"Hopefully everything will be good, and he'll be nice, big and healthy," Martin said. "He's definitely moving a lot. I feel like I'm ready to go, but not right now."
"Trying to find ways to support them within these walls, I think, is the hardest thing," said Mathania Toussaint, a full-spectrum doula working with the program. "But we make it work."
"When we were asked by the Department of Correction to come in to work in Rikers, we were excited because we were going to be seeing women who really need the service," said Cheryl Hall, executive director of CWHA."
"Incarceration happens, but it doesn't stop you from providing for your family," Maginley-Liddie said. "You're still a mother. You're still a father. You still need to show up. So we're providing all those tools while you're in our care to better support you."
A Brooklyn nonprofit partners with Rikers Island to deliver doula services and prenatal support to pregnant incarcerated women. Doulas lead breathing exercises, offer emotional connection, and create a nursery space where expectant mothers can learn and practice coping techniques. Staff emphasize preserving parental dignity and helping incarcerated parents prepare to provide for their families. Department of Correction leaders and facility directors support the program as a tool to reduce isolation and strengthen maternal readiness. Program providers adapt services to operate within the facility environment while striving to meet the specific needs of pregnant individuals in custody.
Read at Cbsnews
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]