A Call to Ohio's Gubernatorial Candidates
Ohio deserves a governor who understands Black maternal and infant mortality as a state of emergency, not one who makes racist remarks about Black women’s right to reproductive freedom.
Last week, Vivek Ramaswamy went viral for yet another racist attack on abortion access. If he actually cared about Black babies—the point he was trying to illustrate—he would seek to understand Ohio’s tragic Black maternal and infant mortality rates, which are only made worse by abortion restrictions.
Earlier this spring, Ohio Women’s Alliance convened statewide Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice experts for the first meeting of a new Reproductive Justice (RJ) Task Force—an initiative to hold elected officials accountable for Black maternal and infant health outcomes along with the implementation of the Reproductive Freedom Amendment (RFA) passed by Ohio voters in 2023. Fully implementing the RFA requires electing a governor who actually understands the importance of access to the full spectrum of reproductive care. It requires an Ohio Supreme Court that will uphold the Ohio Constitution. And it requires every Ohioan to vote down-ballot for candidates who align with Reproductive Justice values.
In anticipation of the contentious gubernatorial race this fall, Ohio Women’s Alliance calls on candidates Amy Acton and Vivek Ramaswamy to declare a state of emergency in Ohio, where Black mothers and infants are 2.5 times more likely to die than our white counterparts. To address this decades-long emergency, we challenge the candidates to adopt our Black Maternal Health Policy Platform, which includes:
Investing in Midwifery & Doula Services
Incentivizing Educational and Clinical Training Infrastructure
Incentivizing Private Insurance Coverage of Maternal Health Services
Expanding Medicaid & Extending Postpartum Coverage
Initiatives that Explicitly Fund & Educate on Maternal Mental Health
Establishing Home Visiting Programs (Prenatal through 1‑Year Postpartum)
As is always the case in heated electoral races, Black communities will be co-opted for our voting power this election season. We are here to demand that the candidates actually take a stake in our health and well-being, rather than reducing us to our votes. No matter what happens in November, we will still be on the ground fighting for reproductive freedom and Black maternal and infant health. Will the candidates use us as pawns as they seek to win over the electorate, or will they take a courageous stance to actually improve our lives?
Join the fight by signing our Reproductive Justice Voter Pledge!