In this country, midwives "were once a cornerstone of every Indigenous community." What happened?

Before the 20th century, midwifery was essential for communities throughout Europe, Africa, Asia, and America. With the growth of western medicine in the late 1800s to early 1900s, midwives were instead accused of being unsanitary and unscientific. Midwifery became known as "the Midwife problem," and the practice was phased out and operated in legal "grey zones."

In 1994, after decades of midwives pushing back, Ontario became the first province in Canada to recognize and legalize midwives. In 2024, PEI became the final province in Canada to officially recognize midwifery. If the history of midwives is this complicated in the Global North, what is it like to practice as a midwife in places experiencing civil unrest or conflict?

A new documentary follows five midwives who are doing that work. On today's episode, host and producer Nam Kiwanuka speaks to two midwives, Ximena Rojas Garcia and Jay MacGillivray, as well as Nance Ackerman, the director of "The Delivery Line: Midwives on the Frontlines." Together, they speak about the challenges of the work that these midwives do, but also about the joy of catching a baby.

Links: 

• Midwifery: A Woman's Labour, A Woman's Choice, 1994 CanLIIDocs 506 https://www.canlii.org/en/commentary/doc/1994CanLIIDocs506#!fragment//BQCwhgziBcwMYgK4DsDWszIQewE4BUBTADwBdoByCgSgBpltTCIBFRQ3AT0otokLC4EbDtyp8BQkAGU8pAELcASgFEAMioBqAQQByAYRW1SYAEbRS2ONWpA 
• British Columbia to let midwives prescribe abortion pill and other drugs https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/british-columbia/british-columbia-to-let-midwives-prescribe-abortion-pill-and-other-drugs/article_f4b5639a-847f-5038-98a1-b82fb4208b00.html#tncms-source=login 
• Indigenous communities across Canada have always had midwives https://indigenousmidwifery.ca/history-strategic-plan/ 
• A Brief History of Midwifery in America
  https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/brief-history-midwifery-america 
• THE MIDWIFE PROBLEM IN THE UNITED STATES
  https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/236051 
• Why Are We Asking Doctors If Women Should Have Midwives?
  https://pathwaystofamilywellness.org/holistic-healthcare/why-are-we-asking-doctors-if-women-should-have-midwives.html 
• Childbirth evacuation among rural and remote Indigenous communities in Canada: A scoping review
  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S187151922100038X 
• 25 years on: What midwifery in Canada has achieved and what it still needs https://theconversation.com/25-years-on-what-midwifery-in-canada-has-achieved-and-what-it-still-needs-120210 
• The Destruction of Canadian Midwifery during the 20th Century
  https://birthinternational.com/the-re-emergence-of-canadian-midwifery/?srsltid=AfmBOoq9ax0eNorpdo1FISNUjB2sOB7TlOFK1Mo79rbISeZ9DLcxZhHN 
• After decades-long push, P.E.I. now offers midwifery to oversee pregnancies https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-midwifery-services-offered-1.7102229 
• Georgia bans many midwives from practicing. Now, several are suing the state https://www.nbcnews.com/health/womens-health/midwives-sue-challenge-state-restrictions-rcna264951 
• Facing rural realities and mistrust in hospitals, these women turned to home births
  https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/freebirthing-rural-maternal-medicine-9.7172199