Advocates for Black and brown mothers rallied in New York City Monday for birthing equity and justice.

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams joined activists as they called for better access to adequate maternal health care.

"The fact that Black and brown women are dying because they want to give birth is a direct attack on our livelihood," Williams said, who also shared an emotional statement on behalf of his pregnant wife.

"'As a Black mother, as a Black woman, on my final weeks of pregnancy, who has looked forward to birthing a beautiful miracle baby, I am burdened with the grim reality that my chances of death are X higher than my white counterpart,'" Williams read.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 700 people die from pregnancy or birthing complications each year, with Black women being three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women.

Among the speakers, Shawnee Benton Gibson is a mother who lost her daughter two weeks after she gave birth in 2019.

"There's a view that Black and brown women have folks not listen to them, even when they look like us. It's problematic, and we need stop this and to transform the system so that birthing people can thrive and survive," Gibson said.

Advocates also called for more birthing centers that are separate from traditional hospitals with specialized doulas and midwifery care. They cited that women in the Bronx have to travel to Manhattan, Brooklyn, New Jersey or outside of the borough because the Bronx does not have a birthing center.