Inflection Point with Lauren Schiller

Today, we hear from Emily Ladau, a disability rights activist, about how to break down barriers. Emily Ladau has Larsen syndrome, a rare genetic joint and muscle disorder. She is on a mission to make progress for disability rights by sharing her own story and helping others do the same on their own terms. She's won a number of awards for her activism, and her first book is Demystifying Disability:What to Know, What to Say, and How to Be an Ally. This is episode 5 from a special segment for Women's History Month about how we can build a more feminist future....and take care of ourselves and each other when the work is daunting. Find more trailblazers in our new book, It's a Good Day to Change the World.

This episode we hear from Senator Sarah McBride about how to advance equality. Senator McBride became the highest-ranking openly trans official in the country in 2020 when she was elected to the Delaware state senate. But this wasn't the first time she made history. In 2009, McBride was a junior at American University when she used her social media platform to come out as a trans woman. She says coming out was the most difficult thing she'd ever done and realized she wanted to play a larger role in creating an accepting world for more trans people. So, while still in college, she led the way in advocating for the adoption of Delaware's first gender identity non-discrimination bill. This is episode 4 from a special segment for Women's History Month about how we can build a more feminist future....and take care of ourselves and each other when the work is daunting. Find more trailblazers in our new book, It's a Good Day to Change the World.

Today, we hear from Gloria Steinem about how to start a revolution. Through her speeches, books, documentary films, and the feminist organizations she's founded, Gloria advocates for reproductive choice and ending violence against women and children. She cofounded the Ms. Foundation for Women, and the Women's Media Center,among others. She was one of the founders of New York magazine and in 1972 she launched Ms., the first feminist magazine with national distribution. This is episode 3 from a special segment for Women's History Month about how we can build a more feminist future....and take care of ourselves and each other when the work is daunting. Find more trailblazers in our new book, It's a Good Day to Change the World.

Today, we hear from Caroline Paul about the importance of being brave. Caroline should know…She's climbed the Golden Gate Bridge, gotten into Guinness World Records for crawling and trained for the Olympic luge team. In 1989, Caroline was one of the first female firefighters in San Francisco—1 of 15 women out of a crew of 1,500. For thirteen years, every day on the job was an adventure. She published a memoir about her experience, and later wrote The Gutsy Girl and You Are Mighty, a practical guide for young activists. This is episode 2 from a special segment for Women's History Month about how we can build a more feminist future....and take care of ourselves and each other when the work is daunting. Find more trailblazers in our new book, It's a Good Day to Change the World.

Isha Clarke is a founding member of Youth vs. Apocalypse, an activist organization that organized the first-ever youth climate strike in San Francisco. Isha has been fighting for climate justice since junior high school. That's when they spoke out against a coal terminal slated to be built in their hometown of Oakland, CA. A few years later they confronted senator Dianne Feinstein about the Green New Deal in a video that went viral. Isha believes we all have the power to reverse the climate crisis. This is episode 1 from a special segment for Women's History Month about how we can build a more feminist future....and take care of ourselves and each other when the work is daunting. Find more trailblazers in our new book, It's a Good Day to Change the World.

Great news! We have a new book coming out based on Inflection Point interviews, called It's a Good Day to Change the World! To give you a peek inside every Tuesday, throughout Women's History Month, we're bringing you a special short segment we produced with KALW San Francisco about how we can build a more feminist future–and take care of ourselves and each other along the way. You'll hear inspiring firsthand stories and get practical tools from trailblazers for how to create an equal, just and joyful world. First episode airs on February 28th. Lauren Schiller and co-author Hadley Dynak will be at bookstores around the Bay Area and in Park City, NYC and Milwaukee throughout March. Learn more, find an event near you, and get the book at itsagooddaybook.com. Thank you to our Bay Area launch sponsors: Donkey & Goat Winery - A woman made winery and Berkeley, CA's first natural winery Hello!Lucky Almanac Beer Slanted Door

On Inflection Point, we’ve documented the changes for women between two major milestones here in the US: From right before we thought we’d see our first woman President with Hillary Clinton, to today, when we might see our first VP woman of color, with Kamala Harris. Inflection Point is one of the only nationally syndicated radio shows and one of the first podcasts ever dedicated exclusively to featuring conversations with women about how we build power, what we do with it when we have it, and what still stands in our way. This August, we’re making a change too. Listen to find out more or go to our website for the transcript. Watch the video with photos! In Love and Action, Lauren

What makes a boy a “boy” and a girl a “girl”? And why from the womb are we so obsessed with gender and why just by virtue of being male or female society expects us to behave or dress certain ways, or use certain bathrooms? Or fit into other so-called norms. That’s a lot of pressure on a kid, especially if your biological identity--the sex you were assigned at birth--differs from your gender identity or gender expression. Today, as part of the Inflection Point summer swap series you’ll hear from Donna Cleveland, the host of a new podcast called Thread the Needle that explores the meeting place between feminist ideals and the realities of women’s lives. In this episode, Donna looks into the suicide of a 14-year-old trans boy from her own small hometown and asks the question—What does our society need to understand about gender and how it influences our sense of self in order to better support our trans community, friends and family? Before you listen, Donna wants to make sure you know that this story includes discussion of suicide and other self-harming behavior.

An awkward conversation with her white mother about “good white people” inspired Ijeoma Oluo to take on the unenviable task of writing one of the most user-friendly books on race of our time: “So You Want To Talk About Race.” In plain language, Ijeoma has confronted deeply uncomfortable questions surrounding racial injustice from the school-to-prison pipeline to the Black Lives Matter movement to white feminism and intersectionality. In our conversation recorded in 2018, Ijeoma wakes me up to the fact that solidarity between all women cannot happen until white cis women hold themselves accountable to the ways they have benefitted from systems of oppression. Most importantly, Ijeoma offers practical, everyday actions that you can do today to help dismantle the system of racism.

Is the body positivity movement a good thing or a bad thing in the quest for equality? Ruth Whippman joins Lauren to uncover the debate. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Women who run countries have been getting a lot of claps on the back for their leadership during this Pandemic--not only their inclusive, unifying approach but the results--lower infection rates, higher protections for health workers, better tech, greater commitment to the greater good. I have especially loved reading about the leader of New Zealand, Jacinta Ardern and her calm, decisive, empathetic “team New Zealand” approach. An approach literally a world away from what we’re seeing in Washington DC. In a recent episode of The Broad Experience, a podcast about women, the workplace and success, host Ashley Milne-Tyte explores how today’s successful women leaders like Jacinta Ardern can make a more permanent change for how we view women in leadership. As part of the Inflection Point summer swap series, here’s that The Broad Experience episode.

Welcome to the Inflection Point Summer Swap Series, where we share other great female-led podcasts. This week features an episode of Brave Not Perfect with author, Ted speaker, Girls Who Code founder, and podcast host (and a previous guest of mine) Reshma Saujani. Reshma sits down with one of her personal heroes, Cecile Richards, for a compelling conversation about women's political power in this episode of Brave, Not Perfect. Cecile opens up about the bravery of stepping down as head of Planned Parenthood, co-founding Supermajority to empower women, and making lasting change in a system that was set up to keep women out. The pair also discuss the power women have in the upcoming 2020 elections, finding joy through changing the world, and self-care. Plus, Reshma answers the questions you've been sending in at the end of her show. You can tell Reshma your Brave, Not Perfect story or ask her a question by calling 347-76-BRAVE or sending an email to bravenotperfect@girlswhocode.com. Plus, you can follow her on twitter and instagram @ReshmaSaujani or join the Brave, Not Perfect Facebook group: https://bit.ly/2t5p41l Supermajority: https://supermajority.com/ Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to Lead (book): https://bit.ly/34esaOx Follow Cecile on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CecileRichards Follow Cecile on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2XaDslr

Could the Covid-19 pandemic be the inflection point that marks the end of the gendered division of labor at home? Now that we are all tethered to our homes, you may be doing more laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning (did I say dishes?), nose wiping, bottom wiping and emotionally tending to your kids and teens. So it seems super timely for us to talk to the woman who has emerged as a leader in the movement to end the gendered division of labor at home and how to divvy up that labor as equitably as possible. Eve Rodsky has spent almost a decade surveying women and men about who does what at home to understand how and why we divide up labor along gender lines--and how to shift it--she’s talked with Economists, Psychologists, Historians, Neurologists and more. And she wrote a book that details exactly how to divide and conquer with your partner, the unending duties at home. It’s called "Fair Play: A Game-Changing Solution For When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live)". If you’ve been listening to Inflection Point, you may have also caught my conversation with Eve at INFORUM last year. I wanted to hear how her system is working in the Covid-19 world. We spoke live (on Zoom, of course) for The Battery in San Francisco about how to make changes that are a win for everyone in your home and in society.

I think we can all agree, it’s been a rough spring with COVID-19 taking over our lives. You may know someone who’s sick, or who’s lost a loved one or their livelihood, or any number of awful things. But as this all goes down, we don’t always know what to say, or do, for someone who’s hurting, let alone asking for the help we might need ourselves. My guest Kelsey Crowe wrote a book, “There is No Good Card For This. What to Say and Do When Life is Scary, Awful, and Unfair to the People You Love” and founded a whole community called Help Each Other Out, to help us help each other. We spoke in 2017 and I thought we could all use a bit of what she calls “whiskey for the wounded.” Support our production with a monthly or one-time contribution! And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Marathon Swimming Hall of Famer Kim Chambers is only the sixth person ever to complete the Ocean’s Seven challenge... solo. That's seven open water channel swims. Think summiting Mount Everest in a bathing suit x 7... hours upon hours upon hours of swimming in critter-filled, often quite cold water. Kim is also the first and only woman in the world to solo swim the 30 miles of shark inhabited waters from the Farallon islands to the golden gate of San Francisco. We spoke at the kickoff of Women’s History Month at The Battery in San Francisco (right before everything shut down!) about taking risks, jellyfish and body image--as well as how important having a team who believes in you is for "individual" success. Support the production of Inflection Point with a monthly or one-time donation. Thank you!

In this Toolkit, learn how you can change systems that create climate change.

Meet the woman who helped develop The Green New Deal--and how you can make a difference in the climate crisis. Rhiana Gunn-Wright is the former policy director for New Consensus and Abdul El-Sayed’s 2018 Michigan gubernatorial campaign. She warns that without a shift in our policies and systems, we could become a nation of "fortresses" and "sacrifice zones". We’ll hear where she came from and how can the way she thinks about solving problems, can solve the biggest crisis of our time. A 2013 Rhodes Scholar, Gunn-Wright has also worked as the policy analyst for the Detroit Health Department, was a Mariam K. Chamberlain Fellow of Women and Public Policy at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, and served on the policy team for former First Lady Michelle Obama. She graduated magna cum laude from Yale in 2011 with majors in African American studies and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Learn what you can do right now to make a difference on climate and energy. Heather was the first African-American, first female and youngest mayor of Greenville, MS and is now field director for Moms Clean Air Force. Special thanks to our friends at Bioneers, producers of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature podcast, for production assistance. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Meet Heather McTeer Toney, the National Field Director at Moms Clean Air Force, which fights for climate safety to protect our children's health. She shares how her two terms as the first African-American, first female and youngest mayor of Greenville, MS helps her be an even more effective activist, and what one thing motivates people to make big changes. Special thanks to our friends at Bioneers, producers of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature podcast, for production assistance. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Isha Clark is a high school senior and a youth organizer with Youth vs. Apocalypse, a Bay Area youth climate justice organization. In this toolkit we learn three actions we can take right now to reverse the climate crisis and... how to put pressure on a power holder. Special thanks to our friends at Bioneers, producers of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature podcast, for production assistance. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Isha Clarke is an activist with Youth vs Apocalypse. You may know her from a viral video where she asked California Senator Dianne Feinstein to move the Green New Deal forward; she helped organize the youth Climate Strike in San Francisco that attracted 30,000 students, during the international "week of action" when Greta Thurnberg sailed to America. She is a high school student working every day to reverse the climate crisis because as she says..." we have this power and responsibility to make this radical change. And I hope that everyone listening will get involved and know that they have the power to do something." Special thanks to our friends at Bioneers, producers of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature podcast, for production assistance. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

In this episode we’ll hear how Amber Tamblyn went from being an actress to being an activist--defining her own role in the feminist movement--and how we can all play a role in leading change.  Amber's  book is called "Era of Ignition: Coming of Age in a Time of Rage and Revolution." It's part memoir, part manifesto, part call to action. We sat down together in San Francisco while she was in town as part of the release of her book in paperback. Back in 2017, Amber wrote an OpEd for the NYTimes, called "I'm Done With Not Being Believed" in which she tells what happened when a well-known actor almost as old as her dad tried to pick her up when she was 16, and then called her a liar when she outed him on Twitter. This was before the Weinstein revelations, before the #MeToo movement caught fire and before Times Up, which Amber went on to co-found. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

Seane Corn helps people who are committed to social change understand that to dismantle the systems that create oppression, you've got to dismantle the systems that exist within yourself. This world-renowned yoga instructor, activist and author of "Revolution of the Soul" shares how to dismantle those systems and learn where we can each be most of service for a better world. Support our production with a monthly or one-time donation. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions.

A’shanti Gholar is the founder of the Brown Girl's Guide to Politics and the national political director for Emerge America--a national organization devoted to getting more Democratic women into office. You'll hear how A’shanti went from watching CSPAN as a kid, with her mom, to working for President Barack Obama, the DNC and the NAACP before joining Emerge America. And she'll share what it's going to take to get more women of color elected to office. Support our production with a tax deductible donation at inflectionpointradio.org/contribute.

A new scientific study shows that men are funnier than women. In this Feminist Detective segment, special guest, author and journalist, Ruth Whippman and Lauren get to the bottom of this finding and seize the means of humor production!

Jane Fonda. Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Nancy Pelosi. Elizabeth Warren. Maxine Waters. Are "older" women taking over? By 2034 there will be more people 65 and older than there are people under 18. And by and large, women are outliving men. So what might all these older women mean in terms of a possible power shift, historically speaking? Listen to my conversation with Gail Collins, New York Times columnist and the author of the new book, “No Stopping Us Now. The Adventures of Older Women in American History” We explore how attitudes toward older women have shifted in America over the centuries – from the Plymouth Colony view that women were marriageable if "civil and under fifty years of age," to quiet dismissal of post-reproductive females, to women’s role as perpetual caretaker (even when she might need caretaking herself), to the first female nominee for president. Lauren spoke with Gail on stage for the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco in October of 2019. Support our production with a tax deductible contribution at inflectionpointradio.org/contribute. Thank you!

Dan Pfeiffer, co-host of Pod Save America, former Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama and author of the book, "Yes We (Still) Can: Politics in the Age of Obama, Twitter and Trump", shares how he got into politics and what it's going to take to get America out of the political plight we find ourselves in today. This conversation was recorded on stage, presented by Cal Performances at UC Berkeley. Support our production with a tax deductible one time or monthly contribution. Thank you!

When Eve Rodsky found herself sobbing on the side of the road over a text from her husband about blueberries, she knew something had to change. Hence began her seven year quest to create a more equitable division of labor at home. Her book is called "Fair Play. A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live)" and her solutions are based on extensive research with experts, from sociologists to neuroscientists to behavioral economists and conversations with couples all over the country. Hear how you can develop a more efficient household, with less nagging using Eve’s system of cards. Support Inflection Point with a tax deductible contribution.

Journalist and author Ruth Whippman joins me to seek out sexism in all its tiny guises so we can make big changes. This week we dig into why women are dinged for apologizing too much. This segment premiere is presented ad-free. Support Inflection Point with a tax deductible contribution.

Tiffany Shlain is the author of "24/6. The Power of Unplugging One Day a Week". She is also the founder of the Webbys, Character Day and the creator of a number of films. In today's episode Tiffany brings it all together. You'll hear how taking time off from technology and taking time to reflect helps fuel your creativity and activism. Support our production with a tax-deductible contribution at inflectionpointradio.org/contribute

Introducing a NEW Inflection Point segment called “Feminist Detective” in which journalist and author Ruth Whippman joins me to seek out sexism in all its tiny guises so we can make big changes. This week we dig up the original crowdfunding page of the mega-hit show Fleabag from back in 2013, and discuss how the tone of it shows us the crazy lengths women have had to go to reassure and placate men that equality is not threatening. This segment premiere is presented ad-free. Support Inflection Point with a tax deductible contribution at bit.ly/inflectionpoint and help fund production of more of them!

Candace Bushnell gave us a reason to sit on our couch every week to soak in the stories of the women--and men--of the 90s television culture-changer "Sex and the City". Candace has written a number of books since then and her newest book is called "Is There Still Sex in the City?" This October I teamed up with Women Lit of the Bay Area Book Festival to have an on-stage conversation with Candace Bushnell, hosted by INFORUM at The Commonwealth Club of San Francisco. Bushnell kicked off the evening with an update about what she’s been up to lately, and then we got to sit down and talk--friendships, love, loss and dating over 50. Support the Inflection Point Campaign for Action with a tax-deductible donation: bit.ly/inflectionpoint

Jessica Reaves, the Editorial Director at the Center on Extremism at the Anti-Defamation League shares tools for parents, educators and law enforcement and HR professionals on how to identify and respond to misogyny. Support our production and help us meet our crowdfunding goal with a tax deductible donation at bit.ly/inflectionpoint

We're hearing more from and about American extremist groups lately, like white supremacists and Incels. One thing their members have in common is misogyny. Today's guest is Jessica Reaves, the Editorial Director at the Center on Extremism at the Anti-Defamation League. She and her team monitor extremists across the ideological spectrum. In today's episode you'll hear what she's learned about these groups, why she thinks misogyny should be treated as another form of extremism, and how we can put a stop to it. Be sure to check out Jessica’s Toolkit in the feed on ending misogyny. Support our production with a tax deductible contribution to our crowdfunding goal! bit.ly/inflectionpoint

In this toolkit we learn how personal change can lead to positive societal change. Featured guest: Stephanie Lepp, the creator and host of Reckonings. If you find this toolkit helpful, be sure to listen to our full conversation, in the Inflection Point podcast feed right now.

Stephanie Lepp is the creator and host of a podcast about how people change their hearts and minds-- it’s about people who decided on their own to completely change their world views. It’s about people who took a look in the mirror, and realized they did not like what they saw. How do you do that? Her show is called Reckonings...and it sure feels like our society could use a reckoning right about now. But do things need to change on an individual level first? I invited Stephanie to share what she’s learned about how personal change can lead to positive societal change.

Former Chief of Staff for EMILY's List, Kate Black, just published her first book, written with the actress June Diane Raphael. It’s called “Represent The Woman's Guide to Running for Office and Changing the World.” She shares the attributes of successful candidates, the stories of women who rose to office against all odds, and how to respond when you hear someone say this country isn’t ready for a woman president. Plus, how to determine if you have the time to get out there and run. Check out the companion "Toolkit" episode in the feed right now. Support the Inflection Point Campaign for Action. Donate today: bit.ly/inflectionpoint

Hear what Kate Black, co-author of “Represent The Woman's Guide to Running for Office and Changing the World” says are the most important things you need to know before you run for office, what you must know when you run and how to support someone who is, all right here in a tidy little package. And check out our in-depth conversation in the podcast feed right now. She shares what attributes a successful candidate has, the stories of several women who rose to office against all odds, and how to respond when you hear someone say this country isn’t ready for a woman president. Support the Inflection Point Campaign for Action. Donate today: bit.ly/inflectionpoint

Meet the women taking charge and leading change on issues like putting more women in office, voting rights, reproductive rights, white supremacy and misogyny, and the climate crisis. And look for our shorter form “toolkit” episodes that break down the issues and offer targeted ways to make a difference. Join our Campaign for Action at bit.ly/inflectionpoint

I’m excited to share that a friend of the podcast, Sophia Bush, is launching her own show called “Work in Progress”. On the podcast, you’ll hear frank, funny, personal, professional, and sometimes even political conversations with people who inspire Sophia about how they’ve gotten to where they are, and where they think they’re still going. She's talked to people like Gloria Steinem, Chelsea Handler, Karamo Brown, Jay Shetty, Katie Couric, Whitney Cummings, Jon Favreau, Sen. Gillibrand, Lisa Ling and many more!  It's refreshing to hear that even some of the most successful people out there still feel like a work in progress, and it's interesting to hear what they are still working on within themselves. Sophia's conversations are thoughtful, dynamic, important, and not only will listeners learn more about the guest, but they'll also learn more about Sophia. So here's a clip of Sophia Bush and Chelsea Handler talking about Chelsea's book - "Life Will Be The Death of Me". And...if you like what you hear, go head over to Work In Progress, and subscribe.

The next generation of working mothers is not going to accept the status quo. Unpaid labor, the mental load, and harsh self-judgment could be a thing of the past. But only if we stop feeling guilty and start getting angry, says Katherine Goldstein, creator and host of The Double Shift podcast. We debated these issues and more with Hana Baba, of The Stoop podcast and KALW in this live audience taping from the Betabrand Podcast Theatre on the Bay Area Stop of the Fuck Mom Guilt World Tour. Plus! Lauren shares her 9/11 story. Support the production of Inflection Point with a monthly or one-time contribution! And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions. Subscribe to “Inflection Point” to get more stories of how women rise up right in your feed.

In the first half of 2019, State legislatures across the South, Midwest and the Plains enacted 58 abortion restrictions, 26 of which would ban some, most or all abortions--even before most people know they’re pregnant. On the brighter side, 93 new laws that expand reproductive healthcare were enacted, including 29 that expanded access to abortion, including NY, Vermont, Maine and Nevada. In the midst of this maelstrom, in June, 2019 I attended a panel put on The Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health--about the threats against Roe v. Wade and what it means for patients. I found the speakers and the content really helpful in wrapping my arms around the state of affairs and wanted to share it with you---so the Bixby Center gave me permission to do just that. The speakers you will hear include Stephanie Toti (who successfully argued Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt in front of the Supreme Court) and now runs the Lawyering Project whose mission is to strengthen protections for reproductive rights under U.S. law and promote reproductive justice), Erin Grant (of the Abortion Care Network, an organization that supports independent abortion providers) and Renee Bracey Sherman (of the National Network of Abortion Funds which works to remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access). This panel discussion, “meeting the needs of patients post-Roe v. Wade”  was moderated by Dan Grossman a professor at UC San Francisco and the director of their research program Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health, which you will hear referred to as ANSIRH. The Bixby Center is part of University of California San Francisco, and they research, train and advocate to advance reproductive health policy and practice worldwide through an evidence-based approach. For those of us who use birth control, let’s give them a shout out. Their researchers have played a part in testing every contraceptive method currently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. Links to the resources and information shared in the panel and more on this topic, at my website, inflectionpointradio.org. Support the production of Inflection Point with a monthly or one-time contribution! And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions. Subscribe to “Inflection Point” to get more stories of how women rise up right in your feed.

This is a special re-airing in recognition of the 5th anniversary of the Ferguson, MO protests. When Michael Brown was shot by a police officer in Ferguson, MO in August, 2014 and the protests began, Sabaah Folayan felt the media’s coverage was overly focused on the looting, rioting and property damage, and not nearly enough on the stories of the people who rose up. So she dropped everything and went to Ferguson to see for herself what was happening on the ground and to talk with the people who live there. The result is her documentary film “Whose Streets?” She shares what it was like to be there and how she made her film in such extraordinary circumstances. We spoke in 2017 when "Whose Streets?" first debuted.

On the podcast “Reckonings” host Stephanie Lepp posed the questions: “what does it sound like for a survivor of sexual assault to get her needs met?” “What does it sound like for a perpetrator to take responsibility for his sexual abuse of power?” To answer these questions, Stephanie spoke with a sexual abuse survivor and her perpetrator, who managed to work through it using restorative justice. It's an amazing story, and as part of the Inflection Point summer swap series, here is that Reckonings episode, right here in your feed. For more Reckonings episodes, go to http://www.reckonings.show/episodes/21. And for more on this topic, listen to my conversation with Eve Ensler, activist, author and Tony award winning playwright, about her new book The Apology, in which Eve imagines her father (who has been dead for 31 years) writing a confessional letter to her, seeking forgiveness for sexually and physically abusing her from the time she was 5 years old. Eve hopes that other survivors will find it a release to write apologies as their perpetrators to themselves. And she hopes that the men who recognize themselves in this book will be inspired on their own to begin to come forward in life...'In writing this apology, I moved him from monster to apologist…and in doing that, he lost power over me.' **Thank you to our sponsors! ** NATIVE Deodorant: 20% off your first purchase. Go to nativedeodorant.com and use promo code INFLECTION during checkout. Spotlyte: Spotlyte is your destination for curated, expert content helping you discover how beauty, skincare, and medical aesthetic treatments may fit into your routine. YOU! Become a supporter today—it’s tax deductible and you can help us make our next season of episodes. Support here.

Welcome to a summer season episode swap featuring Katherine Goldstein of The Double Shift podcast. Earlier in the season, I shared my conversation with Katie Bethell, the founder of Paid Leave for the US--or PLUS, an advocacy group working to win paid leave for everyone--whether you need to care for yourself or others. While Katie and I were talking, another podcast that I follow, hosted by Katherine Goldstein, called “The Double Shift” about working mothers...also did a story--with a woman who decided that the paid leave policy at her workplace was good....but not good enough. I want you to hear what happened when she took matters into her own hands, and how the management team at the New York Times, where she worked, responded. But wait, there’s more! You’re invited to a live taping with me and Katherine Goldstein of The Double Shift when we appear together live in San Francisco August 15th as part of her “F*ck Mom-Guilt.... World Tour”. She will also be in Oakland, August 14th. Click here for tickets! Support the next season of Inflection Point with a tax deductible contribution, click here! *Thank you to our sponsors! * NATIVE Deodorant: 20% off your first purchase. Go to nativedeodorant.com and use promo code INFLECTION during checkout. Spotlyte: Spotlyte is your destination for curated, expert content helping you discover how beauty, skincare, and medical aesthetic treatments may fit into your routine.

I am so glad you’re catching our current season about “radicals”-- Radical actions, radical system change and the people who are making it happen right now: In the workplace--if you’re still catching up, check out my conversations with Katie Bethel of Paid Leave for the US & Morgan Mercer who is using Virtual Reality to end sexual harassment... Or if government policy is your thing—you’ll love hearing from the team experimenting with Basic Income in Stockton, CA...and don’t miss Shannon Watts the founder of Moms Demand Action whose gun sense movement used the power of moms to go from from Facebook Page to front page news... And don’t miss my live conversations with activists—Gloria Steinem, and with Eve Ensler about the radically transformative power of apology. Plus hear from Jennifer Weiner, whose new book “Mrs Everything” asks who’s really making women’s choices? Are we--or our system?” All that is in the feed right now! Coming up I have a couple of special summer-swap episodes from podcasters I admire who have covered topics that tie in with what I cover here on Inflection Point. They’ll appear in your feed on the same schedule as always--every other Wednesday morning! I have 3 things to ask of you to keep us all rising up: 1) Thinking about women rising up, social change and the quest for equality....What or who do you want to learn about in the next season? How can we help you be the change? Let me know on my contact page at inflectionpointradio.org. Second thing...We are an independent production out of KALW in San Francisco and PRX. That means that MOST of the funding for this show comes from you, my dear listeners. So I’m asking for your support right now to help me produce the next season of Inflection Point with as much as you can give--whether it’s $10 or $100 or $1000. Here’s how: just go to our support page and give what you can. As a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, your donation is now tax deductible and covers hard costs like studio time, transcripts and editing. If you are already contributing, thank you! If you have a donor-advised fund or employer match, we can accept those contributions too! Third... Not in a position to give money? I get that....Support the show with a review on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher or where ever you listen. And last but not least, for the readers out there...I have a whole page on my website featuring the books of people who have been on Inflection Point this season and all seasons past. If you are looking for a good read, you will find it at inflectionpointradio.org/books. With all that teed up for you, it’s time for me to take a wee break to reflect on everything we’ve heard so far, to work on the next season for you--and yes to try and relax for a minute in this crazy time we live in. As always, thanks for listening! This is Inflection Point and this is how women rise up. *Thank you to our sponsors! * NATIVE Deodorant: 20% off your first purchase. Go to nativedeodorant.com and use promo code INFLECTION during checkout. Spotlyte: Spotlyte is your destination for curated, expert content helping you discover how beauty, skincare, and medical aesthetic treatments may fit into your routine. YOU! Become a supporter today—it’s tax deductible and you can help us make our next season of episodes. Support here.

The times, they are a’changin’. This week on Inflection Point, I talk to author Jennifer Weiner about her newest bestselling book “Mrs. Everything”. The story is loosely based on Jennifer’s own mother, Fran, who got married, had 4 children and ultimately came out as a gay woman after Jennifer and her siblings were out of the house. Spanning two sisters’ lives from the 1950s to the night of the 2016 political election, the book raises questions about who is really making women’s choices about our own lives...are we? Or our system? How did we get where we are, and how do we move on from here? Jennifer shares the facts behind her fiction, what it takes to write a good sex scene, what hasn't changed since #metoo started, and  how the personal becomes political. We spoke at Women Lit, a program of the Bay Area Book Festival on June 22, 2019 in Berkeley, California. *Thank you to our sponsors! * EO Essential Oils NATIVE Deodorant: 20% off your first purchase. Go to nativedeodorant.com and use promo code INFLECTION during checkout. Spotlyte: Spotlyte is your destination for curated, expert content helping you discover how beauty, skincare, and medical aesthetic treatments may fit into your routine. YOU! Become a supporter today—it’s tax deductible and you can help us make our next season of episodes. Support here.

Meet Shannon Watts, the author of Fight Like a Mother, and the founder of Moms Demand Action, a group that uses research, data, and a little bit of “nap-tivism” to throw their weight and money behind political candidates who are willing to put better gun control laws into action. The kicker? They’re winning. In the last election, they outspent even the NRA. Join us this week for a look at why our kids are subjected to violent and traumatizing active shooter drills, and what it takes to pass sensible gun legislation. We talk about the root cause of gun violence, who takes the brunt of the violence when background checks get lax, “losing forward” and the very real and positive change that is starting to take place as we come up to the 2020 elections. Support the production of our next season! It’s tax deductible. Click to support here. And when you’re done, come on over to The Inflection Point Society, our Facebook group of everyday activists who seek to make extraordinary change through small, daily actions. Subscribe to “Inflection Point” to get more stories of how women rise up right in your feed. **Thank you to our sponsors! ** NATIVE Deodorant: 20% off your first purchase. Go to nativedeodorant.com and use promo code INFLECTION during checkout. Spotlyte: Spotlyte is your destination for curated, expert content helping you discover how beauty, skincare, and medical aesthetic treatments may fit into your routine. YOU! Become a supporter today—it’s tax deductible and you can help us make our next season of episodes. Support here.

This week on Inflection Point, I talk with Eve Ensler, award-winning playwright of The Vagina Monologues, about her new book “The Apology”, in which she writes in the voice of her father to apologize to herself--from him--for the years of sexual and physical abuse he perpetrated upon her. Stress warning: This episode contains conversation about sexual assault and violence. You will be blown away by Eve’s resilience, by her self-knowledge, by her strength of character, and by her deep well of compassion and empathy. Her ideas for political and social reform, as well as her profound insights into the human soul, make her a true radical, and radically empathetic. This week, we discuss the anatomy of a true apology, and the transformative power that apologies hold for the apologists themselves and their recipients. We discuss why punishment never leads to rehabilitation. We discuss the roots of abuse, and how we can start shifting the paradigm. A must-listen for anyone frustrated at the lack-luster apologies precipitated by the #MeToo movement. A must-listen for anyone infuriated by the Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford cases. A must-listen for anyone who needs to apologize for something. A must-listen for anyone who has ever needed an apology, but hasn’t yet gotten one. PS I also spoke with Eve in October of 2016, about a year before the #MeToo movement took off. Her words were prescient and I encourage you to listen to that conversation too. Just scroll down the feed. If this conversation is important to you, please support our independent production with a tax deductible donation. Inflection Point is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization.

America is one of only two countries in the world where you can be fired for taking a day off in order to give birth (let that sink in for a moment). As it stands, paid leave policy varies from company to company, state to state, but on a national level, there is no policy in place, no minimum requirements or baseline standard that applies to everyone. And it’s not just about moms—this lack of policy also has greater repercussions for how we define a family, in a political sense, and the relationship between the family and the workplace—men included. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Kirsten Gillibrand are both bringing attention to these issues, running on platforms of universal childcare, and paid medical and family leave. Katie Bethell, founder and executive director of Paid Leave for the US (PLUS), joins us this week to give us the alarming stats, talk nerdy government logistics, and offer some extremely practical advice on how we can use this particularly potent moment to push for political change. Join us this week on Inflection Point for a look at radical change in action, one decision at a time. We are independently produced and supported by listeners like you. Make a tax deductible donation to support our production today at inflectionpointradio.org/contribute. Thank you!

In 19th Century San Francisco's Chinatown only 1 in 10 people were women, and most of them were forced into prostitution, trafficked by criminal tongs. In today’s episode, meet the Scottish sewing instructor Donaldina Cameron and the women she collaborated with and helped escape from sex slavery between 1870 and 1930. This week, Julia Flynn Siler talks with Lauren about her new book “The White Devil’s Daughters: The Women Who Fought Slavery in San Francisco’s Chinatown”. Prepare yourself for bomb scares and bubonic plague quarantines, court cases and crowdfunding efforts. Join us in what is, ultimately, a conversation about standing up to a broken society, and how women can help women rise up. Recorded at the Bay Area Book Festival in May 2019 as part of their Women Lit programming.