06/18/2026
From across the world, Indigenous Midwives came to the ICM Congress to learn that not only had the ICM statement in support of Indigenous midwifery been rescinded, but that the term “Indigenous midwifery” had been made explicitly unwelcome at this Congress.
This systemic erasure of Indigenous midwives, babies, and birthing people is a continuation of the colonial project that has led to the genocide of Indigenous people around the globe.
From Turtle Island to Gaza, from Aoteroa to Sápmi, Indigenous midwifery is the foundation of midwifery practice anywhere and everywhere. It is the collective heritage of our craft.
In their relentless attempt to patent the term “midwife,” ICM standards have criminalized our traditional practitioners and disparaged our ancestral medicines, even as colonial midwives appropriated our ancestral practices and technologies.
No matter the language, ICM does not, has never, will never own the term “Midwife.” Midwifery belongs first and foremost to the communities we serve.
We call on our allies, here and around the world, to hold ICM accountable. To assert their responsibility to repair the colonial legacies imposed on Indigenous peoples. And to stand up in defense of a midwifery that is inclusive to all.
Because if you want a million more midwives, you must start with Indigenous communities. You start with us.
