Who We Are

Honoring Tradition, Empowering Communities

Indigenous Birth is a community-rooted organization dedicated to preserving and uplifting the knowledge, dignity, and role of Indigenous midwives and healers. Through education, advocacy, and support, we work to reclaim traditional birth practices and strengthen Indigenous families and communities. Our vision is to re-indigenize healthcare, create spaces for healing and ceremony, and support a future where ancestral wisdom guides the journey of birth and life. Together, we honor the sacred responsibility of midwives and the powerful connections they nurture.

Our Impact

Indigenous Birth strengthens Indigenous communities by supporting midwives, advocating for health equity, and preserving cultural practices.

We provide resources, training, and community spaces to empower Indigenous midwives and honor their essential roles.

Midwifery Support

Through coalition work and policy initiatives, we advance healthcare access and equity for Indigenous families.

Health Advocacy

Our projects and ceremonies help protect and revitalize traditional practices, connecting future generations to their ancestral roots.

Cultural Preservation

A Living Act of Justice

Indigenous Birth has been committed to advocating for culturally rooted maternal healthcare and justice since its inception.

Roots in Community Care

Since 2003, Phoenix Midwife has been a community-based organization working closely with organizers to provide free care for immigrant communities, co-found a free healthcare clinic, and engage in collective activism for healthcare justice. Through these efforts, Indigenous Birth was always at the heart of the work, quietly advocating for quality and accessible maternal care rooted in love and cultural respect. With the arrival of COVID-19, it became clear that the need for visible, culturally appropriate maternal health services remained as urgent as ever.

A New Chapter and
Expanded Vision

In 2019, Phoenix Midwife expanded into a nonprofit arm, Parteras de Maiz, to secure funding to meet the growing need for community care. By 2020, as the need continued to rise and awareness of trauma in conventional maternal healthcare spread, the vision for a larger umbrella organization took shape. Indigenous Birth emerged to answer this call, advocating for traditional midwifery and addressing the trauma experienced in mainstream maternal care systems. Today, Indigenous Birth stands as a beacon for justice, healing, and support for Indigenous midwives and the communities they serve.

Our Team

Indigenous Birth has the support of such incredible leaders who volunteer their time as Advisory Council Members and our Co-Creators - Conference Team.

  • Marinah V. Farrell

    EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    she/her/ella

  • Eydia Omega, CPM LM

    ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER
    she, her (African-American)

  • Margaret David

    ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER
    she, her

  • Alexandrina Agloro

    ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER
    she, her

  • Stephanie Guillermina

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, they

  • Cassandra Alderete

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, her

  • Nicole White

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, her

  • Miriam Torres

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, her, ella

  • Christy Tashjian

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, her

  • Ariana Quinones

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR
    she, her

  • Juanita Michelle Gober

    CONFERENCE CO-CREATOR

  • Rhonda Grantham

    ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

  • Patrisia Gonzales

    BOARD ELDER AND ADVISOR

  • Autumn Cavender Wilson

    ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Declaration of Respect and Sovereignty

We affirm the dignity and value of all Indigenous Midwives, recognizing them as traditional healers, medicine people, and guardians of birth sovereignty. Indigenous Midwives are acknowledged foremost by their communities, not by colonial credentials, embodying accountability through a human rights framework, lifelong learning, and experience. We honor the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a foundational support for our work.

We also stand in kinship with Africans and African Americans, honoring them as beloved relatives. Together, we commit to addressing the ongoing harm of slavery, both past and present, acknowledging that our relationships with our bodies, ceremonies, and each other are vital to revolutionary healing and liberation.