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Playlist: Women's History Month

Compiled By: PRX Editors

 Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22558336@N06/2587381381/">Lukasz Strachanowski</a>
Image by: Lukasz Strachanowski 
Curated Playlist

These are our Editors' Picks for Women's History Month

1 Hour Plus

The Heidi Chronicles

From L.A. Theatre Works | Part of the L.A. Theatre Works series | 01:58:03

Wendy Wasserstein's Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy.

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Wendy Wasserstein’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play is the tale of a baby-boomer’s long, hard road from 1960s confusion to 1990s self-assured woman…or so she hopes. A co-production with The Smithsonian Associates and Voice of America. Recorded before a live audience at Voice of America, Washington D.C. in June of 2002.

Directed by Molly Smith
Producing Director: Susan Albert Loewenberg

Lisa Akey as Fran/Betsy/April
Kosha Engler as Becky/Clara/Denise
Kaitlin Hopkins as Heidi Holland
Barbara Klein as Jill/Molly
Lisa Pelikan as Debbie/Lisa/Hostess
Martha Plimpton as Susan Johnston
Scot Reese as Chris Boxer/Mark/TV Attendant/Waiter/Ray
Raphael Sbarge as Peter Patrone
Grant Shaud as Scoop Rosenbaum

 


Half-Hour to One Hour (30:01-1:00:00)

Buildings Speak: Stories of Pioneering Women Architects

From The Kitchen Sisters | 54:56

Perfect for Women's History Month programming. "Buildings Speak: Stories of Pioneering Women Architects," a new special from The Kitchen Sisters, hosted by Academy Award-winning actress Frances McDormand. Trailblazers, ground breakers, skyscraper visionaries. Women who changed the skyline and the built environment that surrounds us today. Striking, surprising stories of design, vision and love.

Buidlings_speak_hour-long_barbies_small Welcome to Buildings Speak: Stories of Pioneering Women Architects, a new special from The Kitchen Sisters, the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation and PRX, and hosted by Academy Award-winning actress Frances McDormand. Trailblazers, codebreakers, skyscraper visionaries. Women who changed the skyline and the built environment that surrounds us today. Striking, surprising stories of design, vision and love.

Julia Morgan, the first accredited female architect in California, who designed Hearst Castle and was nearly written out of the history books. Natalie de Blois, who helped imagine the first glass skyscrapers on Park Avenue by day and raised four children by night. Amaza Lee Meredith, a Black queer modernist architect from the 1930s South who helped establish Sag Harbor as a haven for Black intellectuals, artists and beachcombers. 

National Writers Series: Stephanie Foo

From Interlochen Public Radio | Part of the National Writers Series: Season Four series | 54:30

Susan Odgers talks with author and radio producer Stephanie Foo.

Wong-foo_small Stephanie Foo is known for her work on public radio programs such as “Snap Judgment” and “This American Life.” She’s also a columnist, and has now written a book, called “What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma.” Stephanie appeared at a virtual National Writers Series to talk about her book, and also about disability activist Alice Wong, and her memoir “Year of the Tiger: An Activist’s Life.” She spoke with teacher, columnist, and disability advocate Susan Odgers.

A Woman of No Consequence

From Canadian Broadcasting Corporation | 31:32

The story of a remarkable Indian woman who struggled with the bonds of tradition and finally broke them in old age, told by her granddaughter.

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Born into a cultured Indian family, she read all the novels of Charles Dickens before she turned ten. Then she was forced to leave school to get married. At 15 she was a mother. And for most of her adult life, Sethu Ramaswamy was in the shadows, trying to find her place in the light.

Finally, at 80, her memoir - Autobiography of an Unknown Indian Woman - was published, to great fanfare and acclaim.

This is the surprising third act in a drama full of surprises - the story of a child bride whose husband was both her true love and the biggest obstacle to her freedom, the story of a woman who set out one day to make for herself the  life she'd always wanted.

Sarmishta Subramanian’s intimate and remarkable documentary brings us the story of her grandmother:  It’s called "A Woman of No Consequence" 

 

Sarmishta Subramanian is a senior editor with Maclean’s Magazine, a national news weekly. This is her first radio documentary.

Karen Levine is the documentary editor at CBC Radio’s The Sunday Edition. She is a two-time winner of the Peabody Award.

 

 

 

 

House/Full of Black Women

From The Kitchen Sisters | 53:27

For some eight years now, 34 Black women from the Bay Area — artists, scholars, midwives, nurses, an architect, an ice cream maker, a donut maker, a theater director, a choreographer, musicians, educators, sex trafficking abolitionists and survivors have gathered monthly around a big dining room table in Oakland, California. Meeting, cooking, dancing, strategizing — grappling with the issues of eviction, gentrification, well-being and sex trafficking that are staring down their community, staring down Black women in America.

Housefull-radiospecial_small Welcome to House/Full of Black Women, a new hour-long special from The Kitchen Sisters, Ellen Sebastian Chang, Sital Muktari & PRX.

For some eight years now, 34 Black women from the Bay Area — artists, scholars, midwives, nurses, an architect, an ice cream maker, a donut maker, a theater director, a choreographer, musicians, educators, sex trafficking abolitionists and survivors have gathered monthly around a big dining room table in Oakland, California. Meeting, cooking, dancing, strategizing — grappling with the issues of eviction, gentrification, well-being and sex trafficking that are staring down their community, staring down Black women in America.

Across these years House/Full has created a series of performances and activations — street processions, street interventions, all-night song circles, historical narratives, parking lot ceremonies, rituals of resting and dreaming.

This House/Full Radio Special was inspired by the House/Full of BlackWomen project conceived and choreographed by Amara Tabor-Smith and co-directed by Ellen Sebastian Chang and an evolving collective of Black women artists and features interviews with sex trafficking abolitionists, personal stories of growing up in the Bay Area, music, Black women dreaming, resisting, insisting.

With Support From: The Creative Work Fund, The National Endowment for the Arts, The Kaleta Doolin Foundation, The Texas Women’s Foundation, Susan Sillins, listener contributions to The Kitchen Sisters Productions & PRX.

House/Full of Black Women is part of The Keepers series produced by The Kitchen Sisters (Davia Nelson & Nikki Silva) in collaboration with Brandi Howell and Nathan Dalton and mixed by Jim McKee.

House/Full of Black Women. Pull up a chair. Take a listen.

The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women - HERO Training Africa’s New Female Leaders

From Rob Sachs | 59:02

In this episode, we learn about two efforts to increase the number of women politicians in Africa. We begin with a surprising reality TV show in Kenya called “Ms President,” where millions of weekly viewers watched dozens of women compete to be the country’s next “head of state,” so to speak. Then, we hear about Nigerian efforts to get more women on the ballot in last year’s election and why they largely failed. Host Reena Ninan - founder of Good Trouble Productions. She is a television journalist who has worked as a White House correspondent, foreign reporter, and news anchor for CBS, ABC, and Fox News.

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PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS:

  • Reporting from Nairobi, Kenya, journalist Eunice Maina interviews Nereah Amondi Oketch, a contestant on a first-of-its-kind reality TV program called, “Ms President,” which tried to train women to be politicians. The nonprofit Media Focus in Africa produced the show, with funding from the European Union and UN Women, among others. The goal was to increase the number of women politicians in Kenya. 

  • Then, host Reena Ninan speaks with Nichole Grossman from American University. Grossman conducted dozens of interviews with women candidates who ran for office in Nigeria last year. These women ran with the main political party there, which had a big initiative to increase its female representation. And yet, they failed to deliver this promise. What Grossman learned from female candidates is eye opening – and gives a much fuller picture of what Nigerian politics is like for women. 

  • Finally, reporter Yecenu Sasetu talks to Honourable Kate Raymond Mamuno, who shares how she got elected as an assembly member in Nigeria, against the odds. This included help from a non-profit focused on influencing male voters, called Connected Development. 

I Spy: Real Life Spy Stories

From Rob Sachs | 58:58

Espionage was once a mostly male pursuit but these days the top three officials at the CIA are women. On this program we hear from Jonna Mendez, the CIA’s former head of disguise, and Amaryllis Fox, a former undercover agent. Each one tells the story of one dramatic operation

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Program Host -  Margo Martindale, Emmy award winning actress who played KGB Handler Claudia on The Americans. 
  • Jonna Mendez spent nearly three decades in the CIA  and served as the agency's head of disguise. She has co-written several books about her work in the agency including The Moscow Rules: The Secret CIA Tactics That Helped America Win the Cold War.
  • Amaryllis Fox worked as a CIA undercover agent for a decade, getting close to international arms traders who deal in weapons of mass destruction and recruiting them as informers. She recounts her experiences in the book Life Under Cover: Coming of Age in the CIA.



Half-Hour (24:00-30:00)

The Feminist Birth of the Home Pregnancy Test

From Making Contact | Part of the Making Contact series | 29:00

In 1965 Margaret Crane was a young graphic designer with an idea: Why couldn't women do their own pregnancy tests at home? This is the story of how she launched a product to help women know and make choices for their own bodies - and the inevitable backlash.

Meg_crane_1965_annakaufman_small In 1965 Margaret Crane was a young designer creating packaging for a pharmaceutical company. Looking at the rows of pregnancy tests she thought, “Well, women could do that at home!” and so she made it a reality for potentially pregnant people to be able to know about and take control of their own lives and bodies.

But while the design of the prototype was simple, Crane faced the issues we continue to fight when it comes to reproductive rights and the health and autonomy of people who give birth: an uphill battle to convince the pharmaceutical companies, the medical community and conservative social leaders that at-home pregnancy testing was safe and necessary. After all this, Crane is only now receiving credit for her contributions to the industry.

Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. [https://www.radioproject.org/2024/02/the-feminist-birth-of-the-home-pregnancy-test]

Making Contact [https://radioproject.org/] is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

The Foremother of Women's History

From Barry Vogel | Part of the Radio Curious series | 29:01

Radio Curious visits with Dr. Gerda Lerner, a founder of the academic genre called Women's History. Lerner died January 2, 2013 at the age of 92.

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The history of women has existed as long as humans have, but it was not until the last half of the 20th Century that women’s history received recognized academic attention.  Our guest, Professor Gerda Lerner was a pioneer in the movement to study and record the history of women.  

Gerda Lerner led an extraordinary life from April 30, 1920 to January 2, 2013.  She was a historian, author and teacher, and ultimately a professor emeritus of history at the University of Wisconsin.  Her academic work was characterized by the attention she drew to the differences among women in class, race and sexual orientation. 

She grew up in Vienna, Austria, suffered in the Nazi persecution of the European Jews, came to the United States as a teenager, and married a writer who was subsequently blacklisted in the 1950s.  She later entered Columbia University in 1958, originally to take a few classes and by 1966 she had earned a doctorate in history. 

“Fireweed: A Political Autobiography,”  tells her life story up to the time she enrolled at Columbia University.

Professor Lerner and I visited by phone in October 2002, began with her description why the distinctions among women of class, race and sexual orientation are important.

The book Dr. Gerda Lerner recommends is "A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812"  by Laurel Ulrich.

Talking With The Wind: The Mystery of Opal Whiteley

From Dmae Lo Roberts | 28:21

A documentary about Opal Whiteley, who caused an international scandal in 1920 when she published a childhood diary that was later decried a hoax.

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Talking With The Wind: The Mystery of Opal Whiteley, a half-hour documentary on Opal Whiteley, of a young woman from Cottage Grove, Oregon. In 1920 she published a childhood diary about her time in the woods and her love of nature. It became wildly popular and then was later condemned as a hoax. This diary created an international controversy that led to her eventual decline in mental health. 

Dmae Roberts co-produced this with Playwright Dorothy Velasco in 1988 with music by John Doan. It also contains a clip from the only known recording of Opal Whiteley before she died in 1992.


This piece originally produced in 1988 contains the only known recording of Opal Whiteley.  

 

The Vagina Monologues

From Barry Vogel | Part of the Radio Curious series | 29:00

Radio Curious revisits a 2004 conversation with Eve Ensler, creator of "The Vagina Monologue," for Women's History Month.

Radio-curious-logosmall_small The Vagina Monologues, created and produced by Eve Ensler, tell the stories of women, their relationships, feelings, and, in some cases, abuse. In this edition of Radio Curious, we revisit a 2004 conversation with Eve Ensler. She discusses the origin of "The Vagina Monologues" and the film, based on her work, "Until the Violence Ends."

The book Eve Ensler recommends is "Bush in Babylon," by Tariq Ali.

This program was originally broadcast: January 27, 2004

Women Rising #22: International Anti-Nuclear Activists

From Making Contact | Part of the Making Contact series | 29:00

With nuclear power back on the agenda, three prominent female activists tell their stories: Kaori Izumi was part of the grassroots campaign to shutdown Japan’s nuclear power plants, after the Fukushima disaster. Winona LaDuke, has spent much of her life working to oppose uranium mining on indigenous land. And Alice Slater is part of a global initiative to ban nuclear weapons. On this edition, is the anti-nuclear movement on the rise? This is a special collaboration with Lynn Feinerman and Crown Sephira Productions.

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With nuclear power back on the agenda, three prominent female activists tell their stories:  Kaori Izumi was part of the grassroots campaign to shutdown Japan’s nuclear power plants, after the Fukushima disaster. Winona LaDuke, has spent much of her life working to oppose uranium mining on indigenous land.  And Alice Slater is part of a global initiative to ban nuclear weapons. On this edition, is the anti-nuclear movement on the rise? This is a special collaboration with Lynn Feinerman and Crown Sephira Productions.

Peace Talks Radio: Peace Elders Part 1 / Juanita Nelson + Ruth Imber (29:00)

From Good Radio Shows, Inc. | Part of the Peace Talks Radio: Weekly Half Hour Episodes series | 28:51

Conversations with two octogenarian peace advocates, Juanita Nelson and Ruth Imber, who have each found ways to stay active, working for peace well into their eighties.

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On this edition of Peace Talks Radio, conversations with two octogenarian peace advocates who have each found ways to stay active, working for peace well into their eighties.  They each bring the perspective of over eight decades of history to the table as they crusade in their own way for nonviolence. 

First we’ll visit with Juanita Morrow Nelson.   In the mid-1940’s, Juanita Morrow was a young reporter for a Cleveland African-American newspaper.  She was assigned to interview several conscientious objectors who were in jail awaiting appeal of their 5 year sentence for refusing military service in World War 2 because they didn’t feel they should be required to kill.    Ms. Morrow became intrigued with one of the men – Wally Nelson.   Not long after Nelson was released in 1946 after serving 33 months of his sentence, he and Juanita began a relationship that was built around their common commitment to non-violence in all parts of their lives.   The Nelsons were among the first to take the step of refusing to pay taxes to the government because they did not want their tax dollars to go to military spending.  For decades they lived simply below the taxable income line and were active in civil rights and social justice movements.   Wally Nelson died in 2002 at the age of 93.  Juanita Nelson, 85 at the time of our interview, was continuing on her own, living in the house she and Wally Nelson built together from salvaged material.  No electricity, no plumbing, growing their own food on a small tract of land in western Massachusetts.  Ms. Nelson died in 2015.

Also we visit with Ruth Imber.  If you lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and ever attended an event that promoted peacemaking, you’d find a little bespectacled grey haired woman named Ruth Imber there for sure.   In fact, it wouldn’t be unusual for Ruth to slowly climb on to the stage, and grab a microphone to recite an original peace poem or song.  Social justice and peace activism has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember, which, she admits is going back pretty far – to her 1920’s and 30’s childhood in New York City where she grew up.   Ruth Imber was 83 at the time of her interview.  She passed away in 2014.

Carol Boss is host.

This can be paired with a second half hour program that continues the "Peace Elder" theme featuring 87 year old Dr. Bernard Lown.  http://www.prx.org/pieces/33382-peace-talks-radio-peace-elders-part-2-dr-berna

The History of Feminism

From Barry Vogel | Part of the Radio Curious series | 29:01

Radio Curious revisits a conversation about the history and future of feminism with History Professor, Estelle B. Freedman, author of ""No Turning Back The History of Feminism and the Future of Women."

Radio-curious-logosmall_small The place of women in the world and in the American society has changed in many aspects in the recent past. Many people say this is due to the politics of feminism, and some inquire where it will lead. 

Our guest in this archive edition of Radio Curious is Estelle B. Freedman, a professor of history at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, who has a specialty in feminism. She is the author of "No Turning Back The History of Feminism and the Future of Women." She addresses many of the issues in her book in our conversation today.

I spoke with Professor Freedman by phone in April 2002 and asked her to talk about why feminism did not evolve as people evolved and civilization developed. 

The books Professor Freedman recommends are "The Blind Assassin" by Margaret Atwood, and "The Vagina Monologues" by Eve Ensler. 

Year of the Women?

From Voices of Our World | 28:00

Today on Voices of Our World we speak with two women who may provide some insight into whether or not the effects of the so-called “year of the women” were felt around the globe. Join us as we visit Egypt and Kenya to find out more about the situation women face as they fight for equal rights. Our guests are professor Gehen el-Margoushy from Egypt, and Pauline Ngina Musau from Kenya.

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Part One:  YEAR OF THE WOMEN?    

Today on Voices of Our World we speak with two women who may provide some insight into whether or not the effects of the so-called "year of the women" were felt around the globe.  Join us as we visit Egypt to find out more about the situation women face as they fight for equal rights, and human rights. Our guest is professor Gehen el-Margoushy of Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt.

 

Part Two: YEAR OF THE WOMEN?      

Pauline Ngina Musau, is the director of the Kitale, Kenya gender office. During our visit she told us that before you can fight for equal rights for women in Kenya, the first step involves making women aware that they have any rights at all; and it wasn't until she entered university herself that she began to understand the need to empower women to fight for their rights and their futures.

MAKERS: The Women Who Make America

From KSFR | Part of the Equal Time with Martha Burk series | 28:29

Series host Martha Burk interviews Betsy West, Executive Producer of the PBS Special MAKERS:Women Who Make America, premiering on PBS February 26, 2013.

Makers2_small MAKERS is a PBS documentary about how women took to the streets to transform society and the role of women in that society.  MAKERS draws on more than 100 interviews with women then and now -- to finally tell the story of the modern Women’s Movement and how it changed our families, our country, our institutions, and our world.  MAKERS is also an ongoing project in conjunction with AOL to archive over 100 video interviews of prominent women ranging from the first female Supreme Court Justice to the first female major American orchestra conductor.

West, a former CBS News senior vice president, talks about the making of the series, working with narrator Meryl Streep, and the remarkable women featured in the special. 

First KSFR broadcast March 9, 2013. 
See timing and cues.  

The Male Brain, the Female Brain-There is a Difference

From Barry Vogel | Part of the Radio Curious series | 29:01

This week Radio Curious speaks with neuropsychiatrist, Dr. Louann Brizendine, founder of the Women’s Mood and Hormone Clinic at the University of California in San Francisco. She’s the author of 2 books, "The Female Brain," published in 2006 and, "The Male Brain," published in 2010. In this interview she discusses what differentiates the two.

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Have you ever been curious about the difference between the male brain and the female brain?  Well I have, for a long time.  This week Radio Curious speaks with neuropsychiatrist, Dr. Louann Brizendine, founder of the Women’s Mood and Hormone Clinic at the University of California at San Francisco.  In 2006 she wrote a book called, “The Female Brain,” and in 2010 she wrote “The Male Brain,”--very different books about very different genders of our human species. 

 

The interview with Dr. Louann Brizendine was recorded March 21st, 2011.

 

The book she recommends is “The Emperor of All Maladies,” by Siddhartha Mukherjee.

Women Rising 19: Masters of the Spoken Word

From Making Contact | Part of the Making Contact series | 29:00

A profile of two American masters of the spoken word, provoking, inspiring, and moving us to action. Eve Ensler, playwright of the “Vagina Monologues” shares the innovative work of her organization, V-Day. And, renowned storyteller, Diane Ferlatte, talks about using her art as an international bridge over cultural divides.

Episode_pic_1_for__10-09_ferlatte_small Women are gaining influence as leaders throughout the world, fighting for peace, justice, the environment, and civil society. In this program, we profile two American masters of the spoken word, provoking, inspiring, and moving us to action. Eve Ensler, playwright of the hit “Vagina Monologues” shares the innovative work of her organization, V-Day, and renowned storyteller, Diane Ferlatte, talks with us about using her art as an international bridge over cultural divides.

Featuring:
Diane Ferlatte, storyteller; Eve Ensler, Vagina Monologues writer and V-Day founder

What's the Word? Medieval Women

From Modern Language Association | Part of the What' s the Word? - A series of half-hour programs to celebrate Women's History Month in March series | 29:32

Typically, we think of the Middle Ages as a time that offered women very few options, but you might be surprised by some of the accomplishments of medieval women.

Whatswordlogodc_medium_small Have you ever thought about what your life would have been like if you had been a woman in the Middle Ages? What kinds of opportunities you would have had? What kind of work you might have done? Typically, we think of the Middle Ages as a time that offered women very few options--but you might be surprised by some of the accomplishments of medieval women. Marie Boroff talks about one of Chaucer's most famous--and feisty--characters in _The Canterbury Tales_, the Wife of Bath; Barbara Newman talks about religious lifestyles of medieval women and shares works by the twelfth-century German nun Hildegard of Bingen; and C. Jean Dangler talks about women healers in medieval Spain. Thirty-second promo available. If you are interested in this, see our pieces at: http://prx.org/pieces/16919 What's the Word? Pride and Prejudice http://prx.org/pieces/16840 What's the Word? Women Warriors http://prx.org/pieces/16877 What's the Word? Elizabeth I and Victoria http://prx.org/pieces/17295 What's the Word? Women Public Intellectuals

What's the Word? Women Warriors

From Modern Language Association | Part of the What' s the Word? - A series of half-hour programs to celebrate Women's History Month in March series | 29:54

From Joan of Arc to GI Jane, a look at women warriors.

Whatswordlogodc_medium_small From the Greek goddess Athena to the classic comic book character Zena and from Joan of Arc to GI Jane, history, mythology, and contemporary literature and film offer many images of women warriors. Susan Crane takes us back to the Middle Ages with a look at Joan of Arc and the transcripts of her trial for heresy; Shirley Geok-lin Lim talks about Maxine Hong Kingston's book _The Woman Warrior_; and Yvonne Tasker explores the portrayal of a female naval officer in Ridley Scott's 1997 film, _GI Jane_. Fifteen- and thirty-second promos available. If you are interested in this, see our pieces at: http://prx.org/pieces/16877 What's the Word? Elizabeth I and Victoria http://prx.org/pieces/16919 What's the Word? Pride and Prejudice http://prx.org/pieces/16838 What's the Word? Medieval Women http://prx.org/pieces/17295 What's the Word? Women Public Intellectuals

Women in Sports: Separate & Not Equal

From Making Contact | Part of the Making Contact series | 28:56

Dave Zirin and Elizabeth Terzakis take a look back at the history of discrimination against women in sports, and we’ll hear where the long battle for equality and acceptance stands today.

Lisa_herner_small Funding and publicity for women’s sports have grown substantially in the past two decades. Yet from high school to the pros, women often still have to contend with resistance and stereotypes that treat them like second class athletes.

On this edition, Dave Zirin and Elizabeth Terzakis take a look back at the history of discrimination against women in sports, and we’ll hear where the long battle for equality and acceptance stands today.

Featuring: Dave Zirin, Author and social commentator; Elizabeth Terzakis, Cañada College English and Reading instructor.

Program #37-09 - Begin date: 09/16/09. End date: 03/16/10.

Please call us if you carry us - 510-251-1332 and we will list your station on our website. If you excerpt, please credit early and often.

The Heart's Truth

From Muriel Murch | 28:17

A conversation between nurses. Interviewer Muriel Murch talks with nurse, writer and poet Cortney Davis

Florence_nightingale_helps_a_sick_man_small Nurse writer Cortney Davis speaks with Muriel Murch about the Art of Nursing. They discuss the essays from her book The Heart's Truth published by Kent State University. They touch on the history of nursing and explore the meaning of such stories as "Washing Mrs. Cardiff's Feet," "Tattoos," and 'Beyond Scientific Explanation."


Segments (9:00-23:59)

India's Shifting Gender Roles: One Girl's Tale

From Rhitu Chatterjee | 11:03

India's come under close scrutiny lately for its poor treatment of women and girls. Yet, this is a time when a growing number of women are enjoying unprecedented opportunities. More and more women are getting educated and joining the work force. So how are girls and women in the country seeing themselves and their future? To find out, The World's Rhitu Chatterjee spent some time with one girl in a remote corner of the country. A co-production of PRX's Global Story Project and PRI's The World. (Multimedia elements are available for embedding, too.)

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The recent gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student in the Indian capital of New Delhi sparked unprecedented demonstrations across the country. It also fueled discussions about the status of women in India. But the recent spike in violence against women also parallels an increase in the number of women in public spaces, a fact that reflects the changing role of women in the society.

These changes have even trickled down to some of the remotest and most conservative parts of India.

But how do these changes play out in an individual’s life? How do old and new ways interact and clash in a family, and in a community? And who and what helps a girl learn what is expected of her what she can and cannot do?

The World’s Rhitu Chatterjee answers some of these questions through a look at the life of 12 year-old Sarita Meena, who lives in a remote village in Northwestern India.

Sarita looks like a boy. She is skinny, and wears her hair very short. People in the village call her father's son. In a region, where most girls and women are quiet and shy with strangers, Sarita never hesitates to strike up a conversation. She is fearless, outspoken and likes hanging out with the boys at school.

She is the youngest of three daughters. Her two older sisters live in a small town an hour away and are among the first girls to leave the village for higher studies. Sarita wants to follow in her sisters’ footsteps and eventually get a job teaching school kids.

But she is also a dutiful, obedient daughter. She is eager to help her mother with housework and help her father on his farm. She worries about who will look after her parents once she and her sisters are married and living with their in-laws.

The contradictions in Sarita’s personality reflect a larger reality in Indian society. As women have more and more opportunities, they  have to decide for themselves how much they want to push back against tradition.

This story takes a close look at how one young girl is making those decisions and choices, and why. 

On the Move in Mongolia

From Outer Voices | 23:43

There I was, an Indian woman on the move in a strange new land - Mongolia - and it didn't feel so strange. So much resonated - especially the voices of other women - like Monjago, a nomadic herder, Munkhtsetseg, a horse trainer, Onika, a student, Amgalan, a language teacher and Jainaa, a singer. They made faraway feel like home. Produced by Shebana Coelho for Outer Voices.

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On the Move in Mongolia was produced for Outer Voices (www.outervoices.org) which showcases the seldom-heard voices of women the world over. 

 


Spring Days
Monjago is a nomadic herder who lives
with her family on the steppe of Eastern
Mongolia. Everyday, I shadow her -
herding cattle, milking cows, cleaning pens,
brushing cashmere. She’s always moving
…and I’m always struggling to catch up.


A Formidable Woman
There are very few female horse trainers in
Mongolia - and Munkh-Tsetseg is one of
them. She trains fast horses for the annual
festival of Naadam. The first time we meet she
says, “ I’m half a century” and “Come visit.”
So I do. I go to her ger homestead in Hentii province.

 
City Girl
Onika lives in the capital,
Ulaanbaatar and would like to set
the record straight - about
Mongolia, cities, horses, Harry
Potter and the ideal Mongolian
woman. 
 
 
 

Peaceful Moments
Amgalan lost her leg in an
accident 12 years ago and “that’s when I
really began living,” she says. Her name
means peace and her words --on nature,
destiny, loss and rebirth--embody wisdom. 
 
 
One Fine Evening
Jainaa lives with her family in Bayan Olgii
province. She just graduated from college and is in
limbo, wondering whether work or marriage is
next.  One night, I ask her for a song – she starts,
her family joins in, and the moment grows into an
impromptu concert in which a girl on the cusp faces the future.



Ruffian

From Third Coast International Audio Festival | 09:40

When Re:sound host, Gwen Macsai was fourteen, the incredible female race-horse, Ruffian, ran straight into her heart and left a permanent impression.

Ruffian_small It’s June 1973 and Secretariat has just become the first horse in 25 years to win the triple crown, obliterating his competition in the Belmont stakes by  31 lengths and setting a new world record.  Interest in horseracing is soaring. Women’s Lib is in full swing. Ms. Magazine is just one year old. The Equal Rights Ammendment  has been ratified in 30 states but is still a very contentious issue. And in September of ’73, a loud-mouth former tennis champion named Bobby Riggs becomes the male chauvinist pig that everyone loved to hate. 

This was the climate in which a beautiful female race-horse named Ruffian captured the attention of the country, and stole Gwen Macsai's fourteen-year-old heart.  In this personal essay, Gwen recounts Ruffian's racing career,  including her tragic battle-the-sexes race that ended in heartbreak.

The Sisters Fox

From Nate DiMeo | Part of the the memory palace series | 09:41

We hear the story of the Fox sisters: Two American kids growing up upstate New York, who, at the ripe old ages of 11 and 14 concocted a prank that put them at the center of the spiritualism movement in 19th century America.

Sisters_240_small In which we hear the story of the Fox sisters: two American kids growing up in the heartland (or upstate New York) who, at the ripe old ages of 11 and 14 concocted a prank that put them at the center of the spiritualism movement in 19th century America.

The WASPs: Women Pilots of WWII

From Radio Diaries | 22:42

In the early 1940s, the US Air Force faced a dilemma. Thousands of new airplanes were coming off assembly lines and needed to be delivered to military bases nationwide, yet most of America's pilots were overseas fighting the war. To solve the problem, the government launched an experimental program to train women pilots.

Wasp_square_small In the early 1940s, the US Airforce faced a dilemma. Thousands of new airplanes were coming off assembly lines and needed to be delivered to military bases nationwide, yet most of America's pilots were overseas fighting the war. To solve the problem, the government launched an experimental program to train women pilots. They were known as the WASPs, the Women Airforce Service Pilots. 

Harvard Critic Helen Vendler on Emily Dickinson

From Jenny Attiyeh | 18:02

When Helen Vendler was only 13, the future poetry critic and Harvard professor memorized several of Emily Dickinson’s more famous poems. They’ve stayed with her over the years, and today, she talks with ThoughtCast’s Jenny Attiyeh about one poem in particular that’s haunted her all this time. It’s called "I cannot live with You-".

According to Vendler, whose authoritative "Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries" has recently been published, it’s a heartbreaking poem of an unresolvable dilemma, and ensuing despair.

Emilydickinson_small

When Helen Vendler was only 13, the future poetry critic and Harvard professor memorized several of Emily Dickinson’s more famous poems. They’ve stayed with her over the years, and today, she talks with ThoughtCast’s Jenny Attiyeh about one poem in particular that’s haunted her all this time.  It’s called I cannot live with You-
According to Vendler, whose authoritative Dickinson: Selected Poems and Commentaries has recently been published, it’s a heartbreaking poem of an unresolvable dilemma, and ensuing despair.

This interview is the first in a new ThoughtCast series which examines a specific piece of writing — be it a poem, play, novel, short story, work of non-fiction or scrap of papyrus — that’s had a significant influence on the interviewee, that’s shaped and moved them.

Up next – esteemed novelist and short story writer Tom Perrotta discusses Good Country People,  a short story by Flannery O’Connor that’s particularly meaningful to him.

The Speed Sisters - Racing in Ramallah

From Polly Fields | 19:05

'The Speed Sisters’ are the West Bank's first, and only, all-female, Palestinian racing team.

They have become serious competitors on the West Bank's growing street-car racing scene, that stretches across the battle-scarred towns of Jenin, Nablus, Bethlehem and Hebron.

These young women train alongside macho Palestinian men under the gaze of Israeli military watchtowers, and embrace Ramallah’s burgeoning nightlife.

I follow these women in this occupied territory, as they try to live somewhere on the bridge between the Palestinian culture they respect, and the modern, secular lifestyle they desire.

Prx_small 'The Speed Sisters’ are the West Bank's first, and only, all-female, Palestinian racing team. They have become serious competitors on the West Bank's growing street-car racing scene, that stretches across the battle-scarred towns of Jenin, Nablus, Bethlehem and Hebron. These young women train alongside macho Palestinian men under the gaze of Israeli military watchtowers, and embrace Ramallah’s burgeoning nightlife. I follow these women in this occupied territory, as they try to live somewhere on the bridge between the Palestinian culture they respect, and the modern, secular lifestyle they desire.

Jennie's Secret

From Linda Paul | 18:05

None of her fellow soldiers in the Civil War knew she was a woman. They didn’t conduct physical exams back in those days the way the military does now. The Army’s policy, one observer quipped, was “don’t test the eyes, count ‘em.“

Pic10_small The non-bearded soldier in this picture was known to her comrades as Albert Cashier. But she was born in Ireland on Christmas Day of 1843 as Jennie Hodgers. This is the story of a woman who posed as a man during the Civil War and went on to live most of her life as a man in the tiny town of Saunemin, Illinois. Through the years the town has been ambivalent about their most famous citizen & has struggled to figure out what to do with her old house.

Shout Out to Your Grandma

From Canadian Broadcasting Corporation | Part of the The Secret Life of Canada series | 13:42

In a special shout out for International Women's Day, The Secret Life of Canada asked listeners to share stories about the matriarchs hidden in their family histories.

Sloc_small

In a special shout out for International Women's Day, The Secret Life of Canada asked listeners to share stories about the matriarchs hidden in their family histories. These women may not have been written about, or have won awards, or have achieved historic "firsts" but the people they were and the choices they made had a huge impact on their communities, families and descendants.

Peace.

From Jenna Hammerich | 12:26

When you're a girl raised by hippies, anything goes.

Playing
Peace.
From
Jenna Hammerich

Vectorflowers_small A child of 70s flower children, I grew up with no rules, no discipline. What awful kind of adult would I be?


Cutaways (5:00-8:59)

A Picture Emerges

From Josh Swartz | 06:33

This story explores Michelle Obama's early life, expectations surrounding her ascendency as First Lady, and the impact she will leave on the office. Told from the perspective of Peter Slevin, former Washington Post bureau chief and author of the biography "Michelle Obama: A Life".

Obama638_small This story explores Michelle Obama's early life, expectations surrounding her ascendency as First Lady, and the impact she will leave on the office. Told from the perspective of Peter Slevin, former Washington Post bureau chief and author of the biography "Michelle Obama: A Life".

China's Undocumented Children

From Jennifer Dunn | Part of the China's One Child Policy: Stories of Struggles with its Unintended Consequences series | 07:01

Hear from women who are undocumented residents of their own country, whose parents didn't report their births due to China's one-child policy.

Village_girl_small

On My Own Two Feet

From Salt Institute for Documentary Studies | 05:47

Entering her 19th year as a truck driver, Debbie Seelow is no burly man, but rather a self-described "grandma who loves to knit and crochet." That is, when she's not hauling freight on her 18-wheeler.

Default-piece-image-0 That is, when she's not hauling freight on her 18-wheeler.

Giving Women The Vote

From Sandra Sleight-Brennan | 05:02

2010 is the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment which gave American women the right to vote. The story of the actual vote for ratification in August 1920 is a dramatic one.

Votes150_small Most people think of George Washington’s election as the first time Americans voted on the national level.  But it wasn’t until the election of 1920 that women throughout the nation had the right to vote.  It happened when one representative in the Tennessee House of Representatives followed his mother's advice and voted for suffrage.

It's Right For Me

From Salt Institute for Documentary Studies | 06:46

Alice Loesch has lived through a century that has seen some of history’s most sweeping changes in the lives of women.

Pc090049_small Alice didn’t spend her younger years marching for the vote or fighting for rights in the workplace—she found her liberation in a more personal way.

Gender And Identity At A Women's College

From NPR Intern Edition | 05:13

It turns out, gender is not all that simple at an all-women's college.

Picture_3_small Reporter Anna White-Nockleby investigates what it means for the individual and the environment when a 'women's college' like Bryn Mawr takes on students who identify themselves as male or transgendered. 

Women's College Cheerleaders Challenge Stereotype

From Karen Brown | 05:02

A new cheerleading squad at one of the country's pre-eminent women's colleges -- alma mater of Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan -- is raising eyebrows with its short skirts and perky attitudes.

Sq3_small The Smith College "Spirit Squad" set off a controversy this fall when 70s and 80s-era alumnae learned that their historically feminist, academically-rigorous school would be taking part in the most stereotypically "unfeminist" type of activity. But the cheerleaders on the squad insist that they're simply refusing to obey traditional boundaries of what is feminist. What's more feminist than cheering for women athletes?

What it Means to be a Woman

From Littleglobe | 07:01

A youth-produced piece, Chloe Espinosa interviews students, teachers, friends and family members about what it means to be a woman.

Url-1_small Chloe Espinosa interviews students, teachers, friends and family members about what it means to be a woman. Chloe combines the use of a vox pop with a personal narrative in this piece. 

Tereza’s story: I want to be a pilot

From UNICEF | Part of the Digital Diarists: Sudanese Youth Voices series | 05:17

17-year-old Tereza Kitale, a student in Juba, southern Sudan, talks about her dream of becoming a pilot.

Default-piece-image-1 When Tereza Kitale looks up at the sky over the town of Juba, Southern Sudan, she sees her future.

"I want to become a pilot," she says.  "But here in Southern Sudan it's very difficult to find a female who has become a pilot."

The 17-year-old student at Juba Day School hopes to change that.

In June 2009, Tereza was one of the participants in a week-long radio production workshop for 10 young people from Juba. UNICEF Radio – in partnership with UNICEF's ‘Back on Track’ programme on Education in Emergencies and Post-Crisis Transition, the UNICEF Southern Sudan Area Programme and Southern Sudan Radio – conducted the workshop with five boys and five girls chosen from local schools.

The young people learned how to record, edit, write and produce a radio report of their own.

For her story, Tereza interviewed Justine Takoki, a Kenyan female pilot based in Juba for the World Food Programme.

Ms. Takoki said that a major obstacle for women pilots is that the profession is dominated by men. "For a woman to come in and start flying, it was very difficult," she said.

"My advice to Sudanese girls is to follow their passion – and if they really want to become a pilot they should follow their passion and dreams and realize them and work very hard at it," she told Tereza.

Ms. Takoki said that Tereza reminded her of when she was in high school and she met a female pilot – the only female captain in Kenya – who became an inspiration to her.  “And I went and talked to her – just like you're doing – and she encouraged me and showed me exactly what I needed to do."

"I wish to do the same thing as Ms. Takoki," Tereza said. "And I wish to fly with her one day."

Tereza's report was produced to commemorate the Day of the African Child on 16 June.

Little Paid Parental Leave in the US

From Human Rights Watch | Part of the Rights Watch Radio with Anne Garrels series | 06:07

USA is one of the only countries in the world that doesn't offer paid parental leave.

Banner_radioshow1b_small The United States is one of the only countries in the world that doesn't offer paid parental leave. Veteran public radio reporter Anne Garrels looks at what this means for American families.

Women in the Economy

From World Vision Report | 05:45

In Somaliland, it’s women who run the businesses.

Wv_podcast_icon_sm_small If you air this piece, please include a back announce saying "This piece originally aired on the World Vision Report." or "This piece came to us from the World Vision Report."

Electronics Recycler

From Homelands Productions | Part of the WORKING series | 06:35

Ingrid Lobet profiles a woman who joined a group of unemployed middle-aged women to open an electronics recycling plant in northern Mexico.

Recycler_small For Mexican women of a certain age, finding decent work can be nearly impossible. Vicki Ponce was in her 50s, selling tamales, grateful for the money her daughter sent home from the US. Then she and some unemployed friends decided to make the leap into the booming trade in electronic waste. Today Las Chicas Bravas ("The Tough Girls") spend their days dismantling old TV sets by hand. Now to convince the mayor to turn on the power. Ingrid Lobet's profile is part of the WORKING series from Homelands Productions. 

The Cutting Place

From Lu Olkowski | Part of the In Verse: Women of Troy series | 05:03

A documentary poem about DJ Guerin, who’s 32, with 7 kids.

Dj_in_front_of_salon_small This poem by Susan B.A. Somers-Willett is called “The Cutting Place.”  It tells the story of DJ Guerin, who’s 32, with 7 kids.  DJ was married and had her first kid at 15.  She supports her family by working in a convenience store at a nearby gas station.  She was recently evicted, the latest in a long line of evictions.  Her kids are living with her mother, whom everyone calls Mama Vic, while DJ stays with friends.   Heads up: there is some harsh language not appropriate for younger listeners.  The poem begins with Mama Vic.

"Lady Bird Johnson: Legacy of a First Lady" Module #1

From Joe Bevilacqua | Part of the "Lady Bird Johnson: Legacy of a First Lady" Modules series | 05:31

For Women's History Month, one of eight short profiles in her own words. View all 8 modules.

Mediumladybirdpainting_small The 2008 Presidential election marks the first time a woman, Hillary Clinton is being seriously considered. Lady Bird Johnson was a pioneer First Lady who forged the way for this historic election. With this in mind, Joe Bevilacqua is releasing short module versions of taken from his award winning documentary. The first details Mrs. Johnson's early years. The modules combine never-before-released archive audio, gleaned from thousands of hours of recordings housed at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, period news broadcasts, private conversations with Lyndon Baines Johnson, and the words of Lady Bird Johnson from an interview that has never before been released to the public. If you would like to air the full one hour documentary, go to: http://www.prx.org/pieces/364 Bevilacqua spent nearly five months listening to the rare tapes and traveled to Washington, D.C. to interview Mrs. Johnson's colleagues and friends. The program features Lyndon Johnson Administration staffers Liz Carpenter, Bess Abell, and Nash Castro, Washington Post owner Katherine Graham, Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum Director Harry Middleton, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Director Robert Glass Breunig; Lady Bird biographer Jan Jarboe Russell, and First Ladies Betty Ford and Barbara Bush. Other voices heard on the program include Kirk Douglas and Helen Hayes reading from LBJ and Lady Bird's love letters. The production was produced in association with KUT Radio in Austin, TX, and overseen by a panel of scholars and experts including Lewis Gould, retired University of Texas at Austin Professor of History; Walt Rostow, UT Professor Emeritus, Elspeth Rostow, former dean of the UT LBJ School of Public Affairs; Carl Anthony, Washington, D.C. historian; and Don Carleton, director, The Center for American History at UT. ***** Informational, Inspiring This is an excellent, uplifting journey through Lady Bird Johnson's life, and her growth and transition to first lady under tragic conditions. It's wonderful to hear her voice, rendered here in excerpts from interviews she's given and speeches she's made. It is especially poignant to hear a portion of her first audio diary entry, made the day after JFK's assassination. Nuanced choices of music are a production plus, but the strength is in the spoken word. Wisely chosen excerpts create a rich experience. The hour contains a wide range of voices, from historians to those who worked with her or know her, and they pinpoint her influence on LBJ, and on the capital, and the nation -- particularly in the areas of environment, race, and education. She truly is a force for good. (Reviewer) (Editorial Board) Transom Editors , Atlantic Public Media December 4, 2003

Three Women

From Dmae Lo Roberts | 08:44

A Chicana, African American and Romanian talk about their breast cancer.

Readingcropped_small Three women, a Chicana, African American and Romanian immigrant, dealing with breast cancer describe their experiences in this collage story with original music. This piece was excerpted from the one-hour special The Breast Cancer Monologues.


Drop-Ins (2:00-4:59)

Fatima Learns to Drive

From Sarah Bromer | 04:42

Listen along as Fatima Alsamawi, a recent immigrant to the United States from Iraq, experiences the sweet freedom of driving for the first time.

Fatima_and_rana_celebrate_small Americans famously love to drive.  But in some countries, it's a form of freedom and indpencedence that doesn't come easily, especially for women. Producer Sarah Bromer accompanies Fatima Alsamawi--a recent immigrant from Iraq--as she takes the Arizona Driver's Permit Test and then attempts to drive for the first time.

Still Lagging After All These Years

From KSFR | Part of the Equal Time with Martha Burk series | 02:30

March 8 is International Women’s Day, so it’s time to check in on where the good old U S of A stands in relation to the rest of the world when it comes to gender equality. Spoiler alert – we’re not number one.

Podcastphoto_small The United States is 20th out of 142 countries in the world.  Last year we were number 23, so we’ve improved a bit overall (though back in 2011 we were even better at 17th).  Looking behind the numbers we see some good news – and some worrisome trends.

Kathleen Hanna: from Bikini Kill to Le Tigre

From David Schulman | Part of the Musicians in their own words series | 04:40

Original riot grrrl Kathleen Hanna remembers the DIY feminist punk scene she catalyzed in 1992 with Bikini Kill. (The band's first EP was re-released Nov 20, 2012, in 20th-anniversay vinyl). And she talks about how her musical energy takes new form in her current, much poppier band, Le Tigre.

Me-performing_small DIY!

Worldwide, Girls' Soccer Goes Beyond the Field

From Lisa Matuska | 03:28

Four young Moroccan female soccer players step outside their borders and expectations to come to Oak Brook, Illinois for a women's soccer leadership camp.

Img_0247_small Usually summer is a down time for youth soccer but out in Oak Brook recently, a sports icon held an intense soccer camp. About 60 teen girls attended Julie Foudy's Sports Leadership Academy. Many of these girls want to become pros but that's not what the camp's about. It's about carrying the sport they love-soccer-and the skills they gain from it, throughout their lives. But a few young women came to the camp from Morocco and Afghanistan where they have little chance of even continuing to play soccer as adults. Lisa Matuska spent some time at the camp to see how one Moroccan girl is challenging the conventional idea of women's soccer in her country.  

Raging Grannies

From Catherine Girardeau | 04:17

This story highlights the women who inspired documentary filmmaker Pam Walton's latest film, "Raging Grannies: The Action League." With interviews with the filmmaker and San Francisco Bay Area senior citizen peace activists, the documentary subjects paint a vivid picture of the tactics and antics these handbag-wielding, bonnet-wearing grannies use to bring attention to injustice, wherever they find it.

_grannies_in_street233x233_small Using interviews, film sound, and recordings from the Raging Grannies street demonstrations, this feature showcases an important new film about dynamic, active, activist older women who aren't afraid to speak out against injustice in spirited, theatrical street protests. In the process, they turn stereotypes about women and aging on their heads.

Some of the characters in the film and this radio story are:

•Granny Ruth, 57, has raised two children, and she and her husband, a Silicon Valley executive, live in Palo Alto. Granny Ruth is a tireless organizer -- she sometimes stays up until 4 or 5 a. m., searching the Internet, organizing gigs, writing songs, and planning skits.

• Granny Gail, 70, is a retired French teacher who taught at Stanford University. Ruth and Gail are the dynamos behind the Action League's very busy agenda.

Boxing for Girls

From World Vision Report | 04:49

Gun violence in Brazil has turned major cities like Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo into war zones. For young people who live in the slums - or favelas - crime offers an escape from a life of crushing poverty. But an organization in Rio de Janeiro is trying to turn kids away from guns and gangs. We bring you a story about how young women in Rio’s slums are fighting for a better future – and breaking down barriers at the same time.

Wv_podcast_icon_sm_small If you air this piece, please include a back announce saying "This piece originally aired on the World Vision Report." or "This piece came to us from the World Vision Report."

Migrant Domestic Workers in the Middle East

From Human Rights Watch | Part of the Rights Watch Radio with Anne Garrels series | 04:54

Women face exploitation and violence when leave their homes in Asia and Africa for jobs as domestic workers in the Middle East.

Banner_radioshow1b_small very year, hundreds of thousands of women leave their homes in Asia and Africa for jobs as domestic workers in the Middle East. When they face exploitation and violence there is little hope for justice. Anne Garrels reports.

Women in Combat

From War News Radio | 03:47

On January 24, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta lifted the ban on women serving in combat roles in the military. War News Radio reporter Amy DiPierro follows up with two recent veterans to find out what they think of the decision.

Img_0804_small

On January 24, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta lifted the ban on women serving in combat roles in the military. War News Radio reporter Amy DiPierro follows up with two recent veterans to find out what they think of the decision.


Interstitials (Under 2:00)

71-Martian Women

From Albert Grauer | Part of the Travelers In The Night series | 02:00

Men may be from Mars but women are exploring it.

Logoasteroid-2012-da14_small Please see the transcript.

StoryCorps: Dee Dickson

From StoryCorps | 01:51

Dee Dickson remembers trying to get a job as a shipyard electrician in the 1970s.

Dickson2_small In the 1970s, Dee Dickson was a single mother looking for work.

Here, she recalls trying to get a job as as a shipyard electrician, a profession dominated by males.

1989 Joanne Kyger - Springtime Adonis Poem

From Naropa University | Part of the Jack Kerouac Disembodied School of Poetics series | 01:52

One of the few Beat-era women writers reads her work.

Default-piece-image-0 Joanne Kyger is one of the still-living poets from the Beat era. Her writing focuses on the environment and contemplative themes. This heartful piece comes from an 89 reading at Naropa University. This piece is from Naropa University Archive's Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics collection. Allen Ginsberg founded the Kerouac School, a writing program, in 1974, and for 30 years he brought a group of counter culture writers, artists and thinkers to Boulder for a Summer Program. Naropa's Audio Archive is digitizing 2000 hours of readings, lectures and panel discussions, several hundred hours of which is available for free at www.archive.org. Click through 'audio' to 'naropa' and browse. Kyger is a frequent visiting instructor at the Summer Writing Program. The piece has never been broadcast - you will be among the first to make this rare recording available to listeners.

The Uppity Women in History (Series)

Produced by Guy Rathbun

The Uppity Women in History is a 31 part series in celebration of Women's History Month. Author Vicki Leon highlights the best of her previous releases focusing not on legendary goddesses, but on real women.

Most recent piece in this series:

March 1: Tituba

From Guy Rathbun | Part of the The Uppity Women in History series | 01:59

Tituba_small Tituba (March 1, 1692): A 17th-century slave. She is one of the first to be accused of practicing witchcraft during the Salem Witch trials in 1692.