Ben & Jerry's did not post a flavor this Black Maternal Health Week. It posted receipts.

During this year's observance, the brand launched a viral Instagram carousel in partnership with National Bail Out that centers incarcerated Black mothers as part of a broader reproductive justice framework. The campaign opens with the statement "The US Is Failing Black Mothers" and zeroes in on a layer of the Black maternal health crisis that rarely gets mainstream attention: what happens to Black women who are pregnant behind bars.

The campaign's slides lay out a stark picture. Black women are nearly twice as likely to be incarcerated as white women, and three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes. Nearly half of pregnant women who are incarcerated reportedly receive zero prenatal care. The carousel also states that some women are still shackled during pregnancy and childbirth, and that most incarcerated mothers are separated from their newborns within hours of giving birth.

The campaign spotlights National Bail Out, a Black-led organization that has reunited more than 1,000 Black mothers and caregivers with their loved ones since its founding in 2017. The organization also provides housing, healthcare, and support services to the women and families it assists.

Black Maternal Health Week runs April 11 through 17 and was founded by the Black Mamas Matter Alliance. This is its ninth annual observance. The week focuses on amplifying the voices of Black pregnant and postpartum people and bringing national attention to maternal mortality disparities. Black women face a maternal mortality rate nearly three times that of white women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Ben & Jerry's has a documented history of advocacy on racial justice issues, making them an unusual but consistent voice on campaigns of this kind in the corporate space.