Latine Heritage Month: Why Reproductive Justice & Doula Entrepreneurship Matter 

Every September 15–October 15, we celebrate Latine Heritage Month — a time to honor the histories, cultures, and contributions of Latinx and Hispanic communities. For us at Community Doula Alliance, it’s also an opportunity to uplift the connections between heritage, reproductive justice, and birth equity.

Why Reproductive Justice Matters for Latine Communities

Reproductive justice goes beyond access to health care. It’s the right to have children, not have children, and to raise our families in safe and sustainable communities. This is the framework established by SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, who’s co-founders included Luz Rodriguez, director of the Latina Roundtable for Health and Reproductive Rights (New York).

For Latine birthing people, this framework is especially critical.

• Hispanic women experience higher barriers to prenatal care access due to language, immigration status, and systemic inequities.

• According to the CDC, Hispanic women are 30% more likely than non-Hispanic white women to lack health insurance during pregnancy.

• While maternal mortality rates are highest for Black women, Hispanic women still face significant disparities, including higher rates of low birth weight and preterm births compared to white women.

These statistics reflect not just health care gaps, but the need for culturally-rooted support systems like doulas who understand the language, traditions, and lived realities of Latine families.

The Role of Economic Justice

Reproductive justice is also deeply connected to economic justice. For Hispanic women, the pay gap remains a stark reality.

• As of 2024, Latinas earn only 52 cents for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men.

• This wage gap limits access to quality health care, childcare, and birth support services.

When we talk about thriving birth experiences, we cannot ignore the role of financial security. Supporting Latine families means advocating for fair wages and also investing in Latina entrepreneurship.

Latinas in Birth Work

One powerful pathway forward is through doula care and birth work. Becoming a doula allows Latinas to turn their cultural wisdom, lived experience, and caregiving into sustainable careers.

• As doulas, Latinas not only provide culturally competent care to families who need it most — they also build businesses that can break cycles of economic inequality.

• Entrepreneurship in the birth world allows Latinas to reclaim autonomy, preserve traditional knowledge, and contribute to generational wealth.

At Community Doula Alliance, we believe that supporting Latina doulas isn’t just about individual success — it’s about shifting entire systems toward equity, dignity, and justice in birth.

Moving Forward Together: Invest in What’s Working

This Latine Heritage Month, let’s celebrate the resilience and contributions of Latine families. Let’s honor the abuelas, mamás, tías, and hermanas who have carried birth traditions forward. And let’s commit to:

• Expanding access to culturally-rooted doula care.

• Addressing pay inequities that affect Latinas across industries.

• Investing in Latina entrepreneurs — especially doulas — who are reshaping the future of birth work.

Bottom Line –

Community-based doulas are more than birth workers. They’re protectors of life, culture, and dignity. They are the bridge between what the healthcare system offers and what families truly need to feel seen, heard, and safe.

They are not a luxury—they are a necessity.
Let’s fund them. Trust them. Follow their lead.
Because everyone deserves to give birth—and be born—into a world that honors them from the very start.