Hearsay

Your favorite billionaire might pay less in taxes than you do. And that’s by design! The U.S. tax code has sexism and racism baked right into it. But if we taxed the patriarchy, we’d have enough money for the things that really matter—from child care and health care to education and housing. We talked to activist, philanthropist, and filmmaker Abby Disney and NWLC tax genius Amy Matsui about why it’s past time for Taylor, Jay-Z, Elon, and Jeff to pay their fair share.

Resources:

• Learn more about Abby’s latest movie, The American Dream and Other Fairytales
• Try out NWLC’s Tax the Patriarchy calculator, where you can tax the rich and decide how to invest that money to benefit our country
• Learn more about the Patriotic Millionaires
• See the Tax Justice Is Gender Justice series of reports
• Read The Faulty Foundations of the Tax Code: Gender and Racial Bias in Our Tax Laws

As our country has collectively decided to rally around women athletes, the stark racist and sexist wage gaps of professional basketball players has taken center court. Black women have been the backbone of entire industries—including sports leagues—and it is essential that they be fairly compensated for their work, so why aren’t they? WNBA stars Alysha Clark and Aliyah Boston and Executive Director of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association Terri Carmichael Jackson join us to talk about the intersectionality of it all and how we can really support Black women.

Resources

• More information on the WNBPA
• Resources on the wage gap
• You can follow Aliyah Boston here
• You can follow Alysha Clark here

We think it’s obvious that trans women are women, but our Twitter mentions say otherwise. In an election year full of dog-whistling, we have grown disgusted by the dehumanization of trans people from all sides of the political spectrum. Trans people deserve to live their lives, play sports, and be themselves. On this episode, we talked with Anya Marino and Gillian Branstetter about why TERFs are not feminists, how transphobes have become emboldened to spread their hatred in our politics and schools, and why it is more important than ever to protect trans adults and trans children.

Resources:

• NWLC Blog - Once and For All: This Is Why We Support Trans Women and Girls in Sports
• Read about SCOTUS granting cert to one of the ACLU’s challenges against an anti-trans health care ban in Tennessee with arguments coming this fall. U.S. Supreme Court Will Hear Challenge from United States, Families, and Doctors Against Transgender Health Care Ban | American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org)
• ACLU Protect Trans Care action Protect Trans Care Now | American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org)

Romance as a genre has been historically dismissed as unserious, very likely because women make up its core audience. But it’s always been popular and lucrative. Romance has also been at the forefront of inclusive fiction and driving social change. With our guests, Tia Williams, an acclaimed author, and Kelsey Grimes, a reproductive rights lawyer at NWLC, we unpack the genre and how it’s inextricably linked to conversations about contraception, abortion, and freedom.

We’ve got romance recommendations for you!

Tia’s rec: This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
Kelsey’s rec: Any book by Courtney Milan
Hilary’s rec: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne and for historical, A League of Extraordinary Women series by Evie Dunmore
Jessica’s rec: Act Your Age, Even Brown by Talia Hibbert

Why is child care so expensive and impossible to find? And why are child care providers paid so little? And how come when TV shows depict child care, if they do at all, it’s completely unrealistic—full of super nannies and hapless dads? Child care is the backbone of our entire country and is traditionally women’s work—which is why it’s frustrating, but maybe not surprising, that it’s so often invisible. In this episode, we talk to NWLC experts Jasmine Tucker and Julie Vogtman about who to blame for our child care crisis, how to help child care workers and parents alike, and the child care myths that are hurting all of us, whether you have kids or not.

We have so many resources for you!

Julie’s Undervalued report:
https://nwlc.org/resource/undervalued-a-brief-history-of-womens-care-work-and-child-care-policy-in-the-united-states/

Jasmine and Julie’s report on what happened to women after COVID-19:
https://nwlc.org/resource/resilient-but-not-recovered-after-two-years-of-the-covid-19-crisis-women-are-still-struggling/

Child care provider Merline A. Gallegos explains what would help her:
https://nwlc.org/on-child-care-worker-appreciation-day-what-we-really-need-is-action/

An interactive map that shows how each state would benefit if Congress stabilized the child care system with $16 billion:
https://nwlc.org/resource/cc-map/

Data that shows child care workers are being left behind in terms of their pay: https://nwlc.org/press-release/nwlc-releases-data-revealing-child-care-workers-wage-growth-lags-behind-other-low-paid-occupations/