Migrant mothers arriving in New York find support, hope — and lots of challenges

https://www.npr.org/2023/10/10/ [login to see] /migrant-mothers-new-york-bellevue-womens-health-pregnancy
When Roukhaya found out that she was pregnant, she was still living in the African nation of Chad.

When she found out it was a girl, that's when she says she knew it was time to leave.

In Chad, she explains, female genital mutilation is still practiced. Roukhaya and her husband are both doctors, and they think it is brutal. I ask if she herself was subjected to it. She nods quietly.

"I don't want that for my daughter," she says.

(NPR does not identify survivors of sexual violence, so we are withholding Roukhaya's last name.)

In the last year or so, over 100,000 migrants from all over the world have come to New York City. Some, like Roukhaya, are pregnant, and seeking shelter. NPR spent time with several of these women, their babies, and the team of doctors, nurses and social workers who assist them.