Breaking Down Patriarchy

On the finale episode of the podcast Amy is joined by her daughters-Lindsay, Lucy, and Sophie-who help reflect on and celebrate the history of this project, some of the most valuable lessons learned along the way, and how the knowledge gathered through this work echoes both forward and backward across generations.Thank you for sharing this journey with us, listeners. Please join us on YouTube (@breakingdownpatrarchy) where Breaking Down Patriarchy is continuing to grow.Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy

Amy is joined by Shirlee Draper of Cherish Families to hear her courageous account of leaving the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and a polygamous marriage, sharing personal stories, exploring the alarming similarities between the explicit patriarchy of the FLDS Church and the allegedly more egalitarian world beyond it, plus discussing the practical work we can all be doing to help while avoiding condescension.Donate to Breaking Down PatriarchyShirlee Draper is a former member of the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints community. She holds an MA in Public Administration and is the Director of Operations for Cherish Families, a non-profit organization providing compassionate support to individuals and families from polygamous backgrounds.

Amy is joined by authors and educators Gloria and Bob Rees to discuss midrash --stories we write to interpret scripture and create meaning -- exploring the endless possibilities of imagination and the radical power that women hold to write our own midrash and change the spiritual landscape.Donate to Breaking Down PatriarchyGloria Gardner Rees has taught English in the US, China, India, and Nepal. Her studies include nutrition, gerontology and adult development. Currently, she is involved in interfaith, humanitarian, and environmental work. In addition to writing midrash, she is co-editing a collection of essays by Latter-day Saints titled Pillars of my Faith.Robert A. Rees is a scholar, poet, and humanitarian. He is the author of “Toward a Mormon Feminist Midrash: Mormon Women and the Imaginative Reading of Scripture,” Sunstone (2012) and “The Midrashic Imagination and the Book of Mormon,” Dialogue (Fall 2011). His most recent book is Imagining and Reimagining the Restoration (Kofford Books, 2025).

Amy joins the renowned writer Carol Lynn Pearson in her home for an illuminating and tender conversation about the life and struggles of a major figure in LDS feminism, her insights into queer people in the Church, the lingering ghost of polygamy, and what it takes to be an independent thinker inside a patriarchal institution.Donate to Breaking Down PatriarchyRenowned Mormon feminist, Carol Lynn Pearson, is an American poet, author, screenwriter, and playwright. She frequently addresses the topics of LGBT acceptance and the role of Latter-Day Saint women. She has written many important works, including Goodbye, I Love You, The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy, and most recently, The Diaries of Carol Lynn Pearson – Mormon Author, Feminist, and Activist.

Amy is joined by author Naima Brown to discuss her newest novel, Mother Tongue, exploring the consequences of change, finding our authentic selves, motherhood, right-wing radicalization, and the importance of fiction in our fight against patriarchy.Donate to Breaking Down PatriarchyNaima Brown holds degrees in Middle Eastern Studies, Anthropology and Religious Studies. Her essays have appeared in Vogue Australia, the Guardian Australia, and more. She wrote, along with Melissa Doyle, the non-fiction book How to Age Against the Machine. She has spent over a decade working in news, current affairs and documentary - save for her brief stint in reality TV, which inspired her first novel, The Shot. She was born and raised in Northern California before living and working in Yemen and Afghanistan, and now lives in New South Wales with her husband and her dog. Her second novel, Mother Tongue, was published in March 2025.