We’ve barely been back to our Hamilton home three weeks and My Bride, the lovely one who has made it her life work to give a voice to the voiceless, has already made her presence felt.
Last weekend she led the Steps to Deliver Change Walk at the Dundas Driving Park, where about 200 local residents showed up for the Mother’s Day event.
Then she sped off to another walk in Toronto to lead the charge there, part of Mother’s Day walks held in seven cities across Canada to bring attention to the scourge of maternal mortality, that is women dying in childbirth.
Several hundred thousand women die every year in childbirth, most in the developing world. To put it in perspective, about 16 women die in a country like Uganda every single day during childbirth, while in Canada, a country with a very similar population, that figure is 16 in an entire year. This is why we live in Africa for most of the year.
Hamilton radio had My Bride on the air to share more about it all. Then yesterday, Hamilton TV did the same, had her on the air to give context to a new report that shows that Canada actually fairs very poorly in infant deaths.
Canada now ranks 2nd worst of all industrialized countries for children dying at birth. It’s a problem without doubt, but one that still is a just a shadow compared to both maternal and infant deaths in regions like sub Saharan Africa.
Those children die, not surprisingly, especially when their mothers suffer and die. It’s a problem in some parts of Canada to the extent some conditions — like for Aboriginal women — can mimic those of a developing nation.
For her tireless efforts to bring awareness and change – Save the Mothers is geared to train indigenous leaders in places like Uganda – My Bride (her name is Jean) is now soon receiving an Honorary Degree from the University of Waterloo.
If you want to congratulate Jean, drop her a line at [email protected]
Tell her that I sent you her way.
And to learn more about how you can help make a difference for some needy mother, go to www.savethemothers.org
http://thomasfroese.com/2007/maternal-health-must-top-agendas/