Women's Liberation Radio News

This week, we're keeping things simple, streamlined, for our women's liberation music hour. Simple and streamlined, yet elegant and deep. Featuring talented composer Mary Watkins and readings from the classic novel, The Wanderground, by Sally Miller Gearheart, we will take a journey with sound and story guided by these two sisters of the revolution. Here is an introduction to these two women of power: Ms. Watkins is the recipient of several granting foundations such as Meet the Composer, National Endowment for the Arts, Gerbodi Foundation, Zellerbach Family Fund and Calfornia Council for the Arts. She is an eclectic composer. She is also a pianist, arranger, recording artist and record producer. Much of her music reflects a love for many styles of music whether jazz, gospel, Latin, country, rock, classical or pop. She has composed for solo piano for both adults and children, wind ensembles, string quartet, chamber and full symphony orchestra. She has also composed for theater, dance and film, songs for solo

Anya Robyak has worked in Early Childhood Education for almost 20 years as a classroom teacher, researcher, consultant, and college instructor. She shares ideas on how teachers and parents can work together to enhance the equity of our children’s lives. This podcast features the key question: should we say the F-word in the classroom?

You have until midnight on February 14th, 2018 to pre-order this fabulous shirt! Listen to the PSA for instructions on how to get in on this wonderful opportunity to support the design work of Ms. Kacie Mills, the winner of WLRN's 2017 t-shirt design contest AND to support the We Want the Land Coalition, the group seeking to purchase the Land the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival was on for forty years.

This week on the Women's Liberation Music Hour, Phoenixx features ideas and words of Janice Raymond, author of A Passion for Friends, amidst an hour of music that celebrates Gyn/affection. I hope you enjoy and are moved and inspired to deepen your female friendships as they are truly political! Song List: (in background)Praise Her Shawna Carol The Woman in Your Life Alix Dobkin All That You Have is Your Soul Tracy Chapman Womyn Copper Wimmin Sister Cris Williamson This is our Clan Carolyn Hillyer Circle of Women Nalini Family of Women Linda Shear Woman Loving Women Teresa Trull Never Gonna Be Your Bride Carrie Rodriguez As Cool as I am Dar Williams I Come from Women Amy Carol Webb Sisters in Struggle Lesbians on Ecstacy Golden Girls Cynthia Fee Side note: Cris Williamson/Teresa Trull/Barbara Higgbie are performing along the East coast at the end of March! Details I know most about is their show in Carrboro, NC on March 30 at The Arts Center. Tickets are available through the ven

WLRN's 2018 Valentines Day Edition on the Politics of Love & Sexuality begins with world headlines written and delivered by Jenna DiQuarto before featuring When You're Gone, a moving song about love by the late great Dolores O'Riordan, lead singer for the Cranberries. After this song, hear excerpts of an interview WLRN's Sekhmet She Owl did for this edition with legendary lesbian feminist, Bev Jo. https://bevjoradicallesbian.wordpress.com This interview segues nicely into the first of three mini-commentaries Sekhmet presents on lesbian relationships, heterosexual and bi relationships and friendships among women. Hear excerpts of an interview Thistle did with WLRN's Julia Beck, a reporter for the collective and staunch woman-loving-woman. Then, be moved to tears by listening to the song Harmless Love by Ferron. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJUP8hNbAHY Edition 22 concludes with excerpts of an interview Feminist Current's Meghan Murphy did with Meagan Tyler last month on the patriarchal nature of sex the

WLRN's Thistle Pettersen was able to connect with Venice Allan on January 22nd to talk about her recent suspension from the UK Labor Party. Ms. Allan is accused of bullying and harassment of Labour Party officials and trans-identifying males. These people include Heather Peto, TIM running for MP and already on the Labour Party's All Women Shortlist, Lily Madigan, Women's Officer, Jon Lansman, recently elected to the National Executive Committee, Paris Lees, a trans-identifying male activist, Eddie Izzard famous cross dressing British comic and CLITORIS, an unknown ‘cis’ councillor bloke from Anne Ruzylo’s constituency. Ms. Allan was also targeted in an open letter from some Irish feminists that you can see in the link below. They do not want her to come to Ireland on the We Need To Talk Tour that is slated to have an event on February 14th. https://feministire.com/2018/01/22/an-open-letter-to-the-organisers-of-the-we-need-to-talk-tour-from-a-group-of-feminists-in-ireland/amp/?__twitter_impression=true Ms.

This week, in honor of two old strong female activists of social and racial justice, I dedicate this hour of music and spoken word to Jackie Anderson of Chicago and "Jan" of South Jersey. Please read of Jackie Anderson's life of service to Lesbians and other oppressed peoples: PASSAGES Activist, professor Jackie Anderson dies - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News - Windy City Times Songlist: Miss Celie's Blues Suede Barely Blue Wild Things Cris Williamson The Changer and the Changed Fannie Lou Hamer Sweet Honey I'm Every woman/Respect Aretha Franklin Great Diva Classics No Man's Mama Carolina Chocolate Drops Leaving Eden The Magdalene Laundries Cris Williamson Motherland By Way of Sorrow Bearfoot Cry, Cry, Cry Oughta Be a Woman Sweet Honey Breaths Still Gotta Get up in the Morning Sweet Honey Still the Same Me Four Women Nina Simone The Best of For Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash Joy Harjo Weaving the Strands Yesterday's Lessons Sharon Isabel Any Woman's Blues Woman Slaughter Pat Parker Any

Greetings and Happy New Year! The team at WLRN is proud to share our first podcast of 2018, Edition 21: Ancient Gynocentric Societies. Photo of Babylonia, goddess Ishtar or Ereshkigal 'Queen of the Night' 18th C. BC by monopthalmos on flickr. This edition focuses on the developments and relics of woman-centric societies throughout history. Our guests Max Dashu, Riane Eisler, and Starhawk shared what they know about the herstories of woman-centric communities. Now is the perfect time to set a feminist resolution for the year ahead: let us move forward in strength and sisterhood toward a more gynocentric future! This month’s podcast starts with a friendly introduction by Amanda. Next comes WLRN’s world headlines written and read by Thistle. “Night Woman” by Carolyn Hillyer’ segues into Sekhmet SheOwl’s interview with Max Dashu, founder of the Suppressed Histories Archives. Then we hear excerpts from Julia’s interview with Starhawk, ecofeminist witch and founder of Reclaiming, an activist branch of modern

This week for Deep Winter’s Women’s Liberation music hour, I feature songs from female musicians of various parts of the world. All but the first one are either purely instrumental or have lyrics that are not in English. I hope my selections will help to shift your consciousness away from the ordinary, bringing the deep calm of yourself as Female and all the expansiveness and connectivity to Her and Her beneficent Life. Photo Credit: Hamid Sardar-Afkhami Girl-child is of theTsaatan (Dukha) Reindeer Nomads from the Mongolian North Play List: In background: Siber-Shaman Sainkho Namtchylak Naked Spirit Into the Dark Melissa Etheridge Breakdown Moon Chant Aco Takenaka Moon Chant Embers Helen Jane Long Embers Collage of Koleda Carols (Bulgarian) Kitka Women’s Vocal Ensemble Evening Star Shaman Weavers’ Dance Carolyn Hillyer The Wyched Wombe Trollobundin (Live) Eivor Palsdottir Rain Foryar, Min Modar Eivor

WLRN's Thistle Pettersen got to sit down with Riane Eisler, a prominent scholar who influenced Ms. Pettersen's thinking greatly in her youth. Dr. Eisler contributes much to conversations past and present about the status of women and how radical and lesbian feminists are on the cutting edge of the movement for a more humanitarian and just society. Riane Eisler is an eminent social scientist, attorney, and women’s human rights activist who pioneered the recognition of women’s rights as human rights. She is best known for her writings, including the international bestseller, The Chalice and The Blade, translated into 26 languages and now in its 57th US printing, with a new epilogue. She founded the first center on women and the law in the United States, wrote the Equal Rights Handbook on the proposed Equal Rights Amendment, and is the author of other award winning books as well as hundreds of articles and book chapters. Dr. Eisler is president of the Center for Partnership Studies (www.centerforpartnership.

This week I’m foregrounding music that quiets. Even though we all have both individual and collective fights against male supremacy, we need time to rest, replenish the reserves. And I know how often it feels like there’s not time for that. When we are working 40+ hrs a week, have families and loved ones who need our attention our energy; when the Liberation front needs our fuel...after all, male supremacy and injustice does not sleep! How can we dare to rest? We dare to rest to keep our sanity! So, this hour is to inspire the necessary quiet for our bodies and our psyches. I hope you are fed. As always I welcome your feedback and suggested music: feministwomyn11@gmail.com. Thanks for your encouragement; it keeps my fires going! Blessed be, Phoenixx Playlist: Winter Susie Suh Icicles Patti Griffin Draw us Down Carolyn Hillyer Night Woman Carolyn Hillyer Inanna Suzanne Sterling On the Other Side Gabrielle Roth & The Mirors The Cave Beyond the Cave Carolyn Hillyer Hawaiian Healing N

Think of the first song you ever heard. Was it the lullaby your mother sang at night? Perhaps it was some wind chimes tinkling in a storm. No matter the tune, music resonates with our souls far deeper than any writing or speaking ever can. Music, that unique organization of sound in time, is the oldest art. Before notated language, women spoke our herstories to the beat of drums. Thrumming on taught skins and hollowed logs sent messages into our bones. We breathed life into pipes that trilled the melodies of now forgotten times. We used our lilting voices to recant folktales and frights, the lessons of our lives, and funny tales of fluky passerby. Melodies, like recipes, can retell herstories, bridge social divides and unite minds. Pulsing chants can rally warriors while charming hymns can heal those wounded spirits. In our current time, these singsong rhymes are claimed and maimed by male supremacy: men relegate women musicians and our works to the background of the industry. Well, the women of WLRN say FU

This week, I call on music that invokes Spirit in me, and hopefully in you. For me, there can be no Revolution without some ground in one's soul or connection to a notion of Mystery/Spirit/Divinity. That looks different, of course, to all of us, but for the purposes of THIS fight for Women's Liberation, that Mystery, that Divine, that Spirit is Female. SheWho, as Judy Grahn named. Hope you enjoy my selections! Please let me know of songs that inspire Spirit in you; I'm always collecting new music to share: Feministwomyn11@gmail.com. I also welcome your suggestions, feedback and general encouragement to keep my own fires burning. Blessed be! Phoenixx Play list: Spiritsong(background to intro) Shawna Carol She Who Judy Grahn Wash Your Spirit Clean Walela Earth Prayer Alice Gomez The Divine Mothers: Auset&Yemaya Ancestral Rhythms The Ancient Ones Kelliana Ancient Mother Keruna Spirits Barrel House Mamas The Road I took to You Meg Christian My, my Ferron Light

As promised, this week I devote an hour of Women's Liberation Music to Lucie Blue Tremblay. Her music exudes such love,tenderness and ease all of which we as warriors/Amazons for Femaleness/Justice need every once in a while, hmm? I hope you will find time in your day to settle in for the next hour to allow Lucie Blue to sing to you, Sister. Remember you are deeply loved and held by something larger and deeper than the mess we face everyday under male supremacy. Blessed be, Sister. Enjoy! Saint-jean-port-joli 1986 Lucie Blue Tremblay Mademoiselle 1986 Lucie Blue Tremblay Politique 1989 Tendresse The Water is Wide 1989 Tendresse Absence 1989 Tendresse Homeless 1992 Transformations La Tete De L. Lndien 2017 Counting My Blessings Driving Home 2017 Counting My Blessings Two Lives 1989 Tendresse A Place in The Woods 1992 Transformations Getting Old 1992 Getting Old Stand up and Rise 2017 Counting My Blesseings NOTE: Her album When I was a Puppy features many of her old songs from your

Check out this opportunity to get your art out there and to support feminist community radio on the interwebs!

LESBIANISM as Resistance As we here in the US drag ourselves across the one year marker of a particular misogynistic white male supremacist presidential rule, it seems prudent on this week’s Women’s Liberation Music Hour with Phoenixx to focus again on Resistance! Last time, our music of Resistance carried the flavor of Anger; this time, the music flavor will celebrate Lesbianism. Separating ourselves from men, focusing on one another as Sisters/Lovers/Friends/Tribemates/etc and as Sonia Johnson once wrote, “taking our eyes off the guys,” are vital strategies of resisting male supremacy and heteronormativity. Lesbian Culture is rich with music around this Gynocentric theme, so I’m thrilled to gather and arrange some of my favorites for you this week. Hope you find yourselves singing along, laughing, crying with recognition and feeling the pride of being born a Female-loving Lesbian! Songlist: Well story and song Linda Shear, A Lesbian Portrait No thanks, Mister Nancy Henderson, Berkley Women'

Learn how to pre-order your TERF shirt in this entertaining little ditty some of the gals at the station made to get more women into these awesomely designed shirts! Listen to the ad to hear why YOU may want to order one today! We are taking pre-orders until December 10th, 2017 when the shirt will be removed from our site. So pre-order yours NOW!

Greetings on this fine November day! The women of WLRN invite you to sit back and relax with A Tribute to the Women Who Came Before Us. This special herstorical podcast focuses on the achievements and experiences of second wave feminists. Our foremothers built the groundwork for liberation years ago, and we must heed their advice to nurture this movement as they have, with clear intentions and courageous hearts. As the seasons change, let us dedicate a moment or two to our righteous feminist past. This month, our podcast begins with Sarah's hand-crafted headlines from all around the globe and then the song Misty Mountain by classic lesbian musician, Ferron. Next, Julia interviews Falcon River, who shares her stories of the second wave as an out butch lesbian, blazing a fresh trail Home. After a brief interlude with "Ancestor's Song" by Kellianna, Amanda interviews Linda Bellos, a candid second waver who's been no-platformed from Cambridge University. Paula Cole's "Tiger" is followed by Thistle's interview wi

This week on the Women’s Liberation Music Hour with Phoenixx, the theme is Resistance with a special focus on Anger. In general, women are socialized to not feel anger, let alone act on it. Of course, it’s no coincidence that rebellion, resistance and revolution against male supremacy is fueled and sustained by anger. Feeling and acting on one’s anger is essential to Women’s Liberation. Reasons for being angry these days are too many to enumerate, but if I were to name a few... sexism, racism, anti-semitism, classism, lesbophobia, ableism, sizeism, poverty...Oh, don't want to forget to mention what really is at the top of my uncensored list--pornography, johns, female sexual slavery, heteropatriarchal sexualization of women and girls, the pillaging and raping of the Earth and Her wimmin, and male violence of all varieties. May The Furies rise up and as Amy Carol Webb sings: "Mothers and Sisters of the Earth: shout your name, and claim your worth!" Image is of the Red Brigade of India 1 Fuck You Now Mani

WLRN's 18th edition podcast is packed with information and stories about prostitution, pornography and the sex trade. Though this topic is a difficult one to discuss, WLRN is committed to facing the truth about the conditions under which women live worldwide. For this reason and since we have never addressed this issue head-on before in a podcast, we are going over our normal hour length to offer up this collaborative work that is nearly two hours long. We were able to get in touch with some of the world's leading experts and activists on this topic including Samantha Berg, Julie Bindel, Sabrinna Valisce and Renee Gerlich. Each of our guests have unique and powerful things to say about the male-driven rape industry that plagues us in these latter stages of global patriarchal capitalism. In addition, hear our WLRN world headlines as written and presented by Amanda. Tired of patriarchal news coverage of global events? Take a listen to our headlines that come at the beginning of each podcast. And finally, e