The story of Dr. Janell Green Smith is a very devastating one
Again, the spotlight is thrown on the delicateness of life during the process of pregnancy and childbirth
A woman who is a licensed midwife, who has advocated, researched, and is highly skilled at preventing maternal mortality became a victim. That is just to show you that we cannot over emphasize the importance of putting everything on the line to support pregnant women. A little looking away – a few seconds can lead to a huge catastrophe.
When a woman is pregnant, she becomes really vulnerable and should be made the utmost priority of the family at that time. There is no excuse for her to be neglected – absolutely none, except she doesn’t matter, and I would ask why any woman would go through a life threatening situation of birthing a child in a situation where she isn’t valued. It’s literally a life and death situation and as a woman, you must ensure that it’s absolutely worth it for you.
The way I see the whole process is basically a woman giving her life away to bring another into the world, because even when she doesn’t lose her life in the process, her body never returns to her pre-partum state. That’s a really huge sacrifice in itself
But let’s also talk about her time – the most essential one – the part where every other part of her life pauses. She needs to slow down, change her meals, be on routine medications, schedule hospital appointments, find new clothes, switch up her entire life, and watch her body betray her whenever she needs to carry out simple tasks she was already accustomed to. The whole physical and emotional experience is not something any woman should go through, while having to deal with the pains of an irresponsible partner.
If you ever try to impregnate a woman and you find that you do not value her enough to respect the level of sacrifices she would be making to birth that child you want to share parental rights with, please just leave her alone. Pregnancy and childbirth is indeed a life threatening situation and nothing prepares any woman enough for the outcomes she may get. Every woman who goes through that process, dead or alive, is indeed a hero.
We celebrate Dr. Smith for her bravery, not just for all the work she put in to curb the crisis of maternal mortality, but daring to embark on the journey herself, after being right at the front lines with firsthand experiences of all that could go wrong. She lives on as a hero, a warrior, and an exceptional woman who lived a very fulfilling life regardless.
Her death occurred while she was giving birth, underscoring the very crisis she fought to expose. That someone so knowledgeable and deeply embedded in her work could be lost in this way is a devastating reminder that expertise alone cannot shield individuals from systemic neglect.
Dr. Green Smith’s legacy is both profound and urgent. She leaves behind not only research and advocacy, but a moral call to do better: to improve care, confront inequity, create more awareness and treat childbirth as the sacred, high-stakes moment it is. Honoring her means continuing the work she led until stories like hers are no longer possible.
May her soul rest in peace!
