EPISODES

“What does a post capitalist future look like?” ~ Renee Hatcher In our season finale, our brilliant guests share their experience and experiments in commerce and economy to answer this question. Tune in to learn more about: Worker cooperatives and the solidarity economy Spirit led creative entrepreneurship Participatory budgeting Democratically governed investment funds Time banks We get into capitalism 101, the limitations of Black capitalism, the myth of meritocracy, red...

We're continuing our conversation about domestic labor with a deep dive into the historical and current practice of organizing domestic workers for dignity and respect including: the role of storytelling in building collective identity community organizing strategies in and beyond legislated labor protections professionalizing the workforce through narratives and negotiations the politics of care work ABOUT OUR GUESTS Allison Julien is the We Dream in Black Organizing Directo...

“I remembered reminding myself that I would never work for wealthy families again.” ~ Allison Julien Taking care of children, disabled folks, the elderly, and the home is important work, but it doesn’t always get the respect it deserves - whether it’s paid or unpaid labor. In this first part of a two-part series, we get an inside look into an occupation behind closed doors and in private homes - domestic work. Tune in to hear from five incredible guests about: Why and how people bec...

Welfare reform in the 90’s and the recent pandemic may seem like radically different moments in history but they share a few things in common, namely back to work labor narratives that: are overly reliant on frameworks of personal responsibility prioritize work over health and wellbeing perpetuate policies, practices, and beliefs that are racist, sexist, classist, and ableist Tune in to hear from three brilliant guests sharing their stories and expertise on: the history and imp...

Have you ever asked yourself: “why am I alive?”| “what is my calling?” | “what’s my next career move?” If so, this episode is for you! In this intergenerational podcast workshop, we discuss: Astrology 101 covering signs, elements, and modalities How to tap into your personal astrology without knowing your birth time or location The houses to look to in your natal chart for a sense of your talents, gifts, resources, work style, purpose and legacy Example chart readings of Bl...

“We are in the business of putting ourselves out of business.” Nico Le Blanc In our first - and only! - panel discussion of the season, Taja Lindley facilitates a conversation with 3 diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practitioners with 40+ years of experience between them. Tune in to hear: What DEI work looks like in institutional settings to support racial equity and social movements. How they determine who they will (not) work with and why. The frameworks that guide their pract...

Is a diverse healthcare workforce enough to eradicate racism in medicine? The short is: no. Using race to remedy racism is not enough. And let's talk about why with four Black providers in reproductive health: an OBGYN, a nurse midwife, a traditional midwife, and a midwifery student. Tune in to hear the benefits of adding more Black folks to the healthcare workforce, as well as how this diversity-based approach is an incomplete strategy to remedy health inequity, including: The ways...

Part Two: The Old Fashion Gay Way Are you curious about how to get pregnant when queer? “Don't use a turkey baster!” Olivia Ford Olivia started her path to parenthood before being partnered. After her intuition told her it was time to pursue pregnancy, she popped the question to her gay guy friend: how would you like to make a baby with me? After 10 unsuccessful tries, she and her boo (now wife) purchased semen during a BOGO sale at a sperm bank and got pregnant with the second vial. Tune in ...

Part One: The Ol’ Mama Gang “I saw my daughter for the first time in a vision while I was meditating.” LeConté Dill After Dr. LeConté Dill’s vision in 2014, she met her husband, had an epic first date, eloped, and began her journey to motherhood. She soon discovered she would need some support to get pregnant, namely A.R.T.s - or assisted reproductive technologies. She leaned on in-vitro fertilization (IVF) to conceive the baby of her literal dreams and gave birth in her early 40’s right b...

A Select History of Race, Labor, & Reproduction in the U.S. “Black women are at the heart of the history of the Atlantic world.” Jennifer Morgan What does it mean to be gendered as laborers? Both physiologically and economically? How has that served colonial and U.S. economic interests? And how has the U.S. responded when Black women’s labor and reproduction no longer served racial capitalism? Tune in to time travel with us: your host, Taja Lindley, and our guests - Jennifer Morgan a...

Welcome to the Black Women's Dept. of Labor - a project and podcast by Taja Lindley about race, gender, and the double entendre of labor: to work and to give birth. The first episode premieres Wednesday April 13th, 2022 during Black Maternal Health week! Tune in every other Wednesday for dynamic stories, conversations and analysis. Visit www.BlackWomensLabor.com to learn more. Follow @BlackWomensLabor on Instagram! Sign up for our newsletter! And support our work on Patreon where you will hav...

It's been a minute! The Birth Justice Podcast NYC team has been deep in process for the last year to bring you season 2 in 2022! But before we jump into a new season, it felt important to revisit and review some of the wisdom and insight from season one. Tune in to take a trip down memory lane and hear highlights from our esteemed guests as well as updates about the podcast. Also: this podcast will be getting a new name! Stay tuned for details and be sure to support this work on Patreon.com/Taj...

Season 1 Episode 12 is the season finale and features an interview with Evelyn Alvarez: mom, doula, trainer, and the world’s best hypewoman! She’s also the cofounder of Bronx Rebirth and Progress Collective. In this week’s episode Evelyn shares the tales and the tea of being a doula in NYC. She also shares insights on the politics of doula compensation, what is happening in NYC hospitals, how medical routines cause harm, and how our City can do a better job of increasing doula access to clients ...

Season 1 Episode 11 features an interview with Nathalia Gibbs and Dana Kurzer-Yashin from the National Harm Reduction Coalition. In this week’s episode we dive into a harm reduction 101 crash course where we get into the definition, history and current landscape of harm reduction policies and practices. We then apply this information to better understand how pregnant people who use drugs are navigating prenatal care, childbirth, and the child welfare system; and how New York City and State can b...

Season 1 Episode 10 features an interview with Erin Miles Cloud: a lawyer and a mother, as well as the Co-Director and Co-Founder of Movement for Family Power. In this week’s episode we do a deep dive into the womb to foster care pipeline and the ways in which hospitals and social workers are complicit in criminalizing poor parents and people who use drugs. We get into the relationship between the police department and child welfare services, and how the child welfare system incentivizes the sep...

Season 1 Episode 9 features an interview with Nicole Jean Baptiste: a mother of two, a full spectrum community based doula, lactation counselor, yoga instructor, and oral historian. In this week’s episode we discuss Nicole’s journey into birthwork (which includes a bit about her own birth story) as well as the birth injustice she has witnessed in New York City as a doula and as an advocate. We also dive into doula work: from the importance of compensating doulas to valuing doulas as autonomous b...

Season 1 Episode 8 features an interview with Natasha Johnson: activist, artist, advocate, academic, attorney, yoga instructor and the founder of Globalizing Gender. In this week’s episode we discuss female genital mutilation and cutting - what it is, why and how it happens, how it impacts sexual and reproductive health (including pregnancy and childbirth), and how it shows up in New York City. Natasha Johnson’s Bio: Natasha has been an educator for 21 years and an attorney for 15 years. In 201...

Season 1 Episode 7 features an interview with Dr. Lynn Roberts: a mother, grandmother, professor, and scholar activist. In this week’s episode we discuss some historical moments of reproductive justice organizing and advocacy in New York City from the nineties and early 2000’s as well as the intersections of public health and reproductive justice in Lynn’s career and beyond. Lynn Roberts’ Bio: Dr. Lynn Roberts earned a Bachelor in Science in human development from Howard University (1984) and a...

Season 1 Episode 6 features an interview with Elizabeth Estrada ( commonly known as Eli) - a Mexican immigrant organizer based in the Bronx working on reproductive justice in New York City and State. In this episode we discuss fake clinics, also known as crisis pregnancy centers. We do a deep dive into how fake clinics are intentionally confusing and coercing people to give birth by creating barriers and detours, as well as providing misinformation to people who are looking to learn about and a...

Season 1 Episode 5 features an interview with Carmen Mojica. We discuss her journey into birthwork and motherhood, the history and current practice of midwifery, and what it will take to achieve birth justice in the Bronx and in New York City. Carmen Mojica Bio: Carmen Mojica CPM, LM CLC is an Afro-Dominicana born and raised in the Bronx. She is a midwife, mother, writer and reproductive health activist. The focus of her work is on the empowerment of women and people of the African Diaspora, sp...

Season 1 Episode 4 features an interview with Chanel Porchia Albert. We discuss how she became a doula, why she started Ancient Song Doula Services, the role of doulas in and beyond birthwork, and how Ancient Song is pivoting during this pandemic moment. We also chat about intergenerational hope and birthwork as political work for both the birthing person and the doula supporting them. Chanel Porchia Albert Bio: Commissioner Chanel L. Porchia Albert CD, CPD, CLC, CHHC is the Founder and Chief O...

Season 1 Episode 3 features an interview with Leslie Grant Spann. We discuss her three birth stories, and do a deep dive into the history of reproductive justice community organizing via Sistas on the Rise in the Bronx, New York City and nationwide with young parents in the early 2000s. Leslie Grant Spann Bio: Leslie Grant-Spann began her work in social justice as a 15-year-old-mother working with Sistas on the Rise in the South Bronx. Leslie organized other young mothers around access to educa...

Season 1 Episode 2 features an interview with professor Dr. Deirdre Cooper Owens. We discuss a brief history of American gynecology and we reflect on what this history means in present day gynecological care, including her own experiences of medical racism. But before we jump into this week's episode, we take a moment of silence for Sha-Asia Washington - a 26 year old Black woman who died during childbirth in early July at Woodhull Hospital in Brooklyn. Say her name. Learn her story. Here is th...

The first episode of the first season of the Birth Justice Podcast NYC features an interview between podcast host Taja Lindley and her mother, Adrianne Robinson. This episode - the birth of the Birth Justice Podcast NYC - is released on the same day as Taja’s birthday! Adrianne shares her journey into motherhood and what it was like to give birth to Taja in New York City in 1985. Adrianne Robinson’s Bio Adrianne Robinson has always had a passion for science and helping others, while growing up ...