Totally normal, this is what healthy democratic bodies do. Nothing to see here, just move along.

“Targeting abortion is a losing issue, but targeting trans people—a small subsection of the American population—has apparently been deemed a winning conservative issue.”

Agreed. I used to be a defense lawyer for parents in these types of cases (I quit because the stress was killing me, not because I lost my passion for it; I still miss it.) There is absolutely racial and class bias within the medical profession, the child welfare system, and the law. When the first story about this…

This doctor sounds like he saved the kid’s life.

Yeah, I was initially very sympathetic to this couple, but after learning just how severe the jaundice was and how hard their pediatrician worked to try to get them to get the child proper care, I’m not as sympathetic. The child was not taken away from them because they chose a homebirth without a qualified attendant.…

The midwife should face charges. She was not qualified to veto a doctor’s treatment decision on a level 21 bilirubin jaundice case on an infant. And she was apparently the one who convinced those parents that her advice trumped that of the doctor on the treatment of a dangerous medical condition. So much so that the…

Agreed. The term“culturally sensitive care” is being weaponized to justify blatantly unscientific and unsafe practices that put Mila in harm.

Considering how many deaths there are with children in that community due to negligence, it’s a good thing people intervened in Mila’s case or she may have ended up dead herself.

I have to admit, I found that quote irritating. Beacuse they aren’t addressing the fact that baby needed to be in hospital. Freedom to parent as they wished does not involve DIY medical care and risking brain damage to a baby under the guise of parental freedom. There are limits to said freedoms.

She sounds like a fucking nut and those parents are either idiots or this shitty llunatic manipulated and exploited their mistrust of the medical establishment. She needs to be called out. 

This woman gives midwives everywhere a bad name. 

Jezebel? Bury the lede or obfuscate facts so they can push a political position and get outraged clicks? Never!

Yeah I mean Black children are unjustly ripped away from their families all the time... but this really isn’t the case I would use as an example. This child was in real danger.

Thank you. Midwives are not paediatricians. And this baby had levels that required more intensive care. I get that they distrust the medical system but if that mistrust was going to lead to their child having brain damage, then intervention is absolutely justified.

He had tried to get them to take the baby to a hospital and they refused and for the rest of that afternoon and late in the evening, he made repeated attempts to reach them and they refused to pick up. Their so called midwife then contacted the doctor and repeated the family’s initial message about treating the baby…

Stop chewing on white moms and reporting their textural consistency.

I fear that this article (and the previous one posted on jez) will only create greater distrust of the medical profession. It’s irresponsible journalism to minimize this infant’s medical condition. The lack of research in this article into defining what jaundice is appalling. Jaundice can lead to irreversible brain…

Children are at risk of brain damage from poorly treated jaundice. That jaundice is common, does not mean it is a benign condition.  The doula or midwife or whatever she is beyond irresponsible. A good practitioner knows the limits of their capabilities and refers their patients to professionals with higher expertise.…

This is an interesting follow up to the previous article GMG had on this subject (which was either on Jezebel or the Root, but isn’t visible on either’s pages at the moment; I didn’t scroll that far down). The original article listed the parents as refusing treatment on the advice of their midwife, which is an…

The Jacksons said they would be doing the phototherapy treatment at home under the guidance of their midwife, Cheryl Edinbyrd.