Wining About Herstory

27/11/2025

In 1970, the Commonwealth of Massachusets held a celebration to commemorate the 350th anniversary of the landing of the Mayflower, which first brough European settlers to what is now the United States.

Organizers invited Frank Wamsutta James, a Wampanoag leader, to speak at the event. As a Wampanoag survivor, James had a different persepctive on the Mayflower's arrival and wrote a speech to reflect the history of theft and genocide comitted by Eurpoean settlers. However, upon reviewing his speech, organizers prepared an alternative speech written by a PR firm, claiming that James' speech was too inflamatory.

They stated, "We can't allow you to read that because 90% of the people would walk out."

James refused to read the alternate speech, and was disinvited from the event.

Instead, James organized with other leaders to hold the first National Day of Mourning on Thanksgiving Day, November 26th, 1970, where James read his original speech.

"We forfeited our country. Our lands have fallen into the hands of the aggressor. We have allowed the white man to keep us on our knees. What has happened cannot be changed, but today we must work towards a more humane America, a more Indian America, where men and nature once again are important; where the Indian values of honor, truth, and brotherhood prevail." - Frank Wamsutta James

The National Day of Mourning has been an annual demonstration on Thanksgiving day since then.

This doesn't mean you can't celebrate Thanksgiving. Instead, add education and sharing to your celebrations; educate yourself on our nation's history and the genocide of Native people; share what you've learned with others; be thankful for what you have, knowing it is at the expense of immeasurable loss.

24/11/2025

Hello! Due to Kelley being aill there is no new episode this week! As an apology here is some photos of the pugs Nai (apricot) and Zana (white).
We will hopefully be back next week!

15/11/2025

Our next Patreon Happy Hour id happening this Wednesday!

14/11/2025

Local school showing UP for Ruby Bridges!!

11/11/2025

This Veterans Day, we're paying special tribute to Admiral Lisa Franchetti and Admiral Linda Fagan, the two highest serving women in the military until they were both fired from their historic commands by the Trump administration with no explanation or justification. Former Coast Guard Commandant Linda Fagan, a four-star admiral, 40-year veteran, and the first woman to lead a military branch, was fired by Trump on Inauguration Day as one of his first acts in office. In February, Pete Hegseth -- arguably the least qualified Defense Secretary in modern history -- then fired Admiral Lisa Franchetti -- a four-star admiral and the first woman to lead the Navy. These abrupt firings represented just the beginning of Trump and Hegseth's sweeping military leadership purge -- condemned by one military expert as "squandering an enormous amount of talent" and treating decorated officers with shocking disregard after their lifelong commitment to serving the American people.

Admiral Linda Fagan was sworn in as the Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard in 2022, becoming the first woman to lead the Coast Guard in its 234-year history. During her 40 years with the Coast Guard, prior to becoming commandant, she has served on all seven continents; spent 15 years as a Marine Inspector; commanded Sector New York, controlling all Coast Guard operations in the New York metropolitan area and Albany; and served as the Coast Guard's second-in-command as well as the commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area.

After being fired by Trump on his first day in office, she was then abruptly evicted from her house at Joint Base Anacostia Bolling with just three hours of notice. She wasn't even given enough time to gather her personal effects and household goods even though Coast Guard leaders had granted her 60 days to find new housing. According to Homeland Security officials, the unnecessarily swift and cruel eviction was because, as the base's acting commandant was told, "the president wants her out of quarters."

Shortly after Fagan's eviction, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem moved into the Coast Guard commandant's home at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling. Military experts have noted this unprecedented pattern of Trump administration officials taking over housing traditionally reserved for senior military officers, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio and presidential adviser Stephen Miller have also done by moving onto military bases, as yet another concerning erosion of the boundaries between political appointees and military leadership.

Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the first woman to lead the Navy, spent roughly half of her 40-year long career at sea, rising to command the destroyer U.S.S. Ross, and later a destroyer squadron, two aircraft carrier strike groups, all naval forces in Korea and the U.S. Sixth Fleet. She became the 33rd chief of naval operations in 2023, making her the first woman to serve as a permanent member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Ironically, this highly respected military leader with decades of distinction was fired by a former Fox News TV host with no senior military command experience, no experience managing large organizations, and no previous government service at any level. Hegseth's only notable 'qualification' is his absolute loyalty to Trump.

Trump and Hegseth's military leadership purge has also included Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown Jr., Vice Chief of the Air Force General James Slife, and the top lawyers for the Army, Navy, and Air Force. The purge was fiercely denounced by five former U.S. defense secretaries, who served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, in a scathing letter. "Mr. Trump's dismissals raise troubling questions about the administration's desire to politicize the military," they wrote. "We, like many Americans - including many troops - are therefore left to conclude that these leaders are being fired for purely partisan reasons."

"The United States cannot afford to have our military infected by partisan politics and distracted from its core mission of defending the nation," the defense secretaries concluded. "As George Washington warned Alexander Hamilton in 1783, after Hamilton had pressed military officers to insert themselves into domestic politics, 'The Army is a dangerous instrument to play with.' We're not asking members of Congress to do us a favor; we're asking them to do their jobs. We're urging them to take George Washington's warning to heart."

The dismissal of these two pathbreaking leaders is particularly concerning as it leaves no women in four-star positions across the entire U.S. military -- effectively erasing years of progress toward a more diverse leadership that reflects the nation it defends. For many servicewomen, these admirals represented not just exceptional leadership but proof that the highest echelons of military command were attainable regardless of gender.

This Veterans Day, as we honor all who have served, we offer special thanks to these two remarkable leaders whose careers were cut short not for any failing in merit, capability, or dedication, but as a result of a destructive blend of ideological fanaticism, administrative incompetence, and vindictive malice. While partisan forces may have cut short their tenures, the example that Admirals Fagan and Franchetti set of leadership driven by excellence rather than ideology stands as a powerful reminder of what makes America's military truly strong.

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For a children's book that gives groundbreaking women in the military, past and present, the respect they deserve, we highly recommend "Heroism Begins With Her: Inspiring Stories of Bold, Brave, and Gutsy Women in the U.S. Military" for ages 9 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/heroism-begins-with-her

For more books for young readers that honor the service of women in the military, visit our blog post "The Price of Peace: A Mighty Girl Recognizes Veterans" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=12356

For several fascinating books for teen and adult readers about heroic women who served in the U.S. military, we recommend "Women Heroes of World War II"(https://www.amightygirl.com/women-heroes-of-world-war-ii), "Women Heroes of the US Army" (https://www.amightygirl.com/women-heroes-us-army), and "Courageous Women of the Vietnam War" (https://www.amightygirl.com/courageous-women-vietnam)

For books for children and teens about the importance of standing up for truth, decency, and justice, even in dark times, visit our blog post, "Dissent Is Patriotic: 50 Books About Women Who Fought for Change," at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=14364

To stay connected with A Mighty Girl, you can sign-up for our free email newsletter at https://www.amightygirl.com/forms/newsletter

11/11/2025

☠Ep284☠ The ladies are ending spooky week on a . . . well . . . some kind of note. Kelley wines about Sada Abe, a former geisha who took her infatuation with a man WAAAAAY too far. Emily returns to the land of corn and flatness to tell one of her home state's most iconic hauntings and potentially the real girl behind it. Listen now!

04/11/2025

New tartan just dropped!

Nearly 300 years after the last ex*****on, Scotland has created an official tartan to memorialize the thousands of people -- overwhelmingly women -- who were persecuted and executed under the Scottish Witchcraft Act between 1563 and 1736. Created by Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi, founders of the Witches of Scotland campaign, the tartan serves as a "living memorial" to honor victims who were falsely accused of conspiring with the devil during Scotland's witch hunts. The design emerged after the duo struggled to find a suitable location and funding for a physical monument, eventually finding inspiration at a tartan exhibition that sparked the idea of creating a wearable memorial.

The black, red, gray, and pink tartan is rich with symbolism: the black and gray represent the dark times and ashes of those burned, the red represents the victims' blood, and the pink symbolizes the legal tape used to bind documents both then and now. Even the thread count carries meaning -- the large black squares contain 173 threads representing the years the law was in effect, while thinner lines have either 15 or 17 threads, representing the sum of digits in the years 1563 (when the act was implemented) and 1736 (when it was repealed). The red and pink stripes are repeated three times to symbolize the three goals of the Witches of Scotland campaign: a pardon, an apology, and a national memorial.

The Witchcraft Act was enacted in 1563, three years after Scotland declared Protestantism its official religion, and provided few details about what actually constituted witchcraft. Accused individuals were often tortured or sleep-deprived to extract confessions, and most convicted witches were strangled to death before being burned, with a small number burned alive. An estimated 2,500 Scots were killed under the act, with 85 percent of them women, according to the University of Edinburgh's Survey of Scottish Witchcraft.

While Scotland's former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon issued a formal apology in 2022, and the Church of Scotland also apologized for its historic role in the witch hunts, Mitchell and Venditozzi are continuing their campaign to seek an official pardon for all those who suffered under this brutal law. The tartan stands as a permanent living memorial, ensuring these victims are remembered with every thread.

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The Witches of Scotland campaign creators, Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi are the authors of a powerful new book "How to Kill a Witch: The Patriarchy's Guide to Silencing Women" which examines the inner workings of a patriarchal system, codified by the Witchcraft Act, designed to weaponize fear and oppress women. It's a captivating, infuriating, and often darkly humorous reminder of the dangers of superstition, bias, and ignorance, and a warning to never forget the past: https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781464241222 (Bookshop) and https://amzn.to/3XfkiIJ (Amazon)

To learn more about the Witches of Scotland campaign, visit https://www.witchesofscotland.com/ -- and you can pre-order clothing with the new tartan design at https://witchesofscotland.myshopify.com/

For an excellent book about an 11-year-old girl who leads the drive to build a memorial to women accused of witchcraft in her Scottish town, we highly recommend "A Kind of Spark" for ages 9 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/kind-of-spark

For a Newbery Award-winning novel about a teen girl who stands up against witch hysteria and mob mentality in early colonial America, we highly recommend “The Witch of Blackbird Pond” for ages 9 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/the-witch-of-blackbird-pond

For more books for children and teens about Mighty Girls taking a stand against hate and prejudice of many kinds, visit our blog post, "Standing Together: 50 Mighty Girl Books Celebrating Diversity and Acceptance” at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=13481

31/10/2025

Happy Halloween you spooky bi***es! Remember to scare all the right people! 😈

30/10/2025

☠️Ep 283☠️ Emily wines about Ann Bilansky, the first woman who was executed in Minnesota for murdering her husband . . . but did she? Kelley explores the origins of our nightmares with the Mara, Slavick nightmare demons. Listen now!

29/10/2025

Happy from this absolute fu**er.

28/10/2025

Women: Want the right to vote 🗳
Authorities: Nearly drown them with food 🤮

Hear more in episode 112!

27/10/2025

☠️Ep 282☠️ Kelley tells the story of Velma Barfield who had a nasty habit of doing an arsenic. Emily tells the legend of Okiku, a dishwasher who took her job very seriously and, as a bonus, a possessed doll by the same name. Listn now!