内容摘要：“When it comes down to tackling racism, I don’t want to see, I don’t want to hear the word ‘explore,’” said McCurtis, who is deputy director of Metcalfe Park Community Bridges, a resident-led community group. “I know you have to explore things, but some of these things, there’s been plenty of research done already … What is the real strategy that’s really going to get folks where we need to be?”

“When it comes down to tackling racism, I don’t want to see, I don’t want to hear the word ‘explore,’” said McCurtis, who is deputy director of Metcalfe Park Community Bridges, a resident-led community group. “I know you have to explore things, but some of these things, there’s been plenty of research done already … What is the real strategy that’s really going to get folks where we need to be?”

Some people took their pets to shelters because they couldn’t evacuate with them.The Pasadena Humane Society took in 250 pets in the first day after the fires started. Los Angeles County Animal Care was looking after 97 pets — mostly cats and dogs but also pigs, a turtle, a bird, and a snake, said Christopher Valles, a department spokesperson.

Veterinarian Dr. Annie Harvilicz had been moving out of an old Animal Wellness Centers office in Marina del Rey, but inspired by her brother’s need to find a place for his pets, she turned the exam, X-ray and surgery rooms into an impromptu shelter. She quickly took in 41 dogs, cats and a bunny and soon found foster homes for all but two.She told people on Facebook to contact her if they needed a place for their animals. She expected an onslaught of pets needing refuge but instead has been inundated with people wanting to volunteer.“I’m very proud of the people of Los Angeles and how I really feel like they’ve stepped up to the plate when it comes to helping out each other,” she said.

Some people wanted Harvilicz to take their donkeys but she wasn’t able to get a trailer to them before they had to evacuate. Difficulties transporting larger animals puts them at greater risk from wildfires, she said.Julia Bagan, who is part of a Facebook group called Southern California Equine Emergency Evacuation, found five horses locked in their stalls in Altadena one day after the fire. The horses huddled in a small exterior pen attached to the stalls but couldn’t entirely escape the flames.

By the time a neighbor called for help and firefighters used bolt cutters to free them, one of the horses was badly hurt, Bagan said.

She drove through the remnants of the fire Wednesday night to rescue them as damaged power lines sparked overhead. She described it as “the most crazy, dangerous” evacuation she’s had yet. Almost all the houses in the area had burned when she pulled up.“When you look at the rate of maternal death in the United States compared to California, they basically ran neck-and-neck until it was established,” said Dr. Amanda Williams, clinical innovation adviser for the collaborative. “At that time they totally separated and California started going down. The rest of the country started going up.”

The hospitals get toolkits that describe what to do, how to set up medical teams and what supplies to keep on the unit. The collaborative also looks to improve obstetric care by integrating midwives and doulas — whose services are covered by the state’s Medicaid program.New York City has a goal of reducing maternal mortality overall and achieving a 10% drop in Black maternal mortality by 2030. The city is targeting low-income residents, those living in public housing and others with its New Family Home Visits Initiative, which supports pregnant and new parents by offering visits from nurses, midwives, doulas and lactation consultants.

Jackson’s Healthy Start project in Tulsa is also grounded in her community. She and her staff understand the lingering effects of the city’s 1921 race massacre, which is estimated to have killed 100-300 people and, churches, schools and businesses. Jackson said all sorts of health disparities persist, and added that many Black women also distrust the health care system, so being relatable is valuable.