Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha, the Mothers of Gynecology, Were Three Enslaved Girls Who Sacrificed for the Advancement of Maternal Health
Nearly two centuries after their bodies were used in medical experiments during slavery, three enslaved girls are finally being publicly recognized for the role they played in shaping modern women’s health.
Last week, dozens of physicians, doulas, midwives, historians, and maternal health advocates gathered in Montgomery, Alabama, to honor Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha, the enslaved teenagers now widely referred to as the Mothers of Gynecology.
The gathering took place during the fifth annual Day of Reckoning conference, held from Feb. 26 through March 1 at the More Up Campus. The multi day event brought together medical professionals, wellness leaders, activists, and public figures to confront the painful history behind modern gynecology while pushing for solutions to the ongoing Black maternal health crisis.
The conference is closely connected to the Mothers of Gynecology monument, a powerful public art installation created by Montgomery artist and activist Michelle Browder. The monument was unveiled in September 2021 to honor Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha, whose suffering helped advance early gynecological practices but whose names were largely erased from the history of medicine.
For Browder, the monument began as an artistic project intended to spark conversation about maternal health and the history behind it. What followed, she said, was something much larger.
“I created a monument to basically open up the conversation about maternal health,” Browder said during a discussion ahead of the conference alongside medical experts and advocates. “I really didn’t believe that it was going to take us this far and start a movement … Right now, if you can use art to change narratives and engage people, that’s what we’ve done.”
The conference featured a wide range of speakers and panelists, including OB GYN Dr. Camille Clare, wellness advocate Queen Afua, scholar and activist Toni Bond, and actress and maternal health advocate Tatyana Ali.
Together, they explored how the field of gynecology developed and how the legacy of Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha continues to shape modern maternal health conversations.
A Painful Chapter in Medical History
The story of Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha dates back to the 1840s in Alabama, where a physician attempting to develop treatments for childbirth related injuries performed repeated surgical experiments on enslaved girls.
The procedures were conducted without anesthesia, based on the racist and false belief that Black people could tolerate pain at higher levels than white patients.
Because the girls were enslaved, they had no control over their bodies and no ability to refuse the procedures.
Anarcha, believed to be about 17 years old, endured at least 30 surgeries before the final procedure was considered successful. Lucy, around 18, nearly died from an infection following one of the operations. Betsy, believed to have been about 16, was also subjected to repeated procedures as part of the physician’s experiments.
After the final operation was deemed successful, the girls were returned to forced labor.
For generations, the physician involved in the experiments, J. Marion Sims, was widely celebrated as the “Father of Modern Gynecology.” Medical textbooks and monuments honored his contributions, while the enslaved girls whose suffering enabled the medical breakthroughs remained largely unrecognized.
Advocates say reclaiming their story is essential to understanding the true origins of modern gynecology.
“We amplify the mothers that we learned from,” Clare said during the conference. “We learned many techniques at the sacrifice of their body.”
Confronting the Legacy Today
For many healthcare professionals, the history surrounding Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha continues to influence conversations about trust and equity in medicine.
Black women in the United States remain nearly three times more likely to die from pregnancy related causes than white women, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Current estimates place the maternal mortality rate for Black women at 44.8 deaths per 100,000 births, compared with 14.2 deaths per 100,000 births for white women.
Researchers say the disparities are linked to a range of factors including systemic bias in healthcare, unequal access to quality care, and a long history of mistrust between Black patients and the medical establishment.
For Clare, confronting that history directly is an important part of rebuilding trust.
“Many are already doing the great work,” she said, noting that conferences like Day of Reckoning create space for healthcare professionals to share ideas and strategies for improving care.
“And we’re holding ourselves accountable when we need to learn better,” she added.
Clare attended the conference as a representative of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which marks the 75th anniversary of its founding this year.
For her, participating in an event that centers the legacy of Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha carries deep personal and professional significance.
“As a practicing Black woman obstetrician and gynecologist, it means even more,” she said.
She also emphasized that improving maternal health outcomes requires examining the broader healthcare system rather than focusing solely on individual providers.
“Sometimes conversations point to individual actions or inactions or limitations,” Clare explained. “But what are we thinking about in terms of the system?”
Reproductive Justice and Systemic Change
Another central theme of the conference was the concept of reproductive justice, a framework developed by Black women activists in the 1990s.
The approach expands the conversation around reproductive health beyond access to medical care. It emphasizes bodily autonomy and the right to decide whether to have children, along with the ability to raise families in safe and supportive environments.
“When we think about the reproductive justice framework, it allows for bodily autonomy the right to have children or not have children and to parent in ways that are safe and equitable for our communities,” Clare said. “We believe reproductive justice is obstetrical and gynecological care. That’s a part of it.”
Panels throughout the four day conference explored topics including maternal mortality, culturally responsive healthcare, and ways to integrate community based birth work with traditional hospital care.
Midwives, doulas, physicians, and wellness practitioners shared insights into how different models of maternal care can work together to improve pregnancy outcomes for Black families.
Celebrities and Advocates Join the Conversation
Actress Tatyana Ali, best known for her role on the television series The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, also participated in the conference.
Ali, a mother of two who has become increasingly vocal about maternal health disparities, spoke about reproductive and maternal health during the event. She also introduced attendees to her baby quilt brand, Baby Yams.
“I do not typically share my story with everyone because often people will not take great care with it or may even use it,” Ali said in a statement following the conference. “But it is an honor to be here to share and to heal.”
Wellness advocate Queen Afua, who has spent more than five decades promoting holistic health practices, also spoke during the gathering. Her presentation focused on the importance of holistic care before, during, and after childbirth.
She emphasized that improving maternal health outcomes requires collaboration across communities, disciplines, and traditions.
“This is going to take every one of us,” Afua said. “When we come together with our wisdom, our medicine, our spirituality and our science, that’s how we begin to create safe and sacred birthing experiences for our mothers.”
Reclaiming the True Mothers of Gynecology
For organizers and attendees, the Day of Reckoning conference is about more than acknowledging a painful past.
It is about reclaiming a narrative that for generations centered physicians while ignoring the enslaved women and girls whose bodies were used in the development of modern medical practices.
By naming Betsy, Lucy, and Anarcha as the Mothers of Gynecology, advocates say they are restoring recognition to the people who helped shape the field, even though they were denied autonomy, consent, and credit.
Through monuments, education initiatives, and conferences like Day of Reckoning, the movement aims to ensure that their names remain part of the conversation about maternal health in America.
Organizers say remembering their story is not only about honoring the past, but also about building a more equitable future for maternal care.
Because for many advocates, acknowledging the history behind modern medicine is one of the first steps toward transforming it.
