Queer & Trans* POC Birthwerq Project
Schedule* of Classes & Events
We will cover the hirstory of birthworkers, current labor support techniques, and reproductive justice in trans* & queer communities through the lens of people of color in the U.S. We will also look at the basics of abortion care, miscarriage and still-birth support, insemination practices and adoption support. We look forward to creating more workshops in the future to expand more on each of these aspects of pregnancy. Location is TBD in Seattle, Washington from July 25-27, 2014. To apply for registration, please click here.
Day 1 (7/25/14)
9:00 am
10:30 am
10:45 am
11:30 am
12:15 pm
1:15 pm
2:15 pm
3:00 pm
3:15 pm
4:15 pm
5:15 pm
Introduction & Opening Ceremony
Break
Orientation
Language & De-medicalizing Our Bodies
Lunch
Hirstory of Birth & Midwives/Doulas of Color in U.S.
Navigating Birthwork as Q/TPOC
Break
Labor Support: Communication, Relationship Building, Touch & Consent
Stages of Labor: 1st Stage
Check in & Grounding
Day 2 (7/26/14)
9:00 am
9:20 am
10:20 am
11:20 am
11:30 am
11:30 am
12:30 pm
1:30 pm
2:30 pm
3:15 pm
3:30 pm
4:30 pm
Opening Grounding Practice
Birth/Transition Storytime
Rebozo Skillshare
Break
Breakout Session A: Femme & Masculine of Center Privilege
Breakout Session B: Internalized Trans/Homophobia in Client Dynamics
Lunch
Stages of Labor: 2nd Stage
Interventions
Break
Supporting Clients with Epidural
Closing Grounding Practice
Day 3 (7/27/14)
9:00 am
9:20 am
10:20 am
10:30 am
11:30 pm
12:30 pm
1:30 pm
2:30 pm
2:40 pm
3:40 pm
4:15 pm
Opening/Grounding Practice
3rd Stage & Immediate Post-Partum (Placentas!)
Break
Post-Partum Practices (cont'd)
Chest/Breast-Feeding & Human Milk
Lunch
Breakout Sessions: Abortion, Adoption, Miscarriage, Insemination
Break
Strategizing for Community-based & Professional Birthwork (Panel)
Wrap-up & Debrief
Closing Ceremony & Blessing
*times and/or topics are subject to change
Workshop Details
Day 1
Language & De-medicalizing Our Bodies:
Generating respectful and creative ways to refer to and name our bodies, organs, and functions so that we may reclaim our bodies and find more common language. We hope to find or create words that everyone can use as we begin to learn about bodies during pregnancy.
Hirstory of Birth & Midwives/Doulas of Color in U.S.:
We will be sharing everything we know about midwives and birthworkers of color in the U.S., which is just a fraction of birth practices and history. We hope that participants will contribute their own knowledge of birth practices, whether from their own families, or from listening to others.
Navigating Birthwork as Q/TPOC:
Participants will be encouraged to reflect on what strengths, teachings, and skills they bring to birthwork as q/tpoc. We will discuss the complexities of navigating mainstream health care systems as trans & queer doulas of color and strategize for how we enter birth settings.
Labor Support: Communication, Relationship Building, Touch & Consent:
Together, we will identify our different strengths in communication and listening for different kinds of labor settings. We will also practice the basics of consent and how it relates to touch, conversations and planning with people during their pregnancy or labor. We will also bring awareness to our own boundaries around touch or communication to strengthen our understanding of mutual consent.
Stages of Labor: 1st Stage:
We will learn how to recognize when a person begins to enter the initial stages of labor and about different techniques of physical, emotional or mental comfort to support a laboring person.
Day 2
Birth/Transition Storytime:
Everyone will be given space to share a story about a birth (could be their own or one they’ve witnessed in some way), life transition or big change that affected them or people around them. This is a time to create a safer space for sharing about and witnessing stories of transitions, a skill we cultivate as we work with folks through the big shift of pregnancy.
Rebozo Skillshare:
We will begin to learn about an ancient tradition of labor support indigenous to Mexico that can be helpful during all stages of labor. We are excited to learn about this tradition from other people of color and also give space for a discussion around misappropriation of traditional labor support. We recognize that not all participants may feel comfortable using a rebozo as medicine and welcome all levels of engagement. This is just one traditional approach to labor support and invite participants to search for traditional birth techniques that speak to their ancestry or spirit.
Breakout Session A: Femme & Masculine of Center Privilege
A facilitated circle to chew through the different experiences of privilege and oppression as they relate to our gender presentation. This group will focus on masculine-read folks experience birthwork & support differently from femme-read folks and how we can work in solidarity as queer/trans people.
Breakout Session B: Internalized Trans/Homophobia in Client Dynamics
A facilitated circle to share witness around experiences of transphobia and homophobia from other birthworkers/health professionals and people we are supporting during pregnancy. For people new to birthwork, we will also strategize about how to navigate trans/homophobia in the labor setting when prioritizing the person in labor.
Stages of Labor: 2nd Stage:
We will begin to understand the process of second stage labor and practice positions to support physiologic birth.
Interventions:
Familiarize ourselves with common interventions (medical and non-medical) during labor, risks of interventions and expected benefits of each intervention.
Supporting Clients with Epidural:
Understand process of receiving an epidural and what are indications for an epidural. We will also review appropriate positions post-epidural, passive movement and how to emotionally/mentally prepare a person during and after epidural.
Day 3
3rd Stage & Immediate Post-Partum (Placentas!):
Understanding what happens during the third stage of labor and the after-birth, including the birth of the placenta. We will cover standard Western medical procedures after birth and what families must decide regarding the treatment of their baby and placenta. We will also learn about some traditional (indigenous) practices of placenta ritual and the benefits of placenta as medicine.
Chest/Breast-Feeding & Human Milk:
Understanding the mechanics and health benefits of human milk. We will cover chest-feeding for folks who are post top-surgery, folks on different levels of hormones (estrogen or testosterone), survivors, and people who do not wish to chest-feed.
Breakout Sessions: Abortion, Adoption, Miscarriage, Insemination
Each circle will have a facilitated conversation about one of these aspects of pregnancy to better understand past and present practices, misconceptions, ideas for labor support and where to find more information/education regarding these topics. These circles will begin to touch on what it means to be a 'full spectrum' labor support. We hope to cover each of these topics in more detail during future workshops!
Community-based & Professional Birthwork (Panel Discussion):
Q/TPOC birthworkers will be invited to talk about their paths with birthwork and their thoughts around 'professionalization' in birth community. Non-certified and certified birthworkers will offer insights to the benefits and limits of both paths, especially in regards to q/tpoc communities and facilitate a circle of all participants to brainstorm ways to create more access to labor support for people of color. transfolks and queer folks during pregnancy. We will look at how we can all support community-based birthwork, whether we choose to professionalize or not. What kind of birth world do we want to see for future q/tpoc parents, families and children? How can we shift birth education to create more community-based birth support?