March of Dimes’ #BlanketChange campaign sounds a call to action.
Did you know that with more than 700 moms dying each year due to pregnancy-related complications, the United States is now the most dangerous developed nation in the world to give birth in?
Neither did we, until the March of Dimes, which advocates nationally for healthy moms and strong babies, asked us to help spread awareness about this preventable tragedy. To get their potentially life-saving message across, March of Dimes’ leaders told us, they were willing to take a risk and make an audacious statement.
So, we created #BlanketChange, a campaign that challenged members of Congress to enact legislation that aims to lower maternal death rates. On October 10, 2018, during the run-up to the mid-term elections, we launched the campaign by laying 700 receiving blankets on the National Mall — one for each mother lost in a year.
“Ultimately we wanted to ask public officials to make a public commitment to support mothers and babies,” Audrey Chang, Subject Matter’s senior vice president, strategic communications, told PR Week in December.
And many have. To date, more than a dozen members of Congress have acknowledged the campaign on social media, including Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Tom Carper (D-DE).
In addition, 84 TV stations in 67 markets covered the campaign, bringing nationwide attention to the issue of maternal mortality.
“We launched this campaign to demand change and to demand that our leaders do more to protect the lives of moms and babies,” said Stacey D. Stewart, president of the March of Dimes.
Visit BlanketChange.org to learn how you can add your voice to the call for #BlanketChange for moms and babies.
