POPULARITY
58 episodes with pen america
11 episodes with pen america
9 episodes with pen america
9 episodes with pen america
4 episodes with pen america
5 episodes with pen america
5 episodes with pen america
4 episodes with pen america
6 episodes with pen america
4 episodes with pen america
5 episodes with pen america
3 episodes with pen america
2 episodes with pen america
3 episodes with pen america
2 episodes with pen america
2 episodes with pen america
3 episodes with pen america
6 episodes with pen america
Today's topic centers around a book written by my guest, Dr. Margo Lowy. She has researched and written about maternal ambivalence, including how to understand it and why it remains a taboo subject. We will discuss destigmatizing uncomfortable feelings and normalize the understanding that motherhood is not “all or nothing.” We'll cover the darker emotions of anger, guilt, and resentment, and we'll refute the myth of “the perfect mother” and recognize that motherhood can be viewed in different ways. Join us to learn more! Dr. Margo Lowy is a psychotherapist specializing in mothering. She is the author of Maternal Ambivalence: The Loving Moments and Bitter Truths of Motherhood and her previous book, The Maternal Experience: Encounters with Ambivalence and Love. Dr. Lowy earned her doctorate from the University of South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and she has spoken on maternal ambivalence at universities and in media interviews worldwide. She is a columnist for Psychology Today, a member of PEN America, and a former advisor to the founder of the Australian Jewish Fertility Network (AJFN). As a mom of three adult children, she makes her home in NYC with her husband. Show Highlights: Understanding maternal ambivalence and ALL the associated emotions Motherhood, at its essence, involves complicated feelings. Unrealistic expectations of mothers In motherhood, we ONLY learn by making mistakes and repairing them. Mothering means we make mistakes and learn from them. Perfection is an impossible, rigid goal; we need humor and laughter in motherhood. Children seeing us encounter challenges and NOT being perfect Importance of discernment in social media messages Finding your team and community Emulating our mothers vs. finding our own mothering style When it's hard to give yourself a pat on the back Understanding the value of difficult emotions Indicators of maternal ambivalence An example of advocating for YOUR motherhood journey Dr. Lowy's practical advice to mothers Resources: Connect with Dr. Margo Lowy Website, Instagram Dr. Lowy's Books Maternal Ambivalence: The Loving Moments and Bitter Truths of Motherhood The Maternal Experience: Encounters with Ambivalence and Love Call the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at 1-833-TLC-MAMA or visitcdph.ca.gov. Please find resources in English and Spanish at Postpartum Support International, or by phone/text at 1-800-944-4773. There are many free resources, like online support groups, peer mentors, a specialist provider directory, and perinatal mental health training for therapists, physicians, nurses, doulas, and anyone who wants to be more supportive in offering services. You can also follow PSI on social media: Instagram, Facebook, and most other platforms. Visit www.postpartum.net/professionals/certificate-trainings/for information on the grief course. Visit my website, www.wellmindperinatal.com, for more information, resources, and courses you can take today! If you are a California resident seeking a therapist in perinatal mental health, please email me about openings for private pay clients Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In this episode of Read the Damn Book, host Michelle Glogovac sits down with Ken Miller, author of High Finance, to dive into the complex world of Wall Street, fiction writing, and social responsibility. They explore how Miller weaves together the interconnected lives of his characters while tackling themes of civil rights, free speech, and the moral cost of ambition. Ken also opens up about his transition from a career in finance to fiction, his creative process, and what's next in his writing journey. This thought-provoking conversation offers listeners an inside look at how personal experience and professional insight can shape powerful storytelling.What We're Talking About...Ken Miller's novel High Finance delivers a powerful and unique perspective on Wall Street and the people behind it.The book's interconnected characters mirror the real-life complexities of the financial world.Fiction writing became Ken's way of giving back to the literary community and exploring deeper human truths.Racism and social responsibility are central themes that Ken addresses with honesty and passion.Ken's friendship with Alan Alda underscores the value of empathy and human connection.The culture of Wall Street often prioritizes short-term gains over long-term consequences—a key moral tension in the story.Characters wrestle with ethical dilemmas tied to ambition, success, and personal integrity.The shoeshine man represents the overlooked voices that keep the financial system running.Ken's future projects promise to explore more complex social and political themes.Through his work with PEN America, Ken champions free speech and the importance of storytelling in protecting democracy.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Ken Miller and High Finance04:14 The Inspiration Behind Writing Fiction07:22 Exploring Truth in Fiction10:06 Ken's Philanthropic Efforts and Community Involvement13:02 The Culture of Wall Street16:18 Character Development and Themes in High Finance19:15 The Role of Supporting Characters22:08 The Cost of Financial Dreams25:07 Ken's Future Projects and Reflections on Writing28:06 Conclusion and Where to Find High Finance28:44 Empowerment and Importance of Individual Contributions28:45 Understanding High Finance and Its AccessibilityLinks MentionedKen Miller's Website: https://www.kenmillerbooks.com/
WELCOME, MAMAS, TO THE MAMA MOVEMENT PODCAST.In this conversation, Today Dr. Margot Lowy and myself delve into the often overlooked topic of maternal ambivalence, exploring the complex emotional landscape of motherhood.Dr. Lowy emphasizes the importance of acknowledging both the loving and bitter feelings that come with being a mother, advocating for open discussions about these emotions to foster genuine connections and understanding. The conversation also addresses common misconceptions about ambivalence, clarifying that it is not indifference but rather a rich tapestry of feelings that mothers experience.We cover the following:Maternal ambivalence encompasses all feelings of motherhood.Acknowledging dark feelings is crucial for genuine mothering.Societal expectations make it hard to discuss negative emotions.Finding a safe space to talk about feelings is essential.Ambivalence is often misunderstood as indifference.Mothers experience both love and bitterness simultaneously.Dark feelings can lead to personal transformation.It's important to embrace the full spectrum of emotions.Open discussions about motherhood can reduce shame.Maternal ambivalence is a common experience for all mothers.ABOUT MARGOT Margo Lowy, PhD, is a psychotherapist specializing in mothering. She is the author of MATERNAL AMBIVALENCE: The Loving Moments & Bitter Truths of Motherhood (Post Hill Press) and holds a doctorate from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, where she researched maternal ambivalence. Dr. Lowy is the author of a previous academic book, The Maternal Experience: Encounters with Ambivalence and Love, and has spoken about maternal ambivalence at universities and in media interviews worldwide. She is a columnist for Psychology Today, a member of PEN America, and a former advisor to the founder of the Australian Jewish Fertility Network (AJFN). She is mother to three children and is based with her husband in New York City.CONTACTSIG: https://www.instagram.com/drmargolowyWebsite: https://drmargolowy.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drmargolowy/Chapters00:00 Understanding Maternal Ambivalence04:57 The Misconceptions of Ambivalence06:01 Navigating the Emotional Landscape of Motherhood Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In POWER METAL, award-winning journalist Vince Beiser chronicles the destructive side effects that the global hunt for critical metals has on our clean energy transition, from environmental damage to political upheaval to murder. Vince Beiser is an award-winning journalist and author of “The World in a Grain: The Story of Sand and How It Transformed Civilization.” The book has been translated into five languages, was a finalist for a PEN America award and a California Book Award, and spawned a TEDx talk. Vince is currently at work on a new book, “Power Metal”, about how the materials we need for digital technology and renewable energy are causing environmental havoc, political upheaval, mayhem and murder—and how we can do better.Vince has reported from over 100 countries, states, provinces, kingdoms, occupied territories, no man's lands and disaster zones. He has exposed conditions in California's harshest prisons, trained with troops bound for Iraq, ridden with the first responders to natural disasters, and hunted down other stories from around the world for publications including Wired, The Atlantic, Harper's, Time, The Guardian, Mother Jones, Playboy, Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times.Vince's work has been honored by Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Society of Professional Journalists, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Columbia, Medill and Missouri Graduate Schools of Journalism, and many other institutions. He has three times been part of a team that won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence, and shared in an Emmy for his work with the PBS TV series SoCal Connected. He is also a grantee of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.https://vincebeiser.com/https://nexuspmg.com/
What if online harassment isn't random at all—but part of a strategy? In this explosive episode of The Healthier Tech Podcast, host R Blank talks with Viktorya Vilk, Director of Digital Safety and Free Expression at PEN America, about how governments, corporations, and tech platforms are turning the internet into a weapon against free speech. Viktorya reveals how political power, economic pressure, and digital surveillance now intersect to create an ecosystem where journalists, writers, and even librarians are targeted for speaking out. She breaks down how authoritarian tactics, media consolidation, and platform indifference have combined to make the online world hostile to truth—and what each of us can do to push back. In This Episode: How the U.S. dropped to 57th in global press freedom rankings—and why that's not an accident The chilling new playbook: online harassment as a censorship tool Why Big Tech's business model thrives on surveillance, fear, and silence How Facebook and Google siphoned 70% of online ad revenue, collapsing local journalism Real-life examples of reporters attacked, arrested, and digitally terrorized for telling the truth The practical digital safety steps every person can take—starting today Why Viktorya refuses to give in to “tech nihilism” and insists users have power Why You Should Listen This isn't just a podcast about harassment or privacy—it's about democracy, power, and your voice. Viktorya explains how the same digital forces that endanger journalists are eroding safety and free expression for everyone. But she also shares concrete tools to rebuild your sense of control online: from password hygiene and privacy audits to collective advocacy that pressures tech platforms to act responsibly. She makes one thing clear: silence is the goal of harassment—and awareness is the antidote. Connect With Viktorya Vilk: Website: https://pen.org Social Handles: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/viktorya-v-a65b9235/ X: @VilkViktorya Resources Mentioned in the Episode: Field Manual Against Online Harrassment: https://onlineharassmentfieldmanual.pen.org/ Online abuse & Digital Safety Programs: https://pen.org/online-abuse-digital-safety/ Treating online abuse like Spam: https://pen.org/report/treating-online-abuse-like-spam/ Shouting into the void: https://pen.org/report/shouting-into-the-void/ No Excuse for abuse: https://pen.org/report/no-excuse-for-abuse/ Connect with R Blank: For more Healthier Tech Podcast episodes, and to download our Healthier Tech Quick Start Guide, visit https://HealthierTech.co and follow https://instagram.com/healthiertech Additional Links: EMF Superstore: https://ShieldYourBody.com (save 15% with code “pod”) Digital Wellbeing with a Human Soul: https://Bagby.co (save 15% with code “pod”) Youtube: https://youtube.com/shieldyourbody Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bagbybrand/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bagby.co Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shieldyourbody This episode is brought to you by Shield Your Body—a global leader in EMF protection and digital wellness. Because real wellness means protecting your body, not just optimizing it. If you found this episode eye-opening, leave a review, share it with someone tech-curious, and don't forget to subscribe to Shield Your Body on YouTube for more insights on living healthier with technology.
In this episode of the Book Faire Podcast, Anthony discusses the alarming rise of book bans in the United States, highlighting a recent report by PEN America that reveals thousands of instances of censorship in schools. The conversation delves into the implications of banning books, particularly focusing on the controversial novel 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess, exploring its themes of violence, morality, and the importance of freedom to read. Anthony argues against censorship, emphasizing the need for equal access to literature and the dangers of government overreach in determining what can be read in schools.
In this episode of the Book Faire Podcast, Anthony discusses the alarming rise of book bans in the United States, highlighting a recent report by PEN America that reveals thousands of instances of censorship in schools. The conversation delves into the implications of banning books, particularly focusing on the controversial novel 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess, exploring its themes of violence, morality, and the importance of freedom to read. Anthony argues against censorship, emphasizing the need for equal access to literature and the dangers of government overreach in determining what can be read in schools.
According to a new report from PEN America, public schools across the U.S. saw more than 6,800 book bans in the 2024-25 school year. A new documentary, “The Librarians,” examines the experiences of school librarians who’ve found themselves on the front lines of a battle against censorship. Film director Kim Snyder and librarian Audrey Wilson-Youngblood join John Yang to discuss. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy
According to a new report from PEN America, public schools across the U.S. saw more than 6,800 book bans in the 2024-25 school year. A new documentary, “The Librarians,” examines the experiences of school librarians who’ve found themselves on the front lines of a battle against censorship. Film director Kim Snyder and librarian Audrey Wilson-Youngblood join John Yang to discuss. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy
Ali dives into his copy of Project 2025 to highlight why this government shutdown is unlike any other in American history; a live report from Tel Aviv hours after Hamas conditionally accepted parts of Trump's 20-point peace plan; PEN America president Jennifer Finney Boylan discusses the organization's new report warning of the ‘disturbing normalization' of book bans in American schools. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
We were delighted to have the chance to speak with Adam Szetela about his new book, That Book Is Dangerous! How Moral Panic, Social Media, and the Culture Wars Are Remaking Publishing. Adam shares what he learned from authors, agents, and editors about the effects of cancel culture in the publishing industry. His behind-the-scenes account is fascinating and sobering in equal measure.Show Notes* For more info on Adam Szetela, check out his website * Here is the official MIT Press link to Adam's book * The Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie audio clips come from her 2022 Reith Lecture on Free Speech (listen here; read the transcript here)* Matt Yglesias coined the term “The Great Awokening” in this 2019 Vox essay* “a rapid change in discourse and norms around social justice issues”: That's a quote from Stony Brook sociologist Musa al-Gharbi, one of the nation's foremost chroniclers of “The Great Awokening”* see Musa's 2024 book We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite * here are two Banished episodes featuring Musa: You Can't Be an Egalitarian Social Climber & Who Speaks the Language of Social Justice?* The Harper's Letter* Michael Hobbes, “Don't Fall for the ‘Cancel Culture Scam,'” HuffPo, July 10, 2020* This 2019 Zadie Smith essay from the New York Review of Books is the definitive rejoinder to the cultural critics who insist that we “should write only about people who are fundamentally ‘like us': racially, sexually, genetically, nationally, politically, personally”* On the controversy surrounding Amélie Wen Zhao's Blood Heir, see Alexandra Alter, “She Pulled Her Debut Book When Critics Found It Racist. Now She Plans to Publish,” New York Times, April 29, 2019* On the cancelation of Kosoko Jackson's book, A Place for Wolves, see Jennifer Senior, “Teen Fiction and the Perils of Cancel Culture,” New York Times, March 8, 2019* On the cancelation of a romance novel based on “criticism from readers over dialogue that some found racist or that praised Elon Musk,” see Alexandra Alter, “A Publisher Pulled a Romance Novel After Criticism From Early Readers,” New York Times, March 5, 2025* On the demographics of the people who work in the publishing industry, with an emphasis on racial diversity, see this 2022 report from Pen America, “Reading Between the Lines”* For more on literature and the culture wars, see Deborah Appleman's incisive 2022 book, Literature and the New Culture Wars: Triggers, Cancel Culture, and the Teacher's Dilemma * On the perils of teaching literature from a narrow social justice lens, see “Poverty of the Imagination,” an essay we wrote a few years back in Arc Digital* On what we keep getting wrong about the cancel culture debate, see this September 26, 2025 Banished post This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit banished.substack.com/subscribe
This week Elizabeth is joined by librarian and frequent contributor, Pamela Hayes-Bohanan who, in anticipation of Banned Books Week, gives us the latest news on attempts to remove books from our libraries. The majority of book censorship attempts now originate from organized movements, pressure groups, and government entities, including elected officials. While concerns about content or appropriate category for shelving used to come from individuals, book bans are now most commonly initiated by activists who may never have seen the book or patronized the library they've targeted. The titles most frequently targeted for censorship appear on partisan lists. Websites provide a forum for sharing author names, book titles, and tools to demand censorship of more titles in more libraries. Pam helps us understand what that means for our public, private, K-12 and college libraries. We also discuss what it means for education and society more broadly. Pam encourages us to celebrate the right to read.Podcast notesThe American Library Association sponsors Banned Books Week annually to promote awareness, remind us that censorship has no place in contemporary society, and most of all to celebrate the right to read. More information about Banned Books Week can be found here: https://www.ala.org/bbooks/banned Since our podcast this happened: Texas School Administrators Use A.I. To Ban Books. Read about it here: https://bookriot.com/leander-sb-13/A couple of reports from PEN America can be found here:Cover to Cover: An analysis of titles banned in the 23-24 school yearhttps://pen.org/report/cover-to-cover/The Blueprint State: Lessons from Parents Left Behind by Parental Rights Policies in Floridahttps://pen.org/report/the-blueprint-state/
Eric Heinze (Maîtrise, Paris; JD, Harvard; Ph.D. Leiden), a former Fulbright, DAAD and Chateaubriand fellow, is Professor of Law and Humanities at Queen Mary, University of London. He writes on justice theory and on human rights, and has worked with the International Commission of Jurists and the UN Sub-Commission on Human Rights in Geneva. He has advised NGOs on human rights, including Liberty, Amnesty International and the Media Diversity Institute. Heinze is author of The Most Human Right: Why Free Speech Is Everything. Suzanne Nossel is the CEO of PEN America, the foremost organization working to protect and advance human rights, free expression and literature. She has also served as the Chief Operating Officer of Human Rights Watch and as Executive Director of Amnesty International USA; and held senior State Department positions in the Clinton and Obama administrations. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, Nossel frequently writes op-eds for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and other publications, as well as a regular column for Foreign Policy magazine. She lives in New York City. Nosssel is author of Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All. Jonathan Zimmerman is the Judy and Howard Berkowitz Professor in Education at the University of Pennsylvania. A former Peace Corps volunteer, he is the author of Campus Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know and seven other books. He is also a frequent op-ed contributor to The New York Times, the Washington Post, and other national newspapers and magazines. Zimmerman received the 2019 Open Inquiry Leadership Award from Heterodox Academy, which promotes viewpoint diversity in higher education. Zimmerman is author of Free Speech: And Why You Should Give a Damn.
With book bans in public schools rising to levels unseen since the McCarthy era Red Scare of the 1950s, the Eleanor Roosevelt Banned Book Awards ceremony at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. will be presented jointly with PEN America on Saturday, October 11th. Author Jennifer Finney Boylan, PEN America's president, will be the keynote speaker.Ten honorees include best-selling author Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid's Tale), who will receive the Eleanor Roosevelt Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie on October 11th.
Vince Beiser is an award-winning journalist and author of “The World in a Grain: The Story of Sand and How It Transformed Civilization.” The book has been translated into five languages, was a finalist for a PEN America award and a California Book Award, and spawned a TEDx talk. Vince is currently at work on a new book, “Power Metal”, about how the materials we need for digital technology and renewable energy are causing environmental havoc, political upheaval, mayhem and murder—and how we can do better.Vince has reported from over 100 countries, states, provinces, kingdoms, occupied territories, no man's lands and disaster zones. He has exposed conditions in California's harshest prisons, trained with troops bound for Iraq, ridden with the first responders to natural disasters, and hunted down other stories from around the world for publications including Wired, The Atlantic, Harper's, Time, The Guardian, Mother Jones, Playboy, Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times.Vince's work has been honored by Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Society of Professional Journalists, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Columbia, Medill and Missouri Graduate Schools of Journalism, and many other institutions. He has three times been part of a team that won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence, and shared in an Emmy for his work with the PBS TV series SoCal Connected. He is also a grantee of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.https://vincebeiser.com/https://nexuspmg.com/
This MBM conversation with Zara Chowdhary, author of the memoir The Lucky Ones - a survivor's account of the 2002 Gujarat Pogrom. The book is a deeply personal story of Zara and her family whose roots and history are entwined within the soil and soul of the Indian subcontinent, but also the trauma that speaks through the family, especially the women across generations.Zara's writing is intimate, visceral and soul-stirring, with each page offering truth and dignity to every relationship she writes about, evoking a deep sense of humanity that we most often refuse to acknowledge even within ourselves. We talk about that and many other things including the ways faith informs her interactions with the people and communities she chooses to be part of.About Zara ChowdharyZara Chowdhary is a writer and educator in the US. She has an MA in writing for performance from the University of Leeds, and an MFA in creative writing and Environment from Iowa State University. She has previously worked behind the camera for studios like Red Chillies Entertainment, Vinod Chopra Films, Eros Entertainment and others. Her debut, The Lucky Ones, a first by any survivor of the 2002 Gujarat Pogrom, released in the US last year to critical acclaim.It was a PEN America finalist, and a Time Magazine Top Ten Best Nonfiction Books of the Year, as well as a Best Book by NPR, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, People Magazine, Esquire, Electric Literature and others. In India, The Lucky Ones released in September 2024, and has become a nonfiction bestseller, winning the prestigious Shakti Bhatt Prize 2024, and currently long-listed for the Ramnath Goenka Sahitya Samman. Zara teaches creative writing and South Asian studies at the University of Iowa.MBM visual identity design by Shazia Salam || Music by Jupneet Singh This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mainbhimuslim.com
Eliza Swann, also known as Emerald, is a writer, artist, alchemist and scholar based in New York. Swann's formative years cultivated a deep interest in the intertwined studies of mysticism and fine art, which remain central to their work as both artist and educator. Swann received a BA in Painting from the San Francisco Art Institute (2004) and an MFA from Central St. Martins in London (2012). Additionally, Swann is an initiate in Gnostic and Hermetic orders, has studied Vedic cosmology with Dr. Vagsish Shastri, trained in mindfulness meditation at the Insight Meditation Society, and studied herbalism and gardening under the guidance of their witch aunt. These studies inform their expansive approach to esoteric and ecological practices.Swann teaches art and mysticism as a unified practice and, in 2014, founded Golden Dome, an artist-in-residence program rooted in queer intersectional mysticism. Since its inception, Golden Dome has expanded to offer nationwide exhibitions, residencies, publications, and educational programming. Swann is currently faculty at Pratt Institute, where they teach “The Alchemical Imagination”, a course they created to introduce alchemical concepts to contemporary creative practice. In 2025, Swann transitioned from directing Golden Dome to launch a new initiative: Emerald School, which explores alchemy as a living, transdisciplinary practice.As a visual artist, Swann has exhibited internationally, most recently at the University of California Santa Cruz and the Feminist Center for Creative Work in Los Angeles. They are the author of The Anatomy of the Aura, Green Mary, and The Alchemical Imagination, and have contributed to numerous publications. Their work has been supported by PEN America, the Foundation for Contemporary Art, the Author's League Fund, the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Pratt Faculty Development Fund, the Feminist Center for Creative Work, the Hemera Fellowship for Contemplative Practice, and the Wassaic Project.Today Eliza shares about their roots, literally, the gardens of their aunt and a return to them after living and traveling beyond. We talk about alchemy and how it folds many disciplines, prayer, devotion, poetry, intuition... into its being. Eliza recalls teachers both direct and indirect and what they're work surfaced. We discuss grief and how alchemy has supported them in navigating both the personal and the global. The Emerald School is the container for their work where they guide folks through the stages of alchemy including a freeing of self and specialty, to move into deeper collaboration with all. "The school becomes a crucible: a space where diverse elements converge, disciplinary boundaries blur, and new ways of knowing can take shape."We talk about their upcoming 9 week online course, "The Alchemical Imagination," Sept. 14-Nov. 16, and their upcoming offering as a part of the O+ Festival, "The Star Inside: Alchemy and the Power of Plants" and why mugwort became a part of the conversation.Today's show was engineered by Ian Seda from Radiokingston.org.Our show music is from Shana Falana!Feel free to email me, say hello: she@iwantwhatshehas.org** Please: SUBSCRIBE to the pod and leave a REVIEW wherever you are listening, it helps other users FIND IThttp://iwantwhatshehas.org/podcastITUNES | SPOTIFYITUNES: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/i-want-what-she-has/id1451648361?mt=2SPOTIFY:https://open.spotify.com/show/77pmJwS2q9vTywz7Uhiyff?si=G2eYCjLjT3KltgdfA6XXCAFollow:INSTAGRAM * https://www.instagram.com/iwantwhatshehaspodcast/FACEBOOK * https://www.facebook.com/iwantwhatshehaspodcast
When platforms profit over people, communities pay the price. In the latest episode of Latinas from the Block to the Boardroom, Theresa E. Gonzales speaks with Nora Benavidez, a Civil Rights and Free Speech Latina attorney fighting for free expression and tech accountability. While Big Tech spends $61.5M on lobbying to avoid this accountability, Nora is using civil rights law to fight back and won her groundbreaking PEN America v. Trump victory to exposing the "Big Tech Backslide" that eliminated 17 safety policies right before the 2024 election. She is the ONLY LATINA proving that strategic legal action that can challenge even the most powerful tech giants. Nora shares how she went from law school—where no one looked like her—to the ACLU and now Free Press, shaping policy around misinformation and civil rights. Her Big Tech Backslide report exposes how companies like Meta, X, and YouTube rolled back critical trust and safety policies despite public promises. Finally, we dive into Section 230, the law that shields platforms from liability while still enabling harm, yet we are still protected by this from our 1st Amendment rights. She is a contributing writer for Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, CNN, and Tech Policy Press. Her expertise and commentary is regularly featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, CNN, NBC, Fox News, The Los Angeles Times, and other publications. Join us on Latinas from the Block to the Boardroom as we amplify Latine and community voices, through their stories of perseverance, and having the courage to believe in your pursuit of your dream. Let's take control of our narratives, discuss pathways to higher education, empower community with technology, to inspire future generations. Host & Executive Producer Theresa E. Gonzales discusses everything from the our representation in tech industry, healthy communities, change makers of non-profits, education and small business journeys, through intergenerational conversations with unapologetic banter tochange the status quo. Check out and listen to more episodes: Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/3zvQq2y Spotify: https://spoti.fi/4e8wNwM Amazon: https://amzn.to/4eMOBxE YouTube: https://bit.ly/Latinasb2b Support Latinas B2B by checking out our merch: https://www.latinasb2b.com/shop-latin... Connect with us: Website: www.latinasb2b.com YouTube @Latinasb2b Instagram: @Latinasb2b LinkedIn: @latinasb2bmarketing Facebook: @Latinasb2b.marketing Join newsletter: www.latinasb2b.com Podcast production by Theresa E. Gonzales and Audio Engineered by Robert Lopez. To learn more about Latinasb2b.com and how you can work with us in a sponsorship opportunity, please contact us at info@latinasb2b.com.
Episode 70 of Body Justice is truly a gift of wisdom from my dear friend and colleague, Alishia McCullough. In this episode we talk about some of the core concepts from her book, Reclaiming the Black Body. In this episode we explore:How EDs show up for Black girls/womenShifting terminology from Eating Disorders to Eating Imbalances Adultification Bias and the Hypersexualization of Black women and femmesThe ties between colonization, the trans Atlantic slave trade and eating imbalancesThe trafficking of Saartjie Baartman and the conflation of fatness and blacknessIntergenerational body traumaMaternal disdain and rejection of daughters as a survival tactic from enslavement What healing looks like through this lens, what it means to truly Reclaim the Black BodyAbout Alishia: Alishia McCullough (LCMHC) is a millennial Licensed Clinical Mental Health Therapist and owner of Black and Embodied Consulting PLLC. She specializes in somatic therapy, trauma healing, and eating disorder treatment with a focus on cultivating embodiment and fostering anti-oppression. In 2020, Alishia co-founded the Amplify Melanated Voices Movement, a global movement to elevate the voices of Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color online and in-person. Alishia currently runs the self-paced online course Reimagining Eating Disorders 101. She was awarded the 2023 Alumni Award from the Department of Psychology for the noteworthy contributions she has made to the field. An accomplished writer, Alishia is the author of a collection of poems called Blossoming, and Reclaiming the Black Body now available in bookstores nationwide. In her work, Alishia centers the intersectional narratives of Black, Brown, Indigenous, Asian, dual-heritage, and individuals indigenous to the Global South, andor those who have been racialized as 'ethnic minorities' experiencing mental and emotional distress. She also specializes in working with those living with eating disorders, upholding the values of body justice and fat liberation. She was one of the Mental Health Influencers in Meta's 2022 Well-Being Collective. Alishia's work has been featured in Bustle, WordInBlack, STAT News, BlackGirlNerds, Essence, Reckon, Wondermind, Pen America and Forbes.*As always this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute individual medical or therapeutic advice. Please reach out if you are interested in becoming a therapy or coaching client: www.eatingdisorderocdtherapy.com or visit my instagram for more info: @bodyjustice.therapist
Marcy Syms has led a remarkable life, full of triumphs and tragedies. Through a discussion of her new book, Leading with Respect: Adventures of an Off-Price Fashion Pioneer, host Bill Burke and Marcy cover subjects ranging from Marcy's upbringing, to overcoming bigotry and bullying in high school, to running her father's company and keeping it on track through the loss of two of her siblings. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction & Leading with Respect Bill Burke introduces Marcy Syms, CEO of The Syms Corporation, and her upcoming book “Leading with Respect.” Marcy discusses her father's motto “Don't let the bad guys win” and how it relates to being prepared and ensuring both sides of an encounter feel respected. 04:18 Customer Respect & Grandmother's Influence Marcy explains how her father's tagline “an educated consumer is our best customer” was foundational to their company's success and built on respect for the customer. She also shares the significant influence of her Romanian immigrant grandmother, who instilled in her the importance of financial independence for young women. 09:12 Overcoming Antisemitism Marcy recounts the overt antisemitism her family faced after moving to Westchester County, detailing the anxiety and fear it caused. She explains how she decided to ‘tough it out' like a job, overcompensating for the prejudice and becoming a rebel to challenge stereotypes. 13:47 Trailblazing & Joining the Family Business Marcy discusses how she, as a 12-year-old, trailblazed by pushing for a Bat Mitzvah in her Conservative synagogue, which didn't traditionally hold them. She also explains her path to joining her father's business after being fired from her broadcasting job, finding excitement and fulfillment in the entrepreneurial world. 19:05 Business Innovation & Personal Resilience Marcy describes the unique “automatic markdown price tag” marketing strategy that differentiated Syms stores, despite not being a profit center. She then discusses the immense personal resilience required to lead the company as CEO while simultaneously dealing with the tragic loss of her brother and sister within a year. 27:43 Courage, Values, and Philanthropy Marcy emphasizes the importance of courage, even in small acts, and how it's linked to personal values. She reveals her strong aversion to bullies, a trait honed by her past experiences, and how her father's philanthropic vision led to the establishment of the Sy Syms Foundation. 33:25 Impactful Philanthropic Initiatives Marcy details the foundation's unique philanthropic approach, supporting organizations like PEN America, the American Heart Association's “Go Red” campaign for women's heart health, and the Tannenbaum Foundation's anti-bullying initiatives. She also highlights their commitment to investigative journalism through NPR and scientific research at institutions like the Weissman Institute. 41:34 Lifelong Learning & Hot Water Strength Marcy reflects on the Eleanor Roosevelt quote, “A woman is like a tea bag; you don't know her strength until she gets into hot water,” acknowledging her own life's challenges. She passionately advocates for lifelong learning as a key to longevity and a fulfilling life, drawing parallels to Jewish cultural inquisitiveness and the entrepreneurial spirit.
The Snowy Day wasn't the first picture book to feature a Black child as its beloved protagonist, but it might be the most visible. When it came out in 1962, it challenged the publishing industry to champion books that depict kids of color. Today, we find ourselves in a moment not so different from the one Ezra Jack Keats was in when he sat down to create The Snowy Day. We are, once again, fighting for the right to let kids read the books they love, and we're still reminding each other that the characters kids see in those books really matters. Read a transcript of this episode on our website and check out these great links:Check out our booklist with titles related to The Snowy DayLearn more about the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation, the EJK Award, and the yearly bookmaking competition for kids in NYC public schools.Check out these digitized copies of The Brownies' Book, books by Black creatorsRead about diversity in children's book publishing, from “The All-White World of Children's Books” (1965) to more recent history, like this 2018 graphic that compiles data from the Cooperative Children's Book Center.Learn more about the most frequently banned children's books in schools (PEN America) and, as always, check out our Books Unbanned initiative for ways you can help.Attend an in-person event with Art Spiegelman at BPL's Central Library on September 10th.
A special Podcast Extended Edition of Episode 1948 | homo-centric: BANNED Camp. PEN America teams up with queer Los Angeles writers for readings from some of the most targeted works threatened by the rise in book bans (correspondent /participant Jason Jenn interviews organizer Hank Henderson and author Abdi Nazemian). Followed by readings from the event by poet Steven Reigns reading from Maya Angelou's ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings' and Jason Jenn reading from ‘Me and Earl and the Dying Girl' by Jesse Andrews.
Tim Richardson, disinformation program manager at PEN America, told HuffPost that Trump's attacks set a dangerous precedent and it's hard to say where this ends.
PEN America (see last week's This Way Out) teams up with queer Los Angeles writers for readings from some of the most targeted works threatened by the rise in book bans (correspondent/participant Jason Jenn interviews organizer Hank Henderson and author Abdi Nazemian). And in NewsWrap: police in the Malaysian state of Kelantan are investigating themselves after raiding an official HIV/AIDS prevention event they thought was a “gay sex party,” a ruling striking down two statutes that criminalize Hong Kong's trans people for using sex-segregated public facilities is suspended for a year to allow for the government to respond, a nonbinary U.S. citizen can temporarily stay in Canada after a judge delays their removal proceedings, gay Venezuelan makeup artist Andry José Hernández Romero is back in his hometown while his advocates continue to seek a safe place, Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis tries to get the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn marriage equality in her ongoing appeal of the court-ordered damages from a lawsuit by the gay couple whose marriage license she denied, and more international LGBTQ+ news reported this week by Tanya Kane-Parry and Michael LeBeau (produced by Brian DeShazor). All this on the July 28, 2025 edition of This Way Out! Join our family of listener-donors today at http://thiswayout.org/donate/
Send us a text Gabe Rottman is the Vice President of Policy for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. A practicing attorney with a focus on the novel issues at the intersection of press freedom, newsgathering, and technology, Gabe is the perfect person to discuss the media environment in America today and what resources are available to journalists who, through the course of just doing their jobs, could find themselves in the crosshairs of the government.From 2012 to 2015, Rottman served as the lead federal legislative and regulatory counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union on open government, press freedom and the First Amendment. While at the ACLU, Rottman directed federal advocacy on the Espionage Act and its implications for journalist source protection. After the ACLU, he opened PEN America's Washington, D.C., office and served as its first Washington director. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press was started by journalists and lawyers in 1970 to provide legal representation to reporters. RCFP remains the leading provider of free legal services to journalists and newsrooms across the US. To contact the organization, visit RCFP.org.
Banned books across the USA have risen dramatically in the past three years. We present here an extended interview with Allison Lee, Managing Director of PEN American Los Angeles from This Way Out Radio Episode 1947 (interviewed by Jason Jenn). This is part one of two reports about banned books inspired by a special reading event called homo-centric: BANNED CAMP that took place during West Hollywood's 2025 WeHo Arts Pride Festival.
Just how far is it from book bans to bonfires? PEN America's Los Angeles Director Allison Lee tracks the alarming censorship trend across the U.S. and how to stand up against it (interviewed by Jason Jenn). And in NewsWrap: a gay male Ukrainian couple wins recognition as a legal family in a Kyiv district court, the Church of England votes to stop teaching prospective clergy that so-called “homosexual practice” is “especially dishonourable,” Puerto Rico now bans hormone therapy and other gender-affirming care for trans patients under the age of 21 and criminalizes medical providers, New Hampshire's Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte vetoes two specifically anti-queer measures and three more culture war bills, a federal judge forces the Trump administration to restore 6.2 million dollars in federal funding to nine queer and HIV organizations, lesbian comedian and former talk show host Rosie O'Donnell refuses to be cowed by Trump's empty threat to revoke her citizenship, and more international LGBTQ+ news reported this week by Joe Boehnlien and David Hunt (produced by Brian DeShazor). All this on the July 21, 2025 edition of This Way Out! Join our family of listener-donors today at http://thiswayout.org/donate/
How does American society uphold the First Amendment while restricting books and censoring diverse ideas? Sharon talks with Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, about the surge in book bans, now over 4,000 nationwide. Suzanne explains how vague language about “protecting children” is used to remove books that reflect marginalized voices, often labeling them as “indecent” without justification. The result is classic literature and health-related content being removed from the shelves. Credits: Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks Audio Producer: Craig Thompson To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Americans treasure their freedom of expression. But at this time, that jewel of our society is losing its glimmer -- as is the truth -- at a rapid rate. PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect freedom of expression in America and worldwide. Its director of the Journalism and Disinformation program, Tim Richardson, speaks with Host Llewellyn King and Co-host Adam Clayton Powell III.
We were thrilled to record a live episode of You Are What You Read at PEN America's World Voices Festival with bestselling authors Jodi Picoult and Fiona Davis. This was a conversation about women in literature… in both books and in publishing. Jodi talks about her latest novel, By Any Other Name, a story about two women, centuries apart—one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare's plays—who are both forced to hide behind another name. Fiona tells us about her novel, The Stolen Queen, set in 1978 when two women team up to find one of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's missing Egyptian artifacts. We'd like to thank PEN America for hosting us for this conversation. We are thrilled to share it with you today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
After raging at Harvard earlier this month, President Donald Trump is now revoking the university's right to receive foreign students. The administration sent an unhinged letter to Harvard making the announcement while demanding extensive information about international students, a grotesque abuse of power. The White House statement justifying this seethed with angry, McCarthyite nonsense. We think this is already backfiring: Harvard is reportedly very likely to take legal action, and the university will probably be able to stop the move. We talked to Jonathan Friedman of PEN America, who explains why Trump's assault on Harvard is already getting universities to band together, how it's leading to renewed public support for the university system, and why Harvard's potential success beating this back will only stiffen institutional resistance to Trump. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Greetings writers! Sarina here. Earlier in May I was surfing social media, as one does, when I came across a story about children's author Erica Perl and an ill-fated school visit. Her scheduled visit to a school was abruptly canceled. After asking a few questions, it was determined that a single parent had objected to… Well, it's hard to say. We'll let Erica tell her story. But you should know that Ms. Perl's twenty years of book publishing have included such salacious titles as When Cookie Met Carrot and A Whale of a Tea Party. (
After raging at Harvard earlier this month, President Donald Trump is now revoking the university's right to receive foreign students. The administration sent an unhinged letter to Harvard making the announcement while demanding extensive information about international students, a grotesque abuse of power. The White House statement justifying this seethed with angry, McCarthyite nonsense. We think this is already backfiring: Legal experts quickly dismissed the move as lawless, Harvard is already leaking word that it will take legal action, and the university will probably be able to stop the move. We talked to Jonathan Friedman of PEN America, who explains why Trump's assault on Harvard is already getting universities to band together, how it's leading to renewed public support for the university system, and why Harvard's potential success beating this back will only stiffen institutional resistance to Trump. Listen to this episode here. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
After raging at Harvard earlier this month, President Donald Trump is now revoking the university's right to receive foreign students. The administration sent an unhinged letter to Harvard making the announcement while demanding extensive information about international students, a grotesque abuse of power. The White House statement justifying this seethed with angry, McCarthyite nonsense. We think this is already backfiring: Harvard is reportedly very likely to take legal action, and the university will probably be able to stop the move. We talked to Jonathan Friedman of PEN America, who explains why Trump's assault on Harvard is already getting universities to band together, how it's leading to renewed public support for the university system, and why Harvard's potential success beating this back will only stiffen institutional resistance to Trump. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Author Anne Soon Choi joins us to reveal the life of Dr. Thomas Noguchi, who was known as the "coroner to the stars" in Los Angeles who performed the autopsies of Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and Natalie Wood. The inspiration for the Jack Klugman TV series "Quincy, M.E.," Noguchi became famous for his big press conferences—which often created more controversy than offered solutions. Join us to learn about Noguchi and never-before-revealed facts about his biggest cases, which took place against the backdrop of Hollywood's infamous celebrity culture and the heated racial politics of the 1960s and 1970s. Anne Soon Choi, Ph.D., author of L.A. Coroner: Thomas Noguchi and Death in Hollywood (Third State Books), is a historian and professor of Asian American Studies and university administrator at California State University, Northridge. Her essay “The Japanese American Citizens League, Los Angeles Politics, and the Thomas Noguchi Case,” on which this book is based, won the 2021 prize for best essay from the Historical Society of Southern California. Choi has previously served on the faculty of Swarthmore College and the University of Kansas and is an Andrew Mellon Fellow and an American Council of Learned Societies Digital Ethnic Studies Fellow. She lives and writes in Los Angeles, California. Our moderator, Helen Zia, is a author, journalist and Fulbright Scholar. Her latest book, Last Boat Out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao's Revolution, was an NPR best book and shortlisted for a national Pen America award, while her first book, Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People, is a foundational textbook in schools across the country. The daughter of Chinese immigrants, Helen's role in organizing and leading the national Asian American civil rights movement to obtain justice for Vincent Chin and to counter anti-Asian racism is documented in the Academy-award nominated “Who Killed Vincent Chin?” and has been featured on the PBS series "The Asian Americans," "Amanpour & Co.," Lisa Ling's "This is Life," Soledad O'Brien, and other media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
ABOUT CLAIRE CODER:BIO: Claire Coder (Forbes 30under30) is a 28-year-old Thiel Fellow and founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. On a mission to make the world better for people with periods, Aunt Flow stocks public bathrooms with freely accessible tampons and pads. Through Claire's leadership, Aunt Flow launched patented tampon & pad dispensers in 60k+ bathrooms and raised $17m+ in venture capital. Coder launched her first company at age 16, designed a bag for Vera Bradley that sold out in 24 hours, and has her own line of GIFs. After getting her period in public without the supplies she needed, at 18 years old, Claire dedicated her life to developing a solution to ensure businesses and schools can sustainably provide quality period products for free in public bathrooms. Since 2016, Aunt Flow has worked with thousands of businesses and schools, including organizations like Google, Princeton University, Netflix, and 30+ professional sports stadiums, to offer freely accessible period product dispensers, filled with organic cotton tampons and pads. Aunt Flow has donated over 7 million organic cotton tampons and pads to menstruators in need since 2021. Claire's ultimate goal in life is for any menstruator to walk into any bathroom and never need to worry if they start their period, because Aunt Flow period products are freely available!Claire's story has been featured in TeenVogue, Forbes, Fortune, and she starred in TLC's Girl Starter Season 1. Claire speaks regularly surrounding her advocacy work, starting a social enterprise and journey as a female founder. For more information, please visit LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairecoder/ Websites:clairecoder.com (Personal)goauntflow.com (Company)SHOW INTROWelcome to the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast.EPISODE 78 … and my conversation with Claire Coder the Founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. On the podcast our dynamic dialogues based on our acronym DATA - design, architecture, technology, and the arts crosses over disciplines but maintains a common thread of people who are passionate about the world we live in and human's influence on it, the ways we craft the built environment to maximize human experience, increasing our understanding of human behavior and searching for the New Possible. The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD Magazine part of the Smartwork Media family of brands.VMSD brings us, in the brand experience world, the International Retail Design Conference. The IRDC is one of the best retail design conferences that there is bringing together the world of retailers, brands and experience place makers every year for two days of engaging conversations and pushing the discourse forward on what makes retailing relevant. You will find the archive of the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast on VMSD.com.Thanks also goes to Shop Association the only global retail trade association dedicated to elevating the in-store experience. SHOP Association represents companies and affiliates from 25 countries and brings value to their members through research, networking, education, events and awards. Check then out on SHOPAssociation.orgWhen Claire Coder was 18 years old she was at an event and she used a public restroom. While there, she discovered that she had unexpectedly started her period. And… she didn't have a quarter. Why she would have needed a quarter and what happened as a result of not having one is the subject of an exceptional entrepreneurial trajectory that has changed woman's public bathrooms around the country.We'll get to all of that in a moment but first though, a few thoughts… * * *What if you had an amazing idea that you knew was a no-brainer, an idea that provided something deeply necessary, but it seemed that everyone had overlooked it.What if you had a moment of insight from a personal experience that chartered out a clear path for providing a product and service that seemed to satisfy the deeply under met needs of more than 50% of the population?And what if when you took this moment of clear mental insight to a group of venture capitalists explaining that this was not just an idea that would not only satisfy a certain customer need but that could be an extraordinarily profitable business operation but when you asked for their involvement, they simply said… “NO”.And what if you heard “NO” 86 times when trying to get people interested in supporting your idea. Would you give up? Would you have already given up after the 1st or 10th or 50th “NO”? And what if you happened to be an 18-year-old young woman with this vision and enthusiasm and the subject of your VC pitches dealt with menstruation and woman's public bathrooms... How far do you think that would have gotten you?I could focus in on this intro by talking about the thing that we don't talk about, at least as a guy I can't imagine me and my guy friends would have ever talked about…as a teen, young man or frankly even today.Which is to say… women and monthly periods. I could focus in on this somewhat taboo subject of a naturally occurring bodily function that we somehow sweep under the social discourse carpet, despite that more than 50% of the population has one every single month. Or I could talk about the strange discomfort that comes up because somehow, we've made this discussion something to be ashamed about or talked only about between mothers and grandmothers and their daughters. The strange irony here is that the other 49.53% of the North American population will end up living with, perhaps marrying and having children with the 50+ percent of the population who has their period every single month and yet, we'd prefer not to talk about it…But, if I did focus on those subjects, which by the way are not unimportant to talk about, it would potential we derail another story about a passion for entrepreneurship and the overwhelming need to address the needs of a population who are wholly unserved.It takes a lot of guts to be an entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is not easy. In fact, there are a lot of people who would say you'd simply have a few screws loose to actually want to be an entrepreneur.It's highly risky and you carry an extraordinary amount of responsibility. Everything from fundraising and decision-making, planning operations, accepting both successes and failures.When the entire enterprise is your baby, and relies on you as the key driver of the big idea, it can be incredibly emotionally taxing. The working hours can be extraordinary too. If we think that an average work week is neatly packed into 40 hours, an entrepreneur may end up spending twice or maybe even three times that amount in trying to get their business off the ground...and there's constant pressure to keep on pushing forward. One success does not necessarily guarantee the next and so there's this cycle of continuing to push and to make forward strides create product extensions and to expand the brand footprint that is unrelenting. This is especially true if folks have lent you money to get your big idea off the ground.There's also a great degree of isolation that can emerge on the entrepreneurial path. You, and often you alone, are focused on birthing your brainchild, developing it and bringing it to market. This ‘child rearing', if you will, often happens in times of extraordinary uncertainty and ambiguity. In the current state of the world we live in today, ambiguity is the name of the game. What with the pace of change exponentially increasing, government shifting the rules of the game with tariffs and regulations, funding cuts and banning more that 250 words that according to PEN AMERICA are no longer considered acceptable including:advocacy, abortion, all-inclusive, biologically female, community equity, DEI, female, inclusive, sex, sexuality, vulnerable populations, and woman or women, just to name a few. So if your big idea is squarely focused on women, menstruation and period products, I would imagine it's tricky.So, this means that you have to be built for understanding the pace of change the ability to flex and move and be resilient when things don't happen to go your way. Like for example if you are launching a new product line and a COVID pandemic hits that effectively shuts your business down.You could stop and pack up shop and be done or you could be resilient and change direction asking ‘what do people need right now?, and turn what you thought was going to be a business into a completely different thing that was not at all what you had planned in the 1st place.As an entrepreneur, you also have to wear many hats. You are at the same time the company owner, marketing and sales rep. You're dealing with HR issues, product design and materials sourcing and assortment planning.You're often doing customer service and trying to keep them satisfied while dealing with shipments that go missing or supply chains that get disrupted, because of say tariffs, for example, when your products were coming from out of the country and all of a sudden now they are more expensive than you had anticipated.And you have to be good, I mean really good, at dealing with rejection and failure.Most entrepreneurs face repeated setbacks, investor rejections, failed launches or people who just don't get what you're trying to deliver - or straight out don't like what you're trying to deliver - and reject your product and actively work against you to shut you down.Resilience and a sense of purpose when faced with strong headwinds is an absolutely essential feature of being an entrepreneur.You want to become an entrepreneur? Then you had better show up at the game with a load of mad skills so that you can weather the multiple impending storms.Now… don't get me wrong, it's not all doom and gloom. It's not all uphill struggles like Sisyphus pushing a rock up a hill only to have it roll back down again.Entrepreneurship can be incredibly rewarding. It can bring something that you are passionate about into the world. Maybe it's something that had never existed before. Maybe it satisfies the need that is self-evident but others just haven't seen it yet. But to play in the arena of entrepreneurship you need to be able to recover from failures and keep moving forward regardless of whatever the setbacks were.Because they are inevitable.No one skates happily through entrepreneurship and starting a company without stuff just going off the rails from time to time. And that requires an amazing amount of intrinsic motivation and drive. You've got to be able to get up every morning and go get it. And you've got to be able to get up and do it without anyone behind you saying ‘go team go” pushing you to do it every single day.You might need an accountability buddy. That would be good. But in the absence of that person or group, you need to be able to be incredibly disciplined and willing to get back in the ring every day.You also have to have a certain level of risk tolerance. In fact, I would say you probably have to have a very high level of risk tolerance. No one in the entrepreneurial world makes it by being a wallflower; by being risk adverse and not wanting to step out into traffic and navigate all of the oncoming traffic.And while dancing your way through the crosswalk in oncoming traffic, you have to be pretty flexible and be willing to pivot in an oftentimes volatile environment. You also have to believe in your vision and have a well-crafted strategy to get you to the top of the mountain.Successful entrepreneurs can generally see a much bigger picture than other people. They see opportunities where others simply see closed doors and that often means when hearing “no” you don't implode like the Wicked Witch of the West when water was thrown on her, but you ask questions. Not just questions about ‘why?' but also ‘why not?'.You have to be conspicuously curious and have a compulsion to keep on asking questions, never being satisfied with the status quo.Your interpersonal skills also have to be incredibly well honed. You have to be good at networking, slapping backs, shaking hands and making people feel like they're the only people in the room who matter to you. You've got to be good at networking and pitching and you have to be an incredibly good leader which suggests that you have to be an effective communicator and be emotionally tapped in. Your EQ, as well as your IQ, has to be highly tuned.You have to carry a certain level of confidence without being arrogant.You have to believe in your ideas while staying open to feedback; weeding out what is good commentary and bad commentary.…what allows you to maintain a connection to your brand story and the products or services you believe need to be brought to market while at the same time always finding a balance between taking in what people say as constructive criticism and dismissing other commentary that doesn't seem to fit or takes you off track and away from your vision.And all of this brings us to the story of Claire Coder who at 18 years old goes into a public bathroom at an event and discovers she started her period.In an effort to have period products that met her in her moment of need, she goes to a dispenser on the wall and discovers that in order to get a tampon or pad she has to have quarter and who really carries quarters around in their pocket anymore? At that moment Claire is faced with accepting the only option available which is to go to the free roll of toilet paper on the bathroom stall and create a makeshift tampon.At that moment Claire decides that if toilet paper and paper towel are offered at no cost in public bathrooms why should tampons and pads cost $0.25.? and why is it that the box on the wall, that has likely been there for decades and that may likely not work in any case, an acceptable solution?Claire Coder was selected as one of Forbes 30under30 and is the 28-year-old founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. On a mission to make the world better for people with periods, Aunt Flow stocks public bathrooms with freely accessible tampons and pads. Through Claire's leadership, Aunt Flow launched patented tampon & pad dispensers in 60k+ bathrooms, 150 universities, 600 schools, 28 Fortune 500 company's offices and raised $17m+ in venture capital.After getting her period in public without the supplies she needed, at 18 years old, Claire dedicated her life to developing a solution to ensure businesses and schools can sustainably provide quality period products for free in public bathrooms.Since 2016, Aunt Flow has worked with thousands of businesses and schools, including organizations like Google, Princeton University, Netflix, and 30+ professional sports stadiums, to offer freely accessible period product dispensers, filled with organic cotton tampons and pads. Aunt Flow has donated over 7 million organic cotton tampons and pads to menstruators in need since 2021. Claire's ultimate goal in life is for any menstruator to walk into any bathroom and never need to worry if they start their period, because Aunt Flow period products are freely available! Claire Coder was the opening keynote presenter at SHOP Marketplace 2025 and I caught up with her after her presentation to have a chat…ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582bWebsites: https://www.davidkepron.com (personal website)vmsd.com/taxonomy/term/8645 (Blog)Email: david.kepron@NXTLVLexperiencedesign.comPersonal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidkepron/NXTLVL Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nxtlvl_experience_design/Bio:David Kepron is a multifaceted creative professional with a deep curiosity to understand ‘why', ‘what's now' and ‘what's next'. He brings together his background as an architect, artist, educator, author, podcast host and builder to the making of meaningful and empathically-focused, community-centric customer connections at brand experience places around the globe. David is a former VP - Global Design Strategies at Marriott International. While at Marriott, his focus was on the creation of compelling customer experiences within Marriott's “Premium Distinctive” segment which included: Westin, Renaissance, Le Meridien, Autograph Collection, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels and Gaylord hotels. In 2020 Kepron founded NXTLVL Experience Design, a strategy and design consultancy, where he combines his multidisciplinary approach to the creation of relevant brand engagements with his passion for social and cultural anthropology, neuroscience and emerging digital technologies. As a frequently requested international speaker at corporate events and international conferences focusing on CX, digital transformation, retail, hospitality, emerging technology, David shares his expertise on subjects ranging from consumer behaviors and trends, brain science and buying behavior, store design and visual merchandising, hotel design and strategy as well as creativity and innovation. In his talks, David shares visionary ideas on how brand strategy, brain science and emerging technologies are changing guest expectations about relationships they want to have with brands and how companies can remain relevant in a digitally enabled marketplace. David currently shares his experience and insight on various industry boards including: VMSD magazine's Editorial Advisory Board, the Interactive Customer Experience Association, Sign Research Foundation's Program Committee as well as the Center For Retail Transformation at George Mason University.He has held teaching positions at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology (F.I.T.), the Department of Architecture & Interior Design of Drexel University in Philadelphia, the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising (L.I.M.) in New York, the International Academy of Merchandising and Design in Montreal and he served as the Director of the Visual Merchandising Department at LaSalle International Fashion School (L.I.F.S.) in Singapore. In 2014 Kepron published his first book titled: “Retail (r)Evolution: Why Creating Right-Brain Stores Will Shape the Future of Shopping in a Digitally Driven World” and he is currently working on his second book to be published soon. David also writes a popular blog called “Brain Food” which is published monthly on vmsd.com. The next level experience design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.
Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf, interim co-CEO of PEN America, and Mia Couto, Mozambican author and recipient of this year's PEN/Nabokov Award for Achievement in International Literature, discuss the work of PEN America promoting free expression and this year's 61st annual Literary Awards Ceremony at Town Hall.
Bohnel, Max www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Fazit
In this episode, we get excited about two new books: The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig and I See You've Called in Dead by John Kenney. Then Dave talks about the stellar winners of the 2025 Pen America Awards. Links The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig Invasive by Chuck Wendig I See You've Called in Dead by John Kenney Truth in Advertising by John Kenney Writer's Digest interview with John Kenney The Boat Who Wouldn't Float by Farley Mowat Pen America website and Instagram Pen International website Pen American Literary Awards Finalists Dead in Long Beach, California by Venita Blackburn With My Back to the World: Poems by Victoria Chang On Freedom by Timothy Snyder Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Join our FREE Substack to get our (awesome) newsletter and join in chats with other people who love books and travel. Do you enjoy our show? Do you want to make friends with other (lovely) listeners? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Substack Patreon Parts of the Strong Sense of Place podcast are produced in udio! Some effects are provided by soundly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In a stunning turnaround, Canada's Liberal party, under the new leadership of economist Mark Carney, has won re-election. Just a few months ago, the Conservative opposition were the favorite to win, but US President Donald Trump's tariffs and threats to Canada's sovereignty reshaped the race. Andrew Coyne is a longtime journalist at Canada's The Globe and Mail and author of the new book, "The Crisis of Canadian Democracy." Also on today's show: Haaretz Military Analyst Amos Harel; PEN America co-CEO Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf and novelist Dinaw Mengestu; former US Amassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Harvard University has declared that enough is enough, and it's now openly refusing to buckle to Trump's command for subservience on multiple fronts. In response, Trump erupted on Truth Social like a petty tinpot dictator, raging that Harvard should lose its tax exempt status and worse. We think this reveals a hidden weakness: Trump and MAGA know that if institutions don't capitulate to them, and band together to overcome their collective action problem, the Trump-MAGA assault could very well falter. If there's some way out of our disastrous mess, it partly involves major institutions doing exactly this, in a concerted, sustained way. We talked to Jonathan Friedman, the managing director of the free expression program at PEN America, about the real nature of Harvard's pushback, the prospects for more institutions following suit, and the potential for a real united front of resistance to disarm MAGA. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Harvard University has declared that enough is enough, and it's now openly refusing to buckle to Trump's command for subservience on multiple fronts. In response, Trump erupted on Truth Social like a petty tinpot dictator, raging that Harvard should lose its tax exempt status and worse. We think this reveals a hidden weakness: Trump and MAGA know that if institutions don't capitulate to them, and band together to overcome their collective action problem, the Trump-MAGA assault could very well falter. If there's some way out of our disastrous mess, it partly involves major institutions doing exactly this, in a concerted, sustained way. We talked to Jonathan Friedman, the managing director of the free expression program at PEN America, about the real nature of Harvard's pushback, the prospects for more institutions following suit, and the potential for a real united front of resistance to disarm MAGA. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Harvard University has declared that enough is enough, and it's now openly refusing to buckle to Trump's command for subservience on multiple fronts. In response, Trump erupted on Truth Social like a petty tinpot dictator, raging that Harvard should lose its tax exempt status and worse. We think this reveals a hidden weakness: Trump and MAGA know that if institutions don't capitulate to them, and band together to overcome their collective action problem, the Trump-MAGA assault could very well falter. If there's some way out of our disastrous mess, it partly involves major institutions doing exactly this, in a concerted, sustained way. We talked to Jonathan Friedman, the managing director of the free expression program at PEN America, about the real nature of Harvard's pushback, the prospects for more institutions following suit, and the potential for a real united front of resistance to disarm MAGA. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Banned Books Week (launched in 1982) is normally in September/October, but given the state of things, we thought it was a relevant topic. Buying physical copies of books, when you can, seems to be a smart thing to do. PEN estimates that book bans have doubled in the past year; here's where to fight that by sending a letter to state lawmakers. Some of our sources: Data from the ALA; Unite Against Book Bans; National Coalition Against Censorship; PEN America; Authors Against Book Bans Recommended in this episode: B.R. Myers's The Third Wife of Faraday House and Clay McLeod Chapman's Wake Up and Open Your Eyes NEWS: We have a Bookshop.org shop now! Find all of our favorite books at our shop–and help out small businesses. UP NEXT: Tracy Cross Buy our books here, including our newest Toil and Trouble.
Former NFL player and Barstool Sports alum Pat McAfee didn't have to name the Ole Miss freshman at the center of ongoing online and IRL harassment on the February 26 episode of his popular ESPN show. Following the Barstool playbook, he gave just enough information about the false internet rumor for his millions of viewers and subscribers to further slut-shame the teen, turning her life into a living hell. She already wasn't safe on campus, and her mother's house was swatted the morning after McAfee's remarks, which he made on an episode that was supposed to be discussing the NFL's annual college scouting showcase. This week, Katelyn and Christine chat with award-winning independent journalist Frankie de la Cretaz about the disturbing story—a cautionary tale that could put any one of us in danger. We also encourage you to listen to our recent episode about online harassment that can quickly move offline, and learn how we can protect ourselves and each other. Links:- Subscribe to Frankie de la Cretaz's newsletter, Out of Your League- Follow Frankie on Bluesky and Instagram- Listen to our recent episode about online harassment with Tat Bellamy-Walker, PEN America's digital safety officer See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Chalk and Ink: The Podcast for Teachers Who Write and Writers Who Teach
Send us a textAnn McCallum exposes the root of nonfiction in this episode. Ann has tons of tips for you including how to find a nonfiction structure that highlights your passions, how to craft enticing sidebars, and how to write a nonfiction book proposal.Our next episode will feature Cindy Jensen Elliott. Her newest nonfiction book, The Doomsday Detectives, How Walter and Luis Alvarez Solved the Mystery of Dinosaur Extinctions, just released on March 11th. We'll also be talking about Weeds Find a Way, which is one of my all-time favorite books and her picture book biography Antsy Ansel.I want to take this moment to thank Sarah Brannen, the creator of Chalk + Ink's artwork. Her picture book, Uncle Bobby's Wedding, is one of nine books that some parents are trying to ban in the Mahmoud vs. Taylor Supreme Court Case. Join me in supporting Sarah and the other authors in this case by clicking on the court case link above to sign a petition through Pen America to fight against book banning.Support the show
Jonathan Friedman, managing director of U.S. free expression and education programs at PEN America, discusses their new analysis of the 4,000 books banned in schools during the 2023-2024 school year.
On January 20, 2025, and within hours of returning to power, the Trump administration issued an executive order that the U.S. government would recognize only two genders, male and female, defined at birth. In contrast, in 2014, the Supreme Court of India ruled that transgender people have the right to self-identify as male, female, or a “third gender.” The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act of 2019 in India allows transgender people to have a self-declared gender identity and receive a certificate of identity. It is currently estimated that there are more than 3 million third-gender people living in India alone. Similar rulings and laws have been passed in neighboring Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. What are the implications and impacts on the transgender people of the rest of Asia and the United States? At a time when the current U.S. administration has issued an executive order recognizing only two genders, we will discuss this and other issues with Amrita Sarkar, one of the leading transgender activists of India, and Zia Jaffrey, author of The Invisibles: A Tale of Eunuchs of India. Amrita Sarkar is a leading activist who has been working for the transgender community and their wellbeing for more than two decades and has been involved in numerous capacity-building initiatives for the same communities at the national and international level. She is the one of the founding members and the Secretary of IRGT – A Global Network of Trans Women and HIV. She also has made two films on transgender issues. Amrita is a trained counsellor and had completed her post-graduation in social welfare. Zia Jaffrey is the author of The Invisibles: A Tale of the Eunuchs of India (Pantheon/Vintage). She has written cover stories, features, and book reviews for many publications, including Vogue, The Nation, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Elle, where she ran the front of the magazine, wrote literary pieces, and cultivated new voices. Her work has been anthologized in several tomes, most recently, in PEN America's India at 75, and Toni Morrison: The Last Interview and Other Conversations. She has covered South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, AIDS, and the Israel/Palestine conflict, and is currently writing a book about Palestinian-Americans. Organizer: Kalidip Choudhury An Asia-Pacific Affairs Member-led Forum program. Forums and chapters at the Club are organized and run by volunteer programmers who are members of The Commonwealth Club, and they cover a diverse range of topics. Learn more about our Forums. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Host Jason Blitman talks to Karissa Chen (Homeseeking) about musicals--particularly The Last Five Years' influence on her writing, dreams as well as idealism, the coincidence of reconnection, and the concept of seeking home. Jason is then joined by Guest Gay Reader Paul Lisicky (Song So Wild and Blue) and talk about all things Joni Mitchell. Homeseeking is the January 2025 Good Morning America Book Club selection. Karissa Chen is a Fulbright fellow, Kundiman Fiction fellow, and a VONA/Voices fellow whose fiction and essays have appeared in The Atlantic, Eater, The Cut, NBC News THINK!, Longreads, PEN America, Catapult, Gulf Coast, and Guernica, among others. She was awarded an artist fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts as well as multiple writing residencies including at Millay Arts, where she was a Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation Creative Fellow and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, among others. She was formerly a senior fiction editor at The Rumpus and currently serves as the editor-in-chief at Hyphen magazine. She received an MFA in fiction from Sarah Lawrence College and splits her time between New Jersey and Taipei, Taiwan.Paul Lisicky is the author of seven books including Later: My Life at the Edge of the World (one of NPR's Best Books of 2020), as well as The Narrow Door (a New York Times Editors' Choice and a Finalist for the Randy Shilts Award), Unbuilt Projects, The Burning House, Famous Builder, and Lawnboy. His work has appeared in The Atlantic, BuzzFeed, Conjunctions, The Cut, Fence, The New York Times, Ploughshares, Tin House, and in many other magazines and anthologies. He has taught in the creative writing programs at Cornell University, New York University, Sarah Lawrence College, and elsewhere. He is currently a Professor of English in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at Rutgers University-Camden, where he is Editor of StoryQuarterly. He lives in Brooklyn, New York. BOOK CLUB!Use code GAYSREADING at checkout to get first book for only $4 + free shipping! Restrictions apply.http://aardvarkbookclub.comWATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com
From Mark Zuckerberg at the inauguration to Elon Musk in the oval office, the tech broligarchy is upon us, shaping policy to erase trans people, Black people, and “childless cat ladies” from the Internet and ultimately from public life. “Cis” has been a slur on Twitter since 2023. More recently, Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, put an end to third party fact-checking, reduced automated content moderation, and loosened hateful conduct standards. Guest Tat Bellamy-Walker joins Katelyn and Christine on this week's episode to identify and clarify Meta's three-pronged attack. Bellamy-Walker, a longtime journalist turned program manager of digital safety training and resources (media) at PEN America, provides us—and listeners—with tangible steps to protect ourselves and each other online. Listen and learn about digital hygiene, counter speech, resources, and more. 2FA all the way!Citations: Follow Tat Bellamy-Walker on Twitter: @bell_tatiPEN America's Online Harassment Field ManualExtensive safety resources geared toward women and nonbinary journalists at the International Women's Media FoundationDonate to the Black Journalists Therapy Relief FundDelete Me and other subscription services to scrub your personal data from the InternetDonate to the Trans Journalists AssociationSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
