlperryman@centerofhopebaptist.org
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