Department of Chronic Disease Epidemiology, Yale School of Public Health, 60 College St, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA.
Department of Family Health Care Nursing, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, UCSF Box 0606, San Francisco, CA, 94143, USA.
BMC Public Health. 2022 Jan 20;22(1):146. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-12557-7.
A disproportionate number of people who are killed by police each year are Black. While much attention rightly remains on victims of police brutality, there is a sparse literature on police brutality and perinatal health outcomes. We aimed to explore how Black pregnant women perceive police brutality affects them during pregnancy and might affect their children.
This qualitative study involved semi-structured interviews among 24 Black pregnant women in New Haven, Connecticut (January 2017 to August 2018). Interview questions explored neighborhood factors, safety, stressors during pregnancy, and anticipated stressors while parenting. Grounded theory informed the analysis.
Participants, regardless of socioeconomic status, shared experiences with police and beliefs about anticipated police brutality, as summarized in the following themes: (1) experiences that lead to police distrust - "If this is the way that mommy's treated [by police]"; (2) anticipating police brutality - "I'm always expecting that phone call"; (3) stress and fear during pregnancy - "It's a boy, [I feel] absolutely petrified"; and (4) 'the talk' about avoiding police brutality - "How do you get prepared?" Even participants who reported positive experiences with police anticipated brutality towards their children.
Interactions between Black people and police on a personal, familial, community, and societal level influenced how Black pregnant women understand the potential for police brutality towards their children. Anticipated police brutality is a source of stress during pregnancy, which may adversely influence maternal and infant health outcomes. Police brutality must be addressed in all communities to prevent harming the health of birthing people and their children.
每年被警察杀害的人数中，黑人比例过高。尽管人们对警察暴力行为的受害者给予了应有的关注，但关于警察暴力行为和围产期健康结果的文献却很少。我们旨在探讨黑人孕妇如何看待警察暴力行为对她们怀孕期间的影响，以及可能对她们的孩子产生的影响。
本定性研究包括在康涅狄格州纽黑文的 24 名黑人孕妇中进行的半结构式访谈（2017 年 1 月至 2018 年 8 月）。访谈问题探讨了邻里因素、安全、怀孕期间的压力源以及育儿期间预期的压力源。扎根理论为分析提供了信息。
无论社会经济地位如何，参与者都分享了与警察的经历和对预期警察暴力行为的看法，这些经历和看法总结为以下主题：（1）导致对警察不信任的经历——“如果这是妈妈（被警察）对待的方式”；（2）预期的警察暴力行为——“我总是期待接到那个电话”；（3）怀孕期间的压力和恐惧——“是个男孩，[我感到]非常害怕”；以及（4）关于避免警察暴力行为的“谈话”——“你如何做好准备？”甚至那些报告与警察有积极互动的参与者也预期他们的孩子会遭受暴力行为。
黑人和警察之间在个人、家庭、社区和社会层面的互动，影响了黑人孕妇对他们的孩子可能遭受警察暴力行为的理解。预期的警察暴力行为是怀孕期间的压力源，可能对母婴健康结果产生不利影响。必须在所有社区解决警察暴力问题，以防止伤害分娩者及其子女的健康。
