Overview:
Pregnant Haitian women in Indianapolis are finding guidance and community through prenatal classes taught in Haitian Creole, helping them navigate childbirth, health risks and immigration fears. Local nonprofits like the Dieudonne Foundation and The Mothership Institute lead the effort, Mirror Indy reports.
This article was originally published by Mirror Indy, and is republished through our partnership with Free Press Indiana.
It’s not uncommon for expectant mothers to worry about their baby’s health, the cost of raising a child and what life will be like after birth. For immigrant mothers, those worries can be compounded by concerns about their legal status in their adopted country.
Nadine is one of those expectant mothers. The Haitian immigrant living in Indianapolis is pregnant with her first child. She worries she and her baby could be removed from the U.S. despite being here legally.
Nadine came to the U.S. with Temporary Protected Status in 2023 after her native Haiti was rocked by violence and political instability followed by a major earthquake and flooding. But, she’s now afraid she may be deported after Trump administration officials announced in late June that they would remove the temporary legal protection of Haitians and other immigrants.
“I think about it all the time,” Nadine said through a Haitian Creole interpreter. “If you’re getting deported, most likely your child is going to come with you too, so that’s a very big concern. I’m very sad and scared about it.”
Nadine asked to only be identified by her first name out of fear she could be deported.
She’s one of several Haitian immigrants who attended a prenatal class July 26 in search of more knowledge about what to expect during her pregnancy. The class was conducted in English and Haitian Creole at the International District Community Center.
The potential of federal immigration raids have kept Nadine and other Haitians from seeking out help for their pregnancies. The stress of constantly thinking about those policy decisions could negatively affect her health in a state with one of the country’s worst infant mortality rates.
The nonprofits Dieudonne Foundation and The Mothership Institute organized the event to give Haitian mothers potentially life-saving information and teach them that they’re not alone.
Communicating through culture
Chéry was born in Haiti and knows the pressures immigrants face. She emigrated with her family to New York City in 1988, when she was 7 years old.
She once worked as an interpreter in detention centers for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security before starting the Dieudonne Foundation with her husband, Stephane Chéry.
Through her personal experience and the stories of immigrants she’s helped, Chéry understands that being a stranger in a new place can be difficult, especially when it comes to medical visits.
“If you’re in the hospital and you’re coming from somewhere else, you’re vulnerable,” she said. “Nurses are coming in and out. You don’t speak the language. The machines are beeping. It’s a lot to take in.”
Chéry said that, even if here legally, some Haitians can’t depend on family to help them due to the threat of family members or even themselves being arrested in immigration raids.
“I came from a space where you raised kids in a community,” Chéry said. “No one did it by themselves. You had your grandmothers, aunties or neighbors … that all showed up, and we don’t have that anymore. A lot of people are afraid to leave their homes.”
This comes as Indiana grapples with an already high infant mortality rate.
Indiana’s high infant mortality rate
Indiana is on the verge of experiencing its lowest infant mortality rate since 1900. But, even so, it’s above the national average — and advocates worry it could get worse as the state cuts back its support for maternal health programs.
Provisional data released by the Indiana Department of Health announced in June shows the infant mortality rate had dropped from 6.6 deaths per 1,000 births in 2023 to 6.3 deaths per 1,000 births in 2024. That’s above the most recent national average of 5.6 deaths per 1,000 births.
And, non-Hispanic Black women in Indiana face nearly three times the risk of losing their baby than white women, according to state health department data.
That’s mainly due to perinatal risks, like high blood pressure and gestational diabetes, that can affect a baby’s health in the weeks before birth and up to a year after.
Chéry said classes taught in Haitian Creole can help immigrant mothers avoid those risks.
“If you’re pre-diabetic and you are carrying a child, you have to change your diet,” Chéry said. “In a lot of immigrant communities it’s hard to make them change their diets, so it takes someone from your own community to speak and say, ‘I understand. This is what we eat, but this is why you should not be eating this right now until after you give birth.’”
Answers and reassurance
The classes also include a chance to speak to doulas — people trained to support pregnant women during labor — for more in-depth knowledge about what to expect during and after labor.
“Your life changes instantly,” doula Albertina Udeh said. “You go from it just being you to you and somebody else overnight. That’s shocking, but nature’s going to take its course whether you’re ready or not.”
To help with that transition, the doulas help answer questions to assure moms that they won’t be alone.
“Every mama, every family, every baby is so unique,” said Ameera Madzimoyo, a doula and chair of The Mothership Institute’s board. “We can all build a true community together, we can create better outcomes for each of (them) and that’s got to be the ultimate goal.”