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Black Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign
Lactation Support Collaborative
San Francisco Department of Public Health
2019
Commissioned by the LSC, this zine tells the stories of black mothers from the Bayview District of San Francisco on their journeys with breastfeeding. Despite common misconceptions and stigmas, they took on the challenge with their babies in hopes of providing optimal nutrition.
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With women of color in mind, the cover design shows the body of an expecting mother with a heart over her belly. Her embrace indicates the love she already feels.
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The choice to hide the woman's face is to emphasize the idea that no two stories will be the same. Mothers come in all different shapes and sizes.
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When held up to a woman's face, the cover completes itself and show's the title "This is Our Story."
The zine is designed with the core values of inclusion and empowerment. Whether the mother is expecting or already months into motherhood, the zine explores different stages and experiences.
Design Choices
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Wanting to stray away from traditional blue and pink labeling, purple and green were used to distinguish the two stories. When sent to the mothers for their input, some women expressed that the color distinction would influence which story they were interested in reading. For instance, a mother expecting a boy was more excited to read about the mother who had a son.
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The pages were changed to these gradients to satisfy both of these criteria. The result provided a captivating and fluid aesthetic.
Reflection | Challenges
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Interviewing the mothers provided excellent information as well as allowing me, the outside perspective, to feel the connection the women developed through their journeys. This feedback was key for me to translate and share through design.
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Caveats in this commission were to not mention alternative methods of such as formula and pumping. The emphasis was to encourage breastfeeding even when it is difficult.
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