{"id":{"repo_id":"temple","oai_identifier":"oai:scholarshare.temple.edu:20.500.12613/12240"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/temple/oai:scholarshare.temple.edu:20.500.12613/12240","repository":{"repo_id":"temple","name":"Temple University","base_url":"https://scholarshare.temple.edu/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"She ain't no mammy: African American midwives' utilization of Ma'at in the preservation and continuation of African epistemology","abstract":"This dissertation takes a historiographical-Afronographic approach, examining the African American midwife from her forced placement on Southern plantations in the United States to the present day. These midwives were gatekeepers of a rich cultural tradition grounded in an African matriarchal episteme. There is a long history of debasement of the African women’s body built on a false racial hierarchy where Black women were at the bottom, the lowest tier of society. She has had to endure unimaginable horrors within the confines of a racist, patriarchal society that was antithetical to the preservation of African spirit and culture. Black midwives were able to tap into a deep ancestral epistemological collective, granting access to birthing knowledge that had been maintained and preserved for thousands of years. The survival of this knowledge depended on the midwife’s adaptability to a foreign environment that did not share African cultural values of respect for women and mothering. Many have written on the medicalization of childbirth in the United States and the disappearance of Grand Black midwives. This work aims to show that the legacy of the Grand Black midwives lives on in contemporary Black midwives and in their continuity of African cultural birthing traditions, despite attacks to destroy their reputability as healers.","abstract_html":"This dissertation takes a historiographical-Afronographic approach, examining the African American midwife from her forced placement on Southern plantations in the United States to the present day. These midwives were gatekeepers of a rich cultural tradition grounded in an African matriarchal episteme. There is a long history of debasement of the African women’s body built on a false racial hierarchy where Black women were at the bottom, the lowest tier of society. She has had to endure unimaginable horrors within the confines of a racist, patriarchal society that was antithetical to the preservation of African spirit and culture. Black midwives were able to tap into a deep ancestral epistemological collective, granting access to birthing knowledge that had been maintained and preserved for thousands of years. The survival of this knowledge depended on the midwife’s adaptability to a foreign environment that did not share African cultural values of respect for women and mothering. Many have written on the medicalization of childbirth in the United States and the disappearance of Grand Black midwives. This work aims to show that the legacy of the Grand Black midwives lives on in contemporary Black midwives and in their continuity of African cultural birthing traditions, despite attacks to destroy their reputability as healers.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Chambers, Olivia Ann"],"institution":"Temple University. 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Using this statement implies that the organization making this Item available has determined that the Item is in copyright and either is the rights-holder, has obtained permission from the rights-holder(s) to make their Work(s) available, or makes the Item available under an exception or limitation to copyright (including Fair Use) that entitles it to make the Item available."],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarshare.temple.edu/handle/20.500.12613/12240","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Dove, Nah"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Asante, Molefi Kete, 1942-","Nehusi, Kimani S. 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Using this statement implies that the organization making this Item available has determined that the Item is in copyright and either is the rights-holder, has obtained permission from the rights-holder(s) to make their Work(s) available, or makes the Item available under an exception or limitation to copyright (including Fair Use) that entitles it to make the Item available."]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://scholarshare.temple.edu/handle/20.500.12613/12240"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation takes a historiographical-Afronographic approach, examining the African American midwife from her forced placement on Southern plantations in the United States to the present day. These midwives were gatekeepers of a rich cultural tradition grounded in an African matriarchal episteme. There is a long history of debasement of the African women’s body built on a false racial hierarchy where Black women were at the bottom, the lowest tier of society. She has had to endure unimaginable horrors within the confines of a racist, patriarchal society that was antithetical to the preservation of African spirit and culture. Black midwives were able to tap into a deep ancestral epistemological collective, granting access to birthing knowledge that had been maintained and preserved for thousands of years. The survival of this knowledge depended on the midwife’s adaptability to a foreign environment that did not share African cultural values of respect for women and mothering. Many have written on the medicalization of childbirth in the United States and the disappearance of Grand Black midwives. This work aims to show that the legacy of the Grand Black midwives lives on in contemporary Black midwives and in their continuity of African cultural birthing traditions, despite attacks to destroy their reputability as healers."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["She ain't no mammy: African American midwives' utilization of Ma'at in the preservation and continuation of African epistemology"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Dove, Nah"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Asante, Molefi Kete, 1942-","Nehusi, Kimani S. K.","Gammage, Marquita Marie, 1983-"],"dc:creator":["Chambers, Olivia Ann"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-06-10T14:54:26Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-06-10T14:54:26Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-05"],"dc:description.abstract":["This dissertation takes a historiographical-Afronographic approach, examining the African American midwife from her forced placement on Southern plantations in the United States to the present day. These midwives were gatekeepers of a rich cultural tradition grounded in an African matriarchal episteme. There is a long history of debasement of the African women’s body built on a false racial hierarchy where Black women were at the bottom, the lowest tier of society. She has had to endure unimaginable horrors within the confines of a racist, patriarchal society that was antithetical to the preservation of African spirit and culture. Black midwives were able to tap into a deep ancestral epistemological collective, granting access to birthing knowledge that had been maintained and preserved for thousands of years. The survival of this knowledge depended on the midwife’s adaptability to a foreign environment that did not share African cultural values of respect for women and mothering. Many have written on the medicalization of childbirth in the United States and the disappearance of Grand Black midwives. This work aims to show that the legacy of the Grand Black midwives lives on in contemporary Black midwives and in their continuity of African cultural birthing traditions, despite attacks to destroy their reputability as healers."],"dc:description.degree":["Ph.D."],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://scholarshare.temple.edu/handle/20.500.12613/12240"],"dc:language.iso":["eng"],"dc:publisher":["Temple University. Libraries"],"dc:rights":["IN COPYRIGHT- This Rights Statement can be used for an Item that is in copyright. Using this statement implies that the organization making this Item available has determined that the Item is in copyright and either is the rights-holder, has obtained permission from the rights-holder(s) to make their Work(s) available, or makes the Item available under an exception or limitation to copyright (including Fair Use) that entitles it to make the Item available."],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["African American studies","Black studies","Womens studies","African American midwives","African epistemology","Birth","Birthing practices","Grand midwives","Midwifery","Africology and African American studies"],"dc:title":["She ain't no mammy: African American midwives' utilization of Ma'at in the preservation and continuation of African epistemology"],"dc:type":["Text"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:20:15Z"}