Early in January, a tweet caught my eye. A woman wrote that her best friend had died giving birth at Centinela Hospital Medical Center in Inglewood. The tweet said that during labor her friend and her partner complained for hours to the nurses that she was having problems with her legs. By the end of the night the friend was gone.
The pregnant woman’s name was April Valentine. Her baby survived, but on Jan. 10, Valentine became another statistic.
Throughout the past few weeks, I joined my colleague Mariana Dale in interviewing several of Valentine’s closest family and friends who’ve been rallying for answers on her behalf. Mariana has done thorough, comprehensive reporting on how to navigate pregnancy and childbirth and, along with our colleague Stefanie Ritoper, has written several pregnancy guides. Our goal was to understand what exactly happened that day at the hospital.
As a Black woman who is the same age as Valentine at the time of her death, this hit home. There was something I kept hearing from her loved ones that deeply concerned me.
Valentine did the research. She knew the odds she faced as a pregnant Black woman. She knew the benefits of having a doula, someone who could provide emotional and physical care through the pregnancy and postpartum, so she found one. In order to ensure she had a culturally responsive and compassionate experience, she chose a Black woman physician to deliver her child.
Valentine knew how to speak up for herself. She posted positive affirmations for a healthy pregnancy in her house. She had a birth plan. It seemed like Valentine did everything right.
And yet, her pregnancy still ended in tragedy.
A few weeks ago, Mariana and I met Nigha Robertson, Valentine’s partner, at their house for an interview. He’s kept old videos of April, including one of their gender reveal (they thought they were having a boy at first), he’s kept old pictures and a detailed image of their ultrasound. There are large pictures of April during her maternity shoot around the house. We met Valentine’s beautiful baby girl who kept her eyes on her father the entire time he held her.
He said something I’ll never forget:
"Every time I look at my daughter…it is never gonna get old,” Robertson said. “How do I explain to my daughter that the same day you gotta celebrate a birthday, you gotta celebrate the day your mama left?”
There are still so many questions about what happened to Valentine. We still do not have all the answers but are continuing to seek them out. But to know who April Valentine was, read Mariana’s thoughtful account about her life, her experience as a Black woman at Centinela and what her family and friends are doing to ensure accountability. Mariana also has resources if you or someone you love has had a bad pregnancy experience and need to take action.
Have you received care at Centinela Hospital Medical Center? Tell us about your experience here.
Need help with figuring out how to advocate for yourself to a doctor during pregnancy? Check out this guide.
As always, stay happy and healthy, folks. There’s more news below — just keep reading.
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THREE — The Big Winners Of NAACP Awards
I’m a huge fan of the show Abbott Elementary so I was delighted the cast won the award for Outstanding Comedy Series at the NAACP Image Awards. Actress Angela Bassett won entertainer of the year as well as an award for the television series 9-1-1. Bassett went viral for repeating Ariana DeBose’s rap line dedicated to her at the BAFTA Awards earlier this month. Actress Viola Davis also won an award for outstanding actress for Woman King. Check out all the winners here.
TWO — News organizations including the Los Angeles Times end circulation of the syndicated Dilbert cartoon strip.
Several newspapers, including The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post and all the Advance Local newsrooms have cut ties with Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams. On Youtube Adams made racist comments, labeling Black people a “hate group” and telling white people “to get the hell away” from them.
ONE — Footage of Rare Snow and Hail in Southern California
Last week, my colleague Caitlin Hernández explored how rare snowfall is in lower elevations in Southern California, but snow it did …in some areas. Now we have the winter wonderland footage to show for it. There are videos of kids in Pasadena reveling in a hailstorm last week, a video from Josh Gad somewhere “near Pasadena” this weekend, Sugar Ray vocalist Mark McGrath driving through snow flurries on the freeway from La Quinta and our TROPICAL palm trees covered in snow in Rialto.
Got something you’ve always wanted to know about Southern California and the people who call it home? Is there an issue you want us to cover? Ask us anything.
Have a tip about news on which we should dig deeper? Let us know.
