Call Your Girlfriend

Activists and artists were waking up each day in anger and despair after Trump's election. Alongside actions and demonstrations, groups started forming around the country to gather, protest, and sing. In the first episode about the art of resistance, we listen to the voices (spoken and sung) of two choirs: the Resistance Revival Chorus in New York City and Community Chorus in Los Angeles.  LINKSEmma Goldman: "If I can't dance to it, it's not my revolution" The Resistance Revival Chorus: This JoyNelini StampSarah Sophie FlickerCommunity ChorusTany LingCarolyn Pennypacker RiggsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We contemplate a VC-backed startup for women who need to scream into pillows. A brief discussion of the Supreme Court nomination of the latest Judge Who Must Not Be Named. Fortunately, Rebecca Traister's work on the political power of women's anger is always timely, as we revisit our 2018 interview with her (and the unfortunately still-relevant fury of the Kavanaugh nomination). See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this latest season of the pandemic (end of season 3?), we're trying to find joy where we can: guava cocktails, vintage golf clothes, journaling, repetition, boredom, and the future. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Managing our election anxiety and getting out the vote. Does phone banking, text banking, and making a voting plan really move the needle? We find out with Crooked Media political director Shaniqua McClendon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you need something to read (and take your mind away from doom-scrolling)? We talk with Nessa Rapport about her novel Evening and Alice Wong, editor of the anthology, Disability Visibility.  We're also reading (or re-reading): Zadie Smith essays, NK Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy, Angela's Ashes, and Parakeet by Marie-Helene Bertino. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How can we create change from within institutions? We talk with longtime civil rights activist, Pramila Jayapal, who was elected to Congress in 2016 about her work with the Congressional Progressive Caucus, pushing for change within the Democratic Party. Plus, the challenging pace of change within government and the prospects for better federal policy to support immigrants, people out of work, and Black and brown communities devastated by police violence and other structures of white supremacy. We also discuss the viral moment in a 2019 hearing, when she reflected on being the parent of a non binary child. Rep. Jayapal's new book is Use the Power You Have. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're engulfed in crises: caregiving, police violence, employment, and an election. These may feel like unprecedented times, and yet, some of our favorite guests have been experts and activists who tackle these issues. We listen back to excerpts from Ai-jen Poo of the National Domestic Workers Alliance on caregiving, journalist Annie Lowery on guaranteed income, Josie Duffy Rice on the criminal justice system's impacts on women, and Stacey Abrams on how all of us can lead, beginning from our own experiences and circumstances.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does attraction mean, specifically for people who don't experience sexual attraction? Angela Chen joins us to talk about her book Ace: What Asexuality Reveals about Desire, Society and the Meaning of Sex. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Friendships that stretch into years and decades hold a special place in our lives, and require special tending. As we conclude our Summer of Friendship series, we hear about your big friendships that have gone the distance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We often see people don’t have time for friends as life gets busier: Hint hint, it’s capitalism and patriarchy making you feel that way. And we interview author Mia Birdsong on building the communities and relationships we actually want, rather than those we’ve been told to want. Links Big Friendship Mia Birdsong How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship, and CommunitySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.