

Breaking Down Patriarchy
Amy McPhie Allebest
Breaking Down Patriarchy is a podcast for everyone! Learn about the creation of patriarchy and those who have challenged it as you listen to bookclub-style discussions of essential historical texts. Gain life-changing epiphanies and practical takeaways through these smart, relatable conversations.
Breaking Down Patriarchy is a 501(c)3 Nonprofit Organization. Donate to support our work by visiting breakingdownpatriarchy.com/donate
Breaking Down Patriarchy is a 501(c)3 Nonprofit Organization. Donate to support our work by visiting breakingdownpatriarchy.com/donate
Episodes
Mentioned books

May 17, 2022 • 29min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and the Institution of Motherhood – with Lane Anderson and an Anonymous Guest
In her landmark book, Of Woman Born, Adrienne Rich writes that “At certain points in history, and in certain cultures, the idea of woman-as-mother has worked to endow all women with respect, even with awe, and to give women some say in the life of a people or a clan. But for most of what we know was the “mainstream’ of recorded history, motherhood as institution has ghettoized and degraded female potentialities.” In this quote, Rich highlights the stark difference between the way our cultural thinks it respects women and the way it actually regards them. It can be a wonderful thing to praise mothers — to celebrate the women around us who channel their love, energy, and resources into the art and the work of raising children — but too often we forget that our cultural ideal of a ‘mother’ is not always accessible nor is it the ideal motherhood for all women. So what happens when a mother doesn’t match up to our institutional expectations? And what happens when a woman decides she doesn’t want to be a mother at all?On today’s episode, we're digging into these questions as we’re joined by two spectacular guests each trusting us with her own story of how motherhood as an institution has haunted their lives: an Anonymous Contributor who speaks about the realities of unwed motherhood, and returning friend of the podcast, Lane Anderson, who shares her own experiences of having the mantle of motherhood assumed and foisted upon her.Lane Anderson (she/her) was raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. She has an undergraduate degree from BYU, and a graduate degree from Columbia University. She has spent much of her career as a full-time journalist, publishing hundreds of articles on inequality, human rights, gender, and social and family issues. She has received several Society of Professional Journalists Awards, and a fellowship from the USC Annenberg School of Journalism for her writing on human trafficking. She lives in New York City with her partner and young daughter, and she is full-time faculty at New York University where she is a Clinical Associate Professor teaching writing. She co-writes Matriarchy Report, a newsletter about family issues from a feminist perspective on Substack, and on Instagram @matriarchyreportVisit the Episode Page here.

May 10, 2022 • 51min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and the Vilification of Women - with Lucy Allebest & Dr. D'Vorah Grenn
Throughout history women have been misrepresented as villains and monsters: witches, demons, succubus, and beyond. And this misrepresentation of our bodies and minds as evil is no accident! Rather, the vilification of women is a practical tool of patriarchal systems which remains painfully relevant today. After all, if we cast women as monsters, that must make the men controlling them heroes—and who would want to listen to the words of a she-demon? Who would want to vote for one?The damage caused by this vilification is long lasting, so in order to help us unpack some of its history and present-day impact two remarkable women joined us for this episode — Dr. D’Vorah Grenn and Lucy Allebest.Lucy Allebest (she/her) studies History at the University of St Andrews. She enjoys dancing, organizing, wearing green, and sleeping at any time of day or night. Her greatest joy is hugging her parents and her greatest fear is the Pixar lamp. She hopes to one day do something interesting enough to write a bio longer than sixty words. D'vorah J. Grenn (she/her) Ph.D. and Kohenet, is Founding Director, The Lilith Institute (1997). She co-directed the former Women's Spirituality MA Program at Institute of Transpersonal Psychology/Sofia University, and founded Mishkan Shekhinah, a movable sanctuary honoring the Sacred Feminine in all traditions. D’vorah leads the Institute’s Lilith’s Fire Circle, does a “Tending Lilith’s Fire” broadcast/podcast with Kohenet Annie Matan and also serves as a spiritual mentor and guide. Visit the Episode Page here.

May 3, 2022 • 52min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and Abortion Rights - with Gabrielle Blair
This week best-selling author Gabrielle Blair sits down with Amy for an unabashed interview about reproductive rights, contraceptives, and why we continue to prioritize men’s pleasure over women’s health and safety.Gabrielle Stanley Blair (she/her) created an award-winning blog called Design Mom (still going strong 15 years later!), wrote a NYT best-selling book, founded a popular conference called Alt Summit, wrote four viral Twitter threads (and counting!), moved to France, and is raising 6 kids while renovating a house from the 1600s.Visit the Episode Page here.

Apr 26, 2022 • 34min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and Personal Perspective - with Bob Rees
From the very beginning on this project it has been my belief that the unjust construct of patriarchy causes harm to people of all genders, including men. Today it’s my delight to be joined by a deep and generous thinker, Bob Rees, who’s going to help us interrogate that belief and unpack some specifics of both how patriarchy can painfully impact men as well as some of the ways men, and patriarchs even, can act as our allies in this work of dismantling oppressive structures. Along the way, Bob will be reciting poetry, offers thoughtful insight, and reflecting on his personal history surrounding trauma and abuse. We’re so excited to be sharing Bob’s story with you, but listeners may want to be aware that this segment will include some challenging content such as sexual abuse, self-harm, and violence — please consider if this material might affect you and take care of yourselves accordingly. Bob Rees (he/him), is an activist scholar, poet and humanitarian. He is a Visiting Professor and Director of Mormon Studies at Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. Previously, he taught at UCLA, UC Santa Cruz, and UC Berkeley. He is the co-founder of the Bountiful Children's Foundation, which addresses malnutrition among Latter-day Saint children in the Developing world.To learn more about Bob and his work to wipe out childhood malnutrition, be sure to visit the Bountiful Children Foundation.Visit the Episode Page here.

Apr 19, 2022 • 51min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and Feminist Fairytales - with Jessica Harder
Many women face realities of patriarchy from alarmingly young ages — the damage that this can cause a child is something we’re still only first coming to understand…and yet, there’s another side to this equation as well: what happens when we hide the truth of our oppression from children? What happens when we raise little girls to believe that the ugliness of patriarchy is behind us, when we tell them feminism was a tool of the past and mis-represent our present-day world as an egalitarian fairy tale?On today’s episode Amy is joined by creatrix and educator Jessica Harder to explore exactly this dilemma as she shares her stories of growing up with equality-colored glasses, making her way into adulthood and a workforce rife with misconduct, and ultimately takes us into the fashion industry, the Me Too movement, and far beyond.As a note to listeners, be aware that this episode contains discussion of sexual harassment and abuse. Please be kind to yourselves and take care accordingly.Jessica Harder (she/her) has spent her life revolved around the human body. She began filtering her creativity into designing clothing for the body at the age of four, which led into a fifteen-year career in the fashion industry. At the age of 23 she moved to the Netherlands, where she ,met her husband and lived for six years. After moving back to the United States she changed careers and began teaching yoga and meditation. As a yoga teacher, Jessica has taught athletes training for the Olympics, rock climbers, senior citizens, babies, children, convicted convicts, people with drug and alcohol addiction, yogis, mothers, and pregnant women. She has devoted her career to teaching individuals to come into a deeper awareness of the body and mind. During the pandemic, she started a women’s group called Moms Together Six Feet Apart, which provides support to mothers giving birth during the pandemic. Jessica is currently working on her first book about prenatal yoga and raising her two children.Visit the Episode Page here.

Apr 12, 2022 • 37min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and Polygamy - with Shannon Johnson
This week Amy is joined by Shannon Johnson to help us zoom in even further to more fully unpack the practice of polygamous marriage in the LDS church and its impact on individual women. Not only do we learn some surprising and essential history, but Shannon trusts us with the story of her own journey coming-of-age within the church community and wrestling with polygamy on a personal level.Shannon Olena Hyatt Johnson (she/her) grew up mostly in Utah and went to BYU, where she met her husband, who was also an English major. She has taught conversational English in Japan and Cairo, and now works in admin at Stanford. She is currently writing a master's thesis on race, polygamy, and the Mormon family. Shannon has three daughters and a non-binary child, ranging in age from 11 to 21. Shannon likes hiking, yoga, British tv, and trashy romance novels.Visit the Episode Page here.Recommended Reading & ListeningYear of Polygamy (podcast) ~ Lindsay Hansen ParkSunstone Mormon History Podcast (podcast) ~ Lindsay Hansen Park and Bryan BuchananPioneers (poem read by author) ~ Carol Lynn PearsonYour Sister in the Gospel: The Life of Jane Manning James, a Nineteenth-Century Black Mormon (book) ~ Quincy D. NewellSally in Three Worlds: An Indian Captive in the House of Brigham Young (book, also Audible) ~ Virginia KernsMore Wives than One (book) ~ Kathryn Danes“Heathen in Our Fair Land: Anti-Polygamy and Protestant Women’s Missions to Utah, 1869–1910” (PhD Thesis) ~ Jana RiessThe Mormon Question: Polygamy and Constitutional Conflict in Nineteenth-Century America (book) ~ Sarah Barringer Gordon“The family, morality and social science in Anglo-American cooperative thought, 1813-1890” (PhD Thesis) ~ Tara Westover (also, Educated)The Legacy of Adam-God in the Mormon Theology of Heteropatriarchy (blog post) ~ The Grand ScoobahDoing the Works of Abraham: Mormon Polygamy―Its Origin, Practice, and Demise (book) ~ B. Carmon HardyReligion of a Different Color: Race and the Mormon Struggle for Whiteness (book) ~ W. Paul ReeveRace and the Making of the Mormon People (book) ~ Max Perry Mueller

Apr 5, 2022 • 39min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and the Subaltern - with Lindsay Hansen Park
We are so grateful to be joined by writer and podcaster Lindsay Hansen Park who does the work of unpacking polygamy on a regular basis and shares some of her discoveries with us today. Lindsay Hansen Park is an American Mormon feminist blogger, podcaster, and the Executive Director for the Salt Lake City-based non-profit Sunstone Education Foundation. She's worked as a consultant and guest on several film projects including Hulu forthcoming television series, Under the Banner of Heaven. You can find her work (and listen to her amazing podcast, Year of Polygamy) at YearofPolygamy.com and at Sunstone.org.Visit the Episode Page here.

Mar 29, 2022 • 39min
Breaking Down Patriarchy and the Women who Enforce it – with Heather Sundahl, Caroline Salisbury, and Heather Renfro
On today’s episode we’re going to be tackling a particularly tricky topic: how we and other women can—intentionally or unintentionally—become enforcers and perpetrators of patriarchy. Fortunately, we’ll have not one, but three spectacular guests joining us to help unpack this phenomenon by sharing their own experiences, emotions, and insights. Each of our contributors—Heather Sundahl, Carrie Salisbury, and Heather Renfro—has a unique, invaluable story to tell and I’m so grateful to have them all with us.Heather Sundahl (she/her) is a writer and editor and studying to be a marriage & family therapist. Her favorite pastime is swapping stories with family and friends. Caroline Salisbury (she/her) lives in Los Angeles, California where she works as a musician, educator and business entrepreneur. She holds music degrees in Viola Performance and was homeschooled as a child and teen. Raised with doomsday preppers, Carrie frequently experienced childhood homelessness and poverty while preparing for upcoming global disasters. She is a survivor of a college sexual assault. Today she is President of the Suzuki Music Association of California - Los Angeles Branch, a music education non-profit for teachers and families, and owner of Gerona Rose Music Studio.She has written about religion and feminism at the Exponent blog as ViolaDiva.She currently shares her creative projects, music, and writing at www.carolinesalisbury.com and on IG and FB @carolinesalisbury Caroline is mother to three children with her husband, pianist-composer Benjamin Salisbury. Heather Lewis Renfro (she/her) works as an educator at a high school in the San Francisco bay area and as a University Supervisor for beginning teachers. She is also a mom to two awesome teenagers. Outside of the things that keep her busy, she can be found swimming, reading, and walking her dog. *Please note that this episode contains some explicit language, as well as limited discussion of sexual violence*Visit the Episode Page here.

Mar 22, 2022 • 1h 17min
Breaking Down Patriarchy in a Warzone – with Dr. Beverly Allen
On today’s episode Amy is joined by Dr. Beverly Allen for an interview about her experiences studying the treatment of women and the roles that patriarchy played during the Yugoslav Wars, as well as the ramifications that her discoveries still hold for us today. This episode contains some challenging content— during our interview we discuss forms of violence, including the use of rape and torture. Please take care of yourselves accordingly.Beverly Allen (she/her) has taught at Cornell, UC Santa Cruz, and the University of Zagreb. Her books are in Italian Studies and Cultural Studies, including Rape Warfare: The Hidden Genocide in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. Recipient of numerous awards and prizes, she held the William P. Tolley Distinguished Teaching Professorship in the Humanities at Syracuse. She received a Masters from Columbia University and a PhD from UC Berkeley. Visit the Episode Page here.

Mar 15, 2022 • 37min
Breaking Down Patriarchy on a Mission
On today’s episode we hear a stunning story from a woman on a mission for the Church of Latter-Day Saints. This story includes discussions of mental health, faith, false appearances, and how the systems around us shape our relationship with our bodies. Due to the sensitive nature of this material, the author of this essay has asked to remain anonymous. We're grateful to friend-of-the-podcast, Mary Piccard-Reischmann, for performing this story on our contributor's behalf. Mary Piccard-Reischmann (she/her) is a theatre artist, illustrator, and podcast enthusiast from St. Petersburg, Florida. She studied English, Spanish, and Communication Design at Washington University in St. Louis and earned her Masters in Humanities from the University of Chicago. She is currently the Scenic Charge Artist for Portland Center Stage and spends her free time going to movies and spending too many hours playing on her Nintendo Switch. Visit the Episode Page here.