--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you destroy midwives, you also…" description: "\"When you destroy midwives, you also destroy a body of knowledge that is shared by women, that can’t be put together by a bunch of surgeons or a bunch o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/ina-may-gaskin-10809_birth_when-you-destroy-midwives-you-also-destr_1443982.jpg" --- # When you destroy midwives, you also destroy a body of… ![“When you destroy midwives, you also destroy a body of knowledge that is shared by women, that can’t be put together by a bunch of surgeons or a bunch of male obstetricians, because physiologically, birth doesn’t happen the same way around surgeons, medically trained doctors, as it does around…” quote by Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/ina-may-gaskin-10809_birth_when-you-destroy-midwives-you-also-destr_1443982.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/ina-may-gaskin-10809_birth_when-you-destroy-midwives-you-also-destr_1443982.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/ina-may-gaskin-10809_birth_when-you-destroy-midwives-you-also-destr_1443982.jpg) > “When you destroy midwives, you also destroy a body of knowledge that is shared by women, that can’t be put together by a bunch of surgeons or a bunch of male obstetricians, because physiologically, birth doesn’t happen the same way around surgeons, medically trained doctors, as it does around sympathetic women.” [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Midwives hold unique, embodied knowledge essential for women’s childbirth, which cannot be fully replicated by male‑dominated medical practice. **In simple terms:** Midwives' knowledge is vital and gender‑specific. Key Takeaway Respect and preserve midwifery expertise. Themes women’s health knowledge preservation gender equity Mood advocacy urgent Type political educational When to use this quote - prenatal care - policy advocacy - education programs Key Concepts anthropology medical ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can we integrate midwifery into modern healthcare? - What barriers exist for women’s knowledge? A Different Perspective May face institutional resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Males](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/males/) [Midwives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midwives/) [Obstetricians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obstetricians/) [Surgeons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surgeons/) [Sympathetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathetic/) ## Related quotes > [It is hard to have patience with people who say ''There is no death'' or ''Death doesn't matter'.' There is death. And whatever is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-hard-to-have-patience-with-people-who-say-there-is-no-death-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The condition of your birth doesn't determine the outcome of your life. This is America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/the-condition-of-your-birth-doesn-t-determine-the-outcome-of-your/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [It would be a mistake, though, to consider care by family doctors or midwives inferior to that offered by obstetricians simply on the grounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/it-would-be-a-mistake-though-to-consider-care-by-family-doctors-or/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [We midwives and physicians have a lot to teach each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/we-midwives-and-physicians-have-a-lot-to-teach-each-other/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [“Many midwives work as employees in large hospital practices, where the techno-medical model of care is still the rule. In practices like these, midwives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/many-midwives-work-as-employees-in-large-hospital-practices-where-the/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [Loving everything about yourself - even the 'unacceptable' - is an act of personal power. It is the beginning of healing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-northrup/loving-everything-about-yourself-even-the-unacceptable-is-an-act-of/) [Christiane Northrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-northrup/) > [As a doctor, let me tell you what self-love does: It improves your hearing, your eyesight, lowers your blood pressure, increases pulmonary function, cardiac…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-northrup/as-a-doctor-let-me-tell-you-what-self-love-does-it-improves-your/) [Christiane Northrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-northrup/) > [“Obstetricians also doubted the female intellectual capacity to grasp the anatomy and physiology of childbirth, and suggested that they could not therefore be trained.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-worth/obstetricians-also-doubted-the-female-intellectual-capacity-to-grasp/) [Jennifer Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-worth/) > [A newborn baby has only three demands. 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In practices like these, midwives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/many-midwives-work-as-employees-in-large-hospital-practices-where-the/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I have never observed even the slightest laceration in a woman who used clitoral stimulation as a relaxation method during birth. Clitoral stimulation seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-have-never-observed-even-the-slightest-laceration-in-a-woman-who/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I dreaded having a boring life when I grew up. And I certainly can't complain about being bored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-dreaded-having-a-boring-life-when-i-grew-up-and-i-certainly-can-t/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [There is no other organ quite like the uterus. If men had such an organ they would brag about it. 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