By Alexis Taylor
AFRO Managing Editor
News of the untimely death of Dr. Janell Green Smith, less than 72 hours into the new year, has once again thrust the issue of America’s maternal mortality crisis into the spotlight.
Smith lost her life in childbirth on Jan. 2 at just 31 years old while giving birth to her first child.
The South Carolina native was known as “The Loc’d Midwife,” and made a name for herself promoting midwifery and supporting women in their reproductive journeys. She was also a shining inspiration to women looking to become a doctor of nursing practice, the degree Smith earned in 2024 after the 2020 death of her father, the murder of her brother in 2021 and her mother’s 2022 death from cancer on Mother’s Day.
“What’s that dream you have keeps you up at night? The one you talk yourself out of because you think you’re not good enough, not smart enough? Don’t have enough money for?” she asked her social media followers on June, 14, 2024. “The one that you think is too hard to do. The one you think isn’t worth all the work, the one you know you were called to do but the self doubt is loud in your ears..Yup! THAT DREAM.…..Whatever reason you’ve convinced yourself that you can’t do it…Do it anyway.”
The American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) issued a statement mourning the loss of Smith’s life on Jan. 5.
“Dr. Smith was a respected midwife, scholar, and advocate whose life and work reflected a deep commitment to respectful, evidence-based, and equitable care,” said ACNM. “That a Black midwife and maternal health expert died after giving birth in the United States is both heartbreaking and unacceptable. Her death underscores the persistent and well-documented reality that Black women—regardless of education, income, or professional expertise—face disproportionate risks during pregnancy and childbirth due to systemic racism and failures in care.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “In 2023, the maternal mortality rate for Black women was 50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births and was significantly higher than rates for White (14.5), Hispanic (12.4), and Asian (10.7) women.”
A Go Fund Me fundraiser has been created in Smith’s name to help her husband, Daiquan Smith, and the newborn she leaves behind. As of Jan. 7, the campaign had raised more than $125,000.
“Any contribution—no matter the size—will help provide stability, relief, and care during a time when the family needs it most,” said relatives, in the Go Fund Me.
The money will also be used to cover funeral expenses. Though the funds will be put to good use, it won’t replace Smith’s life. Medical professionals across the country are now demanding accountability, noting that the very system Smith fought to improve, ultimately took her life as well.
“Dr. Green Smith was not only a clinician but a contributor to the intellectual and ethical
foundation of midwifery and maternal health. Through her scholarship, teaching, and advocacy,
she worked to expand knowledge, elevate standards of care, and protect the dignity and lives of
mothers and babies,” said the National Black Nurses Association, in a statement. “She understood the science. She understood the systems. She understood the stakes.”
“As nurses, we know this loss cannot be framed as an isolated tragedy. It is inseparable from anational Black maternal health crisis shaped by inequity, bias, and structural neglect,” continued the NBNA. “Dr. Green Smith’s knowledge did not shield her. Her credentials did not protect her. That reality demands more than reflection. It demands accountability.”
