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PushSummit 2009 in Birmingham, ALABAMA
Convened July 12-15, 2009 | And all the Pushers said: "Ad alta!"
Co-Facilitators:
Steff Hedenkamp, Steering Committee, the Big Push for Midwives Campaign
Russ Fawcett, Legislative Co-Chair, North Carolina Friends of Midwives
LISA from Alabama said: "Awesome first day! An even better second day! It was great to hear from states like Idaho for example, where Certified Professional Midwives are now regulated and licensed … as well as to hear from states that are looking at laws they already have that could be stronger to better support increased access to out-of-hospital maternity care … things are really coming together nationwide for moms and babies."
RACHEL from Missouri said: "This is the first conference that I have ever attended that I didn't want to leave the room at some point. I just wanted to hear what everyone had to say."
KAREN from Alabama said: "I wasn't at the first PushSummit in Chicago, but I have been really uplifted at this year's. It was interesting to hear the different reports from the states and to hear what everyone is facing."
RUSS Fawcett said: "What we heard over the course of two days was a chorus of resolve, many new brilliant ideas, and inspiring stories of success. These are real people with families who have had life-changing experiences that have brought them here, and we are so fortunate they choose to tirelessly give of their time, talent and treasure to increase access to out-of-hospital birth."
STEFF Hedenkamp said: "PushSummit 2009 was excellent. Our state activists made the tough decisions to leave their own frontlines and travel enormous distances to come together to share their collective wisdom on how best to educate policymakers, work with the media, and advance their respective advocacy efforts for licensure and regulation of Certified Professional Midwives.
"In the opening session, Pushers heard 'State of the Push' Reports from 14 states across the PushNation. We heard from states ranging from those with long histories of having licensed and regulated Certified Professional Midwives to those states who are 'in the first trimester' of their grassroots mobilization efforts.
"One of the highlights of the summit was a special screening of Bringin' in Da Spirit, a documentary film about midwives narrated by Phylicia Rashad and directed by Rhonda L. Haynes. This was followed by the keynote presentation by Nadiyah Seraaj of the Portland, Oregon-based International Center for Traditional Childbearing (ICTC), which was created to support black women who wish to become midwives. Seraaj urged all participants to join ICTC at www.blackmidwives.org, and the Executive Director of the Alabama Poverty Project also attended the keynote.
"Another top-ranked session by attendees was the Messaging and Media panel, where experts from Fifty Two Corp. came and generously of their time, sharing cutting edge advice on everything from grassroots mobilization, to effectively using Facebook and Twitter, to learning the newest in the emerging field of neuromarketing. Other conference topics included fundraising, bill language, growing organizational capacity, and effective branding and networking."
See more pictures here from the Free the Midwives rock show, held at Bottletree Cafe to kick-off the summit and to benefit the Alabama Birth Coalition.
See more pictures here from the PushSummit itself.
