‘Black babies are dying’ billboard on Valley freeway getting attention

PHOENIX — A billboard on Interstate 17 that says “Black babies are dying” is catching people’s attention.

The message behind that billboard: African-American babies in South Phoenix are twice as likely to die before their first birthday as their white, non-Hispanic counterparts.

They’re also three times more likely to die from birth complications, low birth weight and sudden infant death syndrome.

“It’s an important message but not well-known or understood in our communities,” said Meloney Baty, director of the community-based program South Phoenix Healthy Start.

She said her group put up the billboard to raise awareness. It’s part of a campaign launched in July 2018 to improve the health and mortality rate of black babies.

Lack of parental care, poor diet and nutrition, domestic violence, cigarette smoke and toxic stress are among the factors leading to black babies dying at higher rates, according to South Phoenix Healthy Start.

Baty added it’s not just black babies that are dying at a higher rate. She said black women are three to four times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than their white, non-Hispanic counterparts.

South Phoenix Healthy Start works with mothers to help meet their basic needs.

“We do this by things such as home visiting programs, health education classes and connecting moms to community resources,” Baty said.

The group also provides childbirth classes, breastfeeding support groups and peer counseling.

Baty said it’s their way of trying to increase the number of infants who live and remain healthy past their first birthday.

“In recent years, we’ve seen a little stability within that number,” she said. “If there’s no intervention, we’re going to see that number climb.”

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