Abstract

This article examines the tactics doulas deploy to support birthing people in a hospital setting, where both the doulas and their clients are marginalized. In order to cultivate and preserve calmness in the birthing room, doulas mobilize what I call “soft advocacy” to avoid overt confrontation with medical staff, while promoting their clients’ preferences and interests. “Soft advocacy” entails affective management of all stakeholders in the room, strategic body positioning by the doula, and descriptive narration that holds medical staff accountable for their actions. These tactics are transferrable outside the birthing room and can be deployed by advocates who want to protect their clients’ interests, but cannot afford to overtly challenge the status quo.