Achieving Health Equity and Justice Through the Reproductive Justice Framework

Caitlin R. Williams, MSPH, Doctoral Student, Department of Maternal and Child Health
UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health

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Monica Raye Simpson is the Executive Director of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. A native of rural North Carolina, Monica has organized extensively against human rights violations, reproductive oppression, the prison industrial complex, racism and intolerance and is deeply invested in southern movement building and the fight for Black liberation. She is also committed to birth justice as a certified Doula. Monica couples her activism with her artistry and released her first live album entitled Revolutionary Love where she blends her gospel roots and her passion for social justice with deep soul to create the sound known as Revolutionary Soul. Because of her “artivism” Monica was named as a New Civil Rights Leader by Essence Magazine and chosen as one of Advocate Magazine’s 40 under 40 leaders.

Josh Boegner is pursuing a Master of Public Health in the Department of Health Behavior at the Gillings School of Global Public Health. Josh graduated from Cornell College in 2014 where he majored in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Prior to coming to Gillings, Josh served for two years as an AmeriCorps member: first as a VISTA member with an afterschool tutoring program for middle school students, followed by a year at the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, focusing on access to HIV treatment and prevention services for marginalized populations, including sex workers and re-entry populations. During his time at Gillings, Josh has worked in HIV treatment adherence among adolescents, and researching the impact that current policies around the opioid epidemic have on first responders and current and former drug users. Josh is passionate about access to comprehensive Sexual Health Education, particularly for LGBTQ youth, and the expansion of harm reduction strategies when it comes to drug use and sexual health. Upon graduation from the Gillings School of Global Public Health, Josh hopes to find employment with an organization that works in the realm of harm reduction techniques, communication strategies, and policy advocacy.

Caitlin Williams is a doctoral student in the department of Maternal and Child Health at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her research interests center on implementation strategies for scaling and sustaining evidence-based practices to improve pregnancy and birth outcomes, particularly in under-served and marginalized communities.At Gillings, Caitlin supports the work of the WHO Collaborating Center for Research Evidence for Sexual and Reproductive Health. She also collaborates with the Instituto de Efectivided Clínica y Sanitaria (IECS) in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Prior to beginning her studies, Caitlin worked at Rabin Martin, a global health consulting firm, where she supported program implementation, operations, communications, and advocacy for Merck for Mothers, a ten-year, $500-million initiative to reduce maternal mortality. She also managed communications efforts for Saving Mothers, Giving Life, a public-private partnership to dramatically reduce maternal and perinatal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. She is also an Assistant Editor at Reproductive Health and a Co-President of the Minority Student Caucus at Gillings.

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