The HeartButt NFT Collection

The HeartButt Collection is an NFT collection of 10,000 unique ERC-721 tokens stored on the Polygon Blockchain. Each HeartButt was randomly computer generated from vector drawn traits and will be non-sequentially minted at one price for fair distribution.

Each NFT comes with access to our exclusive Discord channel and the invitation to help plan and be involved in our midwifery and birth lobbying efforts.

Presale

February 14, 2022

Public Sale

February 28, 2022

HeartButt Collection
HeartButt Collection

Presale

February 14, 2022

Public Sale

February 28, 2022

We created this collection to raise funds for our early stage as a start-up. The HeartButt symbol is a playful take on our logo, which is inspired by the two hearts that come together to bring in new life. The design team and the founder all felt connected to the cheeky reminder that joy, love, and beauty can be a radical lense to see the world through.

While the HeartButt collection is made of a simple doodle, it stands for much more. We are creating a community of collective action to improve birth culture. This project is a way for us to fund and move forward on the goals that BirthX has for the American birthing experience, namely, to ensure that every person, regardless of finances or location, has access to a full range of choices for how they birth. This means making midwifery care legal and accessible.

Today, midwifery care in the U.S. is hobbled by highly restrictive regulation, inconsistency, and long-standing social stigma about the legitimacy of midwives. The stigma and restrictions on midwives are a legacy not of progress in maternal care but of racism and greed.

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Let's take a quick look at the history

In the 1600s, African people were brought over to America as slaves. Among them were African women who were trained as midwives. Black midwives of the South began serving both white and black families and were referred to as “granny” midwives who were well respected in their communities. It was their responsibility to attend to the poorest of families in the South, regardless of their race.


In the mid to late 1700s, obstetrics was being introduced into America, and by the late 1800s, the male physician had significantly replaced the role of the midwife. These physicians knew little about reproductive care, specifically birth. What they did know, they had mostly learned from the midwives or discovered by experimenting on slaves.


Physicians began to recognize midwives as competition, and in order to achieve the monetization of hospitals and physician practices, they had to persuade women to want a hospital birth, instead of a home delivery. How did physicians achieve this? By turning to politics. They led an anti-midwifery campaign that played on racism and discrimination and painted “Granny” midwives as illiterate, careless, lazy, incompetent, unclean, and dangerous.


This smear campaign rooted deep in our collective consciousness and was never properly corrected. Through our lobbying campaign, we are working to return dignity to the midwife and informed choice to the people.

Let's take a quick look at the history

In the 1600s, African people were brought over to America as slaves. Among them were African women who were trained as midwives. Black midwives of the South began serving both white and black families and were referred to as “granny” midwives who were well respected in their communities. It was their responsibility to attend to the poorest of families in the South, regardless of their race.

In the mid to late 1700s, obstetrics was being introduced into America, and by the late 1800s, the male physician had significantly replaced the role of the midwife. These physicians knew little about reproductive care, specifically birth. What they did know, they had mostly learned from the midwives or discovered by experimenting on slaves.

Physicians began to recognize midwives as competition, and in order to achieve the monetization of hospitals and physician practices, they had to persuade women to want a hospital birth, instead of a home delivery. How did physicians achieve this? By turning to politics. They led an anti-midwifery campaign that played on racism and discrimination and painted “Granny” midwives as illiterate, careless, lazy, incompetent, unclean, and dangerous.

This smear campaign rooted deep in our collective consciousness and was never properly corrected. Through our lobbying campaign, we are working to return dignity to the midwife and informed choice to the people.

Fund Allocation & Purpose

Raise money to finish the development of our review platform database and app

Empower and create diversity in tech

Be part of the change towards inclusivity, collective action, and bodily autonomy

Lobby for midwifery to be legal and recognized equally in all 50 states

10%

towards a Community Doula Fund

The Community Doula Fund works to help everyone one who wants or needs a doula to have one by providing funding to pay for doula services for people who could not afford this on their own.

10%

towards Advocacy & Lobbying

Our advocacy and lobbying center making midwifery legal and recognized equally in all 50 states.

Remaining

towards Development & Operation Costs

This includes paying our team; finishing, maintaining, and improving our platforms and tools; and developing new resources as we grow.

BirthX Roadmap

Presale

February 14, 2022

Public Sale

February 28, 2022

Spring 2022

  • Launch BirthBot (Our Chat Bot)
  • Start development of review platform
  • Finish building out wireframe for the app

Summer 2022

  • Launch Review Platform
  • Start organizing Midwifery Lobby Day for October
  • Start providing resources in Spanish

Fall 2022

  • Open Doula Scholorship Fund
  • Start development of mobile app
  • Midwifery Lobbying Effort

FAQ

NFTs (“non-fungible tokens”) are unique, one-of-a-kind digital assets. They can be anything digital – a music track, a film, or an artwork. What makes them unique is that we can now use a technology called the Blockchain to create a one-off digital certificate that’s attached to that file – a certificate that proves ownership, and is publicly visible, forever.

The price is 311 Matic + gas.

  1. NFTs are purchased using cryptocurrencies. There are many currencies to choose from, but Ethereum is the most widely used right now. You can purchase Ethereum by setting up a Coinbase account, although there are other platforms available.
  1. Next you’ll need to create a digital wallet to hold your cryptocurrency and NFTs. MetaMask is the most common wallet, but Coinbase has have one too. Ensure you keep your keys and passwords safe, and do not share these with anyone.
  2. Click on any of the official HeartButt collection links on this site. These links to our minting dApp.
  3. If you would like to purchase a HeartButt artwork, follow the instructions to connect your wallet to BirthX’s Minting dApp.
  4. When you purchase a piece, you will need to pay a ‘gas’ fee for the transaction (this pays for the computing energy required to process and validate transactions on the Polygon blockchain). Gas prices can vary dramatically depending on how busy the network is, but you will always be informed of the amount prior to making your purchase. If gas is high, try coming back later, as prices can fluctuate throughout the day.
  5. Once you’ve approved the gas fee and completed the transaction, the HeartButt NFT will be yours to enjoy!

There are 10,000 pieces in this collection.

Yes, we will be holding a presale on February 14th, 2022  for our Whitelist members. Please join our Discord to learn how to join the Waitlist. 

The public mint will be on February 28th, 2022.

To support our  cause! If you believe in the work we are doing, purchasing an NFT will help us continue this work. 

Some people buy NFTs because they love the artist, their artwork and what they stand for. Others buy them because their unique qualities make them collectible, whereas some people might buy them to sell on, in the hope that they will go up in value. 

Some holders use their NFTs as profile pictures on social media, others display them in their homes, and others have bought the pieces to trade. There is no set reason, provided you enjoy the process! 

You own an NFT if your ownership of the NFT is cryptographically verified on the Ethereum blockchain. If you own an NFT, you are granted the right to (a) use, copy and display the NFT for personal or commercial use; and (b) transfer the NFT between wallets you control or to another person or entity, should you wish to do so.

The amount of royalties is currently fixed at 10% to finance the Doula Scholarship fund and our lobbying and advocacy efforts. We have ambitious goals to bring change to maternity care. The funds collected will not only benefit those who are involved in our community but birthing people collectively. 

We are strong believers in using NFTs to raise awareness and money for social causes. Here is our commitment so far:

We believe in the need for regulation and license laws for Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) in all 50 U.S.States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. In states where community midwives are regulated through licensure and fully integrated into the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) Continuum of Care; people have better access to care and better outcomes.

The current legal situation for midwives in the US is inconsistent, overly restrictive, and often puts midwives in a bind between the interests of the people they serve and their legal requirements. 

Of the states that license midwives, 23 have severe restrictions on the care that midwives can provide. This includes required physician permission to attend a home birth, restrictions on home births after Cesarean section, required vaginal exams, required testing, required transfer if the birthing person doesn’t “progress” according to the state’s expectations, and more. All of these restrictions limit a person’s right to choose the birth experience and type of care that they want. These states are: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wyoming.

Seven states do not license at all, and make home birth midwifery illegal – Alabama, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky (no permits given since 1975), Nebraska, North Carolina and South Dakota. Michigan just licensed, but rules and regulations have not yet been written.

In these states, birthing people who want a home birth either have to find a midwife willing to operate illegally, taking on a great deal of legal and social risk—or they have to deliver their babies without professional help.

Midwives should not be going to jail for providing care that is desperately desired and needed. People should not be birthing somewhere they do not want to be because they do not have other options. 

Let’s make midwifery legal and accessible across the country!

To learn more about this kind of advocacy and lobbying work, check out https://www.pushformidwives.org.