As people around the country prepare to celebrate Mother's Day, we contemplate the reality that U.S. women are having fewer children than ever before. What are the social conditions and personal decisions leading to this development, and how does it change our concepts of family and even of womanhood?
Next we speak with Jenny Brown, organizer with National Women's Liberation and author of Birth Strike: The Hidden Fight Over Women's Work. "By some measures our birth rate is the lowest it has ever been. With little access to childcare, family leave, health care, and with insufficient male participation, U.S. women are conducting a spontaneous birth strike," says Jenny Brown on her Birth Strike Blog. The Birth Strike has four demands: national health care, universal childcare, paid parental leave and shorter working hours.
In today's program Kate Raphael speaks with two powerful African American artists. First is an interview with Nell Painter. In the next segment we hear from Jovelyn Richards.
BBQ Becky & Permit Patty go on trial!
Jovelyn Richards, host of The Space Between Us on Women's Magazine, brings her play, 9-1-1 What's Your Emergency? The Verdict to La Pena next weekend, April 26-27. The first act of 9-1-1 What’s Your Emergency? premiered at La Peña Cultural Center in September 2018 as an artistic response to the local 9-1-1 calls that made BBQ Becky and Permit Patty infamous on a national level. In this second act, framed as a courtroom drama, Jovelyn asks, should these calls be seen as hate crimes? You - the audience - get to weigh in on the verdict. The show will be performed with a multicultural cast and a jazz orchestra. In our interview, we discuss how sexism blends with white supremacy to lead white women to call the cops on Black and Brown people's expressions of love and intimacy. Jovelyn's shows always sell out so get your tickets early. Tickets are $20-$25.
"My goal is to take a traditional courtroom and change it into an indigenous practice." -Jovelyn Richards
Today is Earth Day and National Poetry Month. The show begins with a reading of the poem "Rise" by Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner and Aka Niviâna. Continue listening for a recording by Adrienne Rich after the first interview. Click here to listen to the entire show. 59:50 min
In the first part of our show produced by Safi wa Nairobi, we listen to excerpts of a talk by Jennifer Eberhardt about the dangers and effect of implicit racial bias in policing, which is inherently unintentional yet more pervasive than explicit bias but equally deadly. Dr. Jennifer Eberhardt, one of the world’s leading experts on unconscious racial bias and the author of Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See,Think, and Do will also be speaking at the JCC of SF on April 1st at 7pm.
And in the second half of the show we look at sexual and racial bias in the internet. Today, nearly half the world is online. Nearly 75% of this half comprises the people of the global south. Women are 45% of online users. Yet, the digital footprint of women and girls, reflecting real world iniquities, is tiny. More than 80 percent of the content produced on Wikipedia is written by 20% of people based in the global north. 1 in 10 Wikipedia editors is a woman.
Recently a small fierce group of feminist geeks at "Whose Knowledge" came along and have been working hard to change these stark statistical realities Wikipedia entry by Wikipedia entry, one digital step at a time. "Whose Knowledge" is a global campaign to center the knowledge of the marginalized communities to create a truly inclusive internet. Preeti Shakar and Lisa Dettmer talk to co-director of "Whose Knowledge", Anasuya Sengupta, to discuss the work they are doing to decolonize the web.
KPFA Women's Magazine Host Jovelyn Richards interviews ex FBI agent Barbara Van Driel on how our ethics and values of women must be preserved. Special Agent Barbara Van Driel author of It Never Happened discusses her struggles within a unethical organization while holding on to her own beliefs.
The Space Between Us is a live, call-in show that airs every 3rd Monday at 1 PM on KPFA Women's Magazine. Look for it and join Jovelyn at the river to share your story.
It's pledge week at KPFA. Please donate and support women's programming and listener sponsored radio. KPFA Women's Magazine is entirely written and produced by volunteers.
Safi Wa Nairobi host of KPFA's B.A.J.A.B.A. on JaZzLine brings us this special program on Women, Blues, and Jazz in celebration of Women's History Month. Today's program airs a recording of a panel discussion on Gender and Jazz from the 2018 Inaugural Jazz Congress in New York. Moderator is Michele Mercer (NPR) and Panelists include Terri Lyne Carrington (Berklee College of Music), Ingrid Jensen, John Murph, Ellen Seeling (Montclair Big Band). Also included is a reading of Ain't I a Woman.
This Monday on KPFA Radio’s Women’s Magazine we talk to Radical feminist activist Hilla Kerner of the Vancouver Rape Relief and Women’s Shelter about organizing on the frontlines to end violence against women. And we discuss how to build on the recent viral #MeToo campaign in response to revelations of sexual assaults by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.
And we speak to a panel of South Asian women participating in the 3rd i film festival which centers on South Asian perspectives. The panel includes singer, composer, musician and filmmaker Gingger Shankar talking about her film Nari, actress Nabila Hussein who co-stars in the show Brown Girls, and documentary filmmaker Pallavi Somusetty. They discuss their work and issues of representation and sexism in the film industry.
The film festival starts November 9-12 in San Francisco and November 18 in Palo Alto. For more info, schedule and tickets on the 3rd i Film festival go to: www.thirdi.org
Every third Monday KPFA Women's Magazine hosts a Global Consciousness Raising Program. This week's topic on The Space Between Us is GenderConsciousNESS. Listen as these women share their stories at the river.
"Thinking in decades is crucial." "Build cultural, social and political movements." "Love and solidarity will be more important than ever."
Kate says: "These women blew me away with their ability to articulate both critique and vision. I came away more hopeful as well as more determined to be deliberate and strategic in responding to the crisis of democracy in our country."
We are asking for your support in this fundraising show. I know many of you gave just a month ago and I do not expect you to give again, but if you didn't manage to do it then, please consider making a donation tomorrow by going online at www.kpfa.org. Don't forget to mention Women's Magazine in your donation.
Thanks so much for all your support.
The Violent Construction of Masculinity
This Monday, September 12, Women's Magazine features two cutting-edge documentaries by men challenging masculine violence by examining how our cultural construction of masculinity pressures boys and men to be aggressive and suppress any feelings but anger. No one exemplifies this more than Donald Trump, says Thomas Keith, in his new film, THE EMPATHY GAP: Masculinity and the Courage to Change. Keith gives a nuanced reading of the interplay between racist and sexist stereotyping in U.S. popular culture and offers evidence-based solutions.
Educator Jackson Katz points out that "Gender" issues are considered "women's issues," just as "race" is assumed to be a problem about people of color and "sexual orientation" is only discussed in relation to LGB people. "It's as if people of the dominant culture have no race, gender or sexual orientation," he says. In “TOUGH GUISE 2,” he proposes a radically different approach to gender violence, foregrounding and challenging the ways that boys are taught to be men.
Kate Raphael and Lisa Dettmer present excerpts from and discuss these powerful documentaries.
Kate Raphael sits down with long-time SF Mime Troupe performers and collective members Keiko Shimosato Carreiro and Velina Brown, to talk about the history of the troupe, their careers and the new show, SCHOOLED, which debuts next weekend in Berkeley.
The Tony Award-winning SF Mime Troupe opens in Berkeley July 2 & 3, then San Francisco July 4 with its 57th season premiering "Schooled"
Education. It's like the weather: everyone has an opinion but nobody does anything about it. That's how Livina Jones feels about her son Tom's new school, Eleanor Roosevelt High. With it's old textbooks, crumbling classrooms, and racist treatment of kids just like hers Livina believes Roosevelt is exactly the sort of school that can benefit from a little free-market common sense. The nanny-state government has failed to see students as individuals, and failed to give them the real-world skills they'll need to get ahead. So who says it isn't time for some big money, for-profit schooling?
Edith Orocuru, for one. She's the long serving history/civics/American government/basketball coach at Eleanor Roosevelt, and she's willing to fight for her version of education as long as her reconstructed hips will allow. But is she fighting for a system that can be fixed, or is she just too blind by her past to see how times have left her and her school behind? And when an efficiency expert, Mr. Babbit, is assigned to improve her class is it a sign that Edith is behind the times, or a sign of something more sinister? And with privatization on the line, and a Wall Street heavy hitter lined up to fold the entire district into his conglomerate, suddenly the next School Board election is more about a hidden agenda than the open curriculum. And when did the hall monitors start wearing brown shirts and arm bands?
Bay Area Opening Weekend Cedar Rose Park Sat, Jul 2nd @ 2:00 PM (Music 1:30) Sun, Jul 3rd @ 2:00 PM (Music 1:30) 1300 Rose St. & Chestnut St., Berkeley Ticket Info: FREE (donation)
Lisa Dettmer talks with Sarah Schulman, whose new novel, The Cosmopolitans, is an updating of Balzac's classic Cousin Bette. Schulman sets the story in the Greenwich Village of the 1950s, using the story to look at intersections of racism, sexism, homophobia and rootedness. Sarah also discusses accusations of anti-Semitism aimed at her and the Students for Justice in Palestine at CUNY Staten Island, where she teaches.
Greenwich Village, 1958. Earl, a black, gay, actor, and Bette, a white secretary, have been neighbors for thirty years, forming a deep bond as refugees from small-minded hometowns. But when Hortense, a wealthy young actress with links to Bette's painful past, shows up, Earl and Bette's hard-won assumptions are shaken to the core.The Cosmopolitans is a beautifully written, page-turning novel about friendship, love, and revenge set in the disappeared world of 1950s New York.
Sarah will be reading from her new book The Cosmopolitans. See schedule below.
Tuesday, April 5th 7PM with Lucy Jane Bledsoe Laurel Book Store
1423 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94612
510-452-9232 Wednesday, April 6th 7:30 PM Green Apple Books on the Park
1231 9th Avenue
SF CA 94122
(415) 742-5833
Thursday, April 7 - 4:30 pm with Terry Castle The Poetry Center
HUM 512
San Francisco State University
Plus a little poetry in honor of National Poetry Month.
Eclectic events for the Bay Area feminist: Eclectic events for the Bay Area feminist April 6, 3:10 Pm
Japanese Film from 1948: A Hen in the Wind
UC Berkeley Art Focus
2155 Center St
Berkeley, CA
BAMPFA.org or 510-642-0808
April 7, 7 PM
Shobha Rao discusses her new book, An Unrestored Woman Revolution Books
2444 Durant
Berkeley, CA
510-848-1196
Poet Nancy Morejon will be performing at the following events: Friday, April 8, 7 PM, Reception at Pinata Art Gallery, 4268 Mission, SF Saturday, April 9, 3 PM, Poetry and Jazz Extravaganza, St John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, 1661 15th St, SF Sunday, April 10, 3 PM, Richmond Public Library, 325 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond, CA
Lisa Dettmer talks to feminist film scholar Professor Hilary Radner, author of "Neo-Feminist Cinema; Girly Films, Chick Flicks and Consumer Culture" and co-editor of "Feminism at the Movies, Understanding Gender in Contemporary Popular Cinema " about the rise of what she calls the neo feminist film. Beginning with the release of "Pretty Woman" in 1990 Radner argues a new trope developed reflecting the rise of consumerism and the cultivation of the body and exploited the idea of how to be a woman for the purpose of supporting neoliberal consumer industry. Radner argues these films present a belief that control and ownership of a woman's body is accomplished through the right acquisition and that her value was her appearance, all the while evoking choice and individual agency as the defining tenet of feminine identity and liberal feminism.
Jeannine Etter interviews Community Activist, Black Lives Matter member and National Poetry Slam champion Theo EJ Wilson, on his viral video "In Defense of Black Women" where Mr. Wilson challenges the toxic narrative that Black women are the sole cause of the destruction of the Black Family.
About Theo E. J. Wilson , also known by his poet handle, “Lucifury,” is a modern Renaissance Man. His natural knack for artistic expression had him dabbling in, and even mastering almost every art form he put his hands to. Battling manic depression from and early age, this knack would save his life, and shape an award-winning career as a spoken word artist, pianist, actor, singer, rapper, dancer, and activist. Theo is a founding member of the Denver Slam Nuba team, who won the National Poetry Slam in 2011.
India’s Daughter, a new documentary of the 2012 brutal gang rape of a 23-year old woman on a Dehli bus who died from the injuries caused from the assault. The film sparked massive debate—India banned it and many feminists critique the work. Padmalatha Ravi, Indian film maker and journalist, discusses her response within the context of India’s feminist movement.
Presumed Incompetent is a pathbreaking account of the intersecting roles of race, gender, and class in the working lives of women faculty of color. Through personal narratives and qualitative empirical studies, more than 40 authors expose the daunting challenges faced by academic women of color as they navigate the often hostile terrain of higher education, including hiring, promotion, tenure, and relations with students, colleagues, and administrators. The narratives are filled with wit, wisdom, and concrete recommendations, and provide a window into the struggles of professional women in a racially stratified but increasingly multicultural America.
Dr. Clay's book:
From youth violence, to the impact of high stakes educational testing, to editorial hand wringing over the moral failures of hip-hop culture, young people of color are often portrayed as gang affiliated, “troubled,” and ultimately, dangerous. The Hip-Hop Generation Fights Back examines how youth activism has emerged to address the persistent inequalities that affect urban youth of color. Andreana Clay provides a detailed account of the strategies that youth activists use to frame their social justice agendas and organize in their local communities.
Also on today's show:
Community Shuts Down Valencia St. in Front of SFPD Mission Station; Puts Police on Trial to mark one year anniversary of the SF police murder of Alex Nieto. For more information go to http://justice4alexnieto.org/
Calendar of Events:
Blackademics by Idris Goodwin will open April 9-May 2 at The Thick House in San Francisco. Produced by Crowded Fire Theatre. For tickets and info click http://www.crowdedfire.org/2015-blackademics/.
A new study, Double Jeopardy released from the Center for WorkLife Law at UC Hastings combines in-depth interviews of 60 women of color in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) with a survey of 557 women in STEM (both women of color and white women), and finds pervasive gender bias.
The report introduces a new approach to organizational change to interrupt gender bias, called Metrics-Based Bias Interrupters, developed by Professor Williams last year.
Bias Interrupters uses a four-step iterative process: 1) survey women to find out whether they think gender bias is playing out in basic business systems (recruiting, assignments, evaluations, etc.); 2) develop objective metrics to test whether women’s perceptions are accurate; 3) implement “Bias Interrupters” to interrupt bias in real time; 4) see whether the relevant metric improves and, if it doesn’t, strengthen or modify the intervention.
Warning: The following program contains frightening and disturbing dialogue.
Revolution 60
Brianna Wu is one of many women who have been viciously harassed and threatened by men who believe women have no right to be video game developers or commentators. Wu's experiences are part of the inspiration for a recent episode of Law & Order SVU. Wu talks about her experiences and what we need to do to change tech culture.
The introduction of the I-phone Wu says created an explosion of women gamers. There has been disgust and contempt toward women gamers from the beginning. "It's a systematic problem where women do not have a seat at the table. [the gaming industry] crushes women every step of the way. Men in this field have to learn to start listening."
Wu has described herself as, “barely a feminist” when she started the company in 2010. She wanted to create games with strong female characters, but believed it was best to “just do a good job and don’t make a big deal out of it.”
Working in the game industry, Wu found herself frequently frustrated by what she described as the “boys club” mentality in games, which was much worse than any of the other industries she’d worked in. This was reflected in the tone of their first game Revolution 60, which featured an all-female cast of special operatives, in a game many describe as having strong feminist overtones. Revolution 60 shipped in July of 2014 to critically acclaimed reviews from Macworld, Kotaku, Gamebreaker, 148Apps, and others. A sequel is currently in the works.
Five months ago Wu started receiving death threats through Twitter and email. She has received 46 death threats in that time. She describes in detail the devastating effect this is having on her life and business. Unlike the story portrayed on Law and Order, Wu has received very little response from law enforcement for these destructive threats.
As we all mourn the immortal Maya Angelou, we also pay tribute to some lesser known feminist sheroes: African American feminist historian Stephanie Camp, who died in April at age 46, and psychologist Sandra Bem, whose work helped put an end to sex-segregated employment advertising and open up more careers to women.
We speak with science fiction author and blogger Kameron Hurley, author of three books: God's War, Rapture and Infidel. Kameron studied history and talks about how she became a science fiction writer described as "somewhat on the feminist side" and that it's okay to be female, powerful and strong. Kameron became a science fiction writer in an effort to build different societies with different mores than what exists. She talks about censorship and bullying in the science fiction and fantasy writers community. Also, what it is like to be a conscientious science fiction writer in a racist, sexist society and how she confronts those voices in herself and her own writings.
Women's Magazine speaks to Sara Lazar of Commondreams.org about Chelsea Manning's plans to transition and the military's response: "we don't do that..."
It's long been said that there were no women invited to speak at the March on Washington. One woman was invited, however: Myrlie Evers, widow of Medger Evers. When Ms. Evers could not attend, Daisy Bates, a leader in the Arkansas NAACP and of the Little Rock school desegregation, was asked to speak instead. Ms. Bates spoke briefly during a "Tribute to Women," as part of which A. Philip Randolph read a poem while women leaders sat on the podium.
Ella Baker
Dorothy Height and other prominent women in the civil rights movement wanted a woman among the nine main speakers at the event, and this is what the male leadership refused.
We listen to interviews with Ms. Height, part of Ms. Bates' speech, and an interview with Barbara Ransby, author of Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision.
California prisoners have been on hunger strike for seven weeks to end solitary confinement. To find out how to pressure Governor Brown check out www.prisonhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com
Click here to listen to August 26 KPFA Women's Magazine.
