Bearing Witness

The photos in this gallery are of Michaela, a woman I met while I was a doula-in-training with Birth Sisters of Charlottesville (VA), a women of color community-based doula collective. Michaela agreed to allow me to photograph her for this project, “Bearing Witness”, during and after the birth of her daughter in July 2021.

Michaela and her husband discovered that she was expecting during the pandemic. She wasn’t afraid; she was set on finding joy in pregnancy and hiring a doula and midwife for a home birth. She’d partnered with a doula, Doreen, for her last pregnancy, and knew Doreen would help her navigate this pregnancy in a way that felt compassionate, safe, and liberating.

Michaela would be my first client as a doula in training; Doreen was my mentor. I spent the months of Michaela’s pregnancy consulting with her via Zoom calls, accompanying her to the midwife’s checkups, and making home visits.

Initially, I felt awkward as a doula—starting a conversation about birth felt strange, and I had no idea how to approach a relationship with a client. Doreen reminded me that working with Michaela would be similar to how I guide my yoga students. Becoming a doula was about more than acquiring knowledge and skills—it was about creating a supportive space for a Black woman during one the most vulnerable moments of her life.

In the early hours of July 11, I got the text that Michaela was in labor. I set out into the night and made my way to her house. As I drove the narrow country road, my tummy was nervous, my hands shaky. But it helped to remember that this wasn’t about me. It was about something bigger. I pulled up into a yard full of cars and entered Michaela’s home to find her in active labor, surrounded by her closest friends, family, and birth team—doula, midwife, and midwife assistant.

The midwife gave verbal cues, encouraging her to listen to her body. Push. Release. Surrender. Things were happening fast. At 3:30 AM, with the loudest, sharpest, most intense shriek I’ve ever heard, Michaela birthed her daughter. There was nothing left to do but to be present.

Doreen rubbed Michaela’s head, gave her water, heated food for her, assisted with her shower, and walked her back to bed. In those moments, I saw clearly the trust, instinct, compassion, and power of this work.

Benita Mayo

Benita Mayo is a visual artist based in Charlottesville, VA. She is an inaugural member of the Charlottesville Black Arts Collective and a resident artist at the McGuffey Art Center. Mayo holds a B.A. in Rhetoric & Communications from the University of Virginia (UVA), and she was a fellow-in-residence at the UVA Equity Center, creating a photo essay highlighting the pregnancy risks that Black women face in the U.S. and the positive benefits of doula support.

Mayo was the winner of the 23rd Julia Margaret Cameron Award for "Women Seeing Women" and received an Honorable Mention for the portraiture category.

Mayo’s work has been featured in publications including Virginia Quarterly Review, SxSE Magazine, Library of Congress, C-Ville Weekly 434 Magazine, and Charlottesville Tomorrow. Her work has been exhibited at various galleries including the Center for Fine Art Photography - Fort Collins CO, Social Documentary Network, Welcome Gallery, Second Street Gallery, Studio IX, Academy Center of the Arts, the Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative, Artspace Herndon, MidAtlantic Photo Visions, Washington School of Photography and her work has been recognized internationally and in private collections.