Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness

There are more than 62 million Latine people living in the United States. Some are US-born, others are recent immigrants, and still more have had family members here for centuries—living on land that was once part of Mexico. This week, Mónica Ramírez returns to Getting Curious to discuss how the Latine community is “deeply rooted” in the US, what it looks like to protect the humanity and dignity of these 62 million people, and why advocates like Mónica aren’t simply showing up at spaces of consequence to address systemic issues—they’re creating spaces of consequence. CW: This episode discusses bodily harm and hateful rhetoric. Mónica Ramírez is an attorney, author, and activist fighting for the rights of farmworkers, migrant women workers, and the Latine(x) community. She is the founder of Justice for Migrant Women and co-founder of Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, The Latinx House, and Poderistas. Mónica has received numerous awards, including Harvard Kennedy School’s first Gender Equity Changemaker Award, Feminist Majority’s Global Women’s Rights Award, the Smithsonian’s 2018 Ingenuity Award and the Hispanic Heritage Award.  She was named to Forbes Mexico’s 100 Most Powerful Women’s 2018 list and TIME Magazine included her in its 2021 TIME100 Next list. Mónica is also an inaugural member of the Ford Global Fellowship. She serves on the Board of Directors of the National Women’s Law Center, Friends of the Latino Museum and she is a member of The Little Market’s Activists Committee. Mónica lives in Ohio with her husband and son.   Follow Monica on Instagram @activistmonicaramirez and Twitter @MonicaRamirezOH. The Latinx House is on Instagram and Twitter @thelatinxhouse, and at www.thelatinxhouse.org.   For more on Raizado, The Latinx House Festival, head to www.raizadofest.org.    For more resources mentioned in this episode, check out:   Coalition of Immokalee Workers United Farm Workers Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO Nalleli Cobo - Goldman Environmental Prize   Join the conversation, and find out what former guests are up to, by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.  Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in. Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gossip Galaxy here, your one and only source into the scandalous lives of the universe’s elite. I have it on *expert* authority that the Milky Way is stirring up cosmic drama. Has this Local Group galaxy had enough of its central black hole? Will they or won’t they with Andromeda? And is spaghettification the real dish of the summer? Dr. Moiya McTier and Jonathan tell all in this week’s stellar episode.   Dr. Moiya McTier is an astrophysicist, folklorist, and science communicator based in New York City. Her new book The Milky Way: An Autobiography of our Galaxy is out now.   After graduating from Harvard as the first person in the school’s history to study both astronomy and mythology, Moiya earned her PhD in astrophysics at Columbia University where she was selected as a National Science Foundation research fellow. Moiya has consulted with companies like Disney and PBS on their fictional worlds, helped design exhibits for the New York Hall of Science, and given hundreds of talks about science around the globe (including features on MSNBC, NPR, and NowThis News).    To combine her unique set of expertise, Moiya hosts and produces the Exolore podcast that explores fictional world-building through the lens of science. When she’s not researching space or imagining new worlds, Moiya can likely be found watching trashy reality TV with her cat, Kosmo.   You can follow Dr. McTier on Twitter and Instagram @goastromo, and at moiyamctier.com.   Join the conversation, and find out what former guests are up to, by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.  Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in. Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Headshot Credit for Dr. McTier: Mindy Tucker Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You want LGBTQIA+ rights? You want reproductive justice? You want to end mass incarceration? You want environmental protections? You want living wages? You better vote for state legislature, b**ch. Sister District co-founders Gaby Goldstein and Lala Wu return to Getting Curious for a conversation all about the upcoming midterm elections, and specifically what’s in store for state legislative races. Listen in as they discuss what it’ll take for Democrats and progressives to hold their ground; how we can invest in year-round, state-level organizing; and why we need to think in a timeline of decades, not just election cycles.  Gaby Goldstein is an attorney and political strategist who focuses on the growing importance of state legislatures. She is co-founder at Sister District, whose mission is to build progressive power in state legislatures and co-moderator of the State Power Series, a virtual event series co-sponsored by Vote Save America/Crooked Media and Sister District. Lala Wu is a co-founder and the Executive Director of Sister District, which builds progressive power in state legislatures. Prior to Sister District, Lala was a lawyer, specializing in environmental and clean energy law. Lala graduated from U.C. Berkeley, School of Law and Barnard College of Columbia University. Lala serves on the Boards of the AAPI Victory Alliance and Together SF, and the Advisory Board of Asian American Women's Political Initiative. She is a New Leaders Council alum. You can follow Gaby and Lala on Twitter @gaby__goldstein and @_lala_wu_. To keep up with Sister District, you can follow them on Twitter @Sister_District.  Want to get involved with Sister District? Check out the Sister District & Partners National phonebank!    Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.   Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A note from Jonathan and team Getting Curious: we recorded this episode in May, the same day the first case of monkeypox was documented in the US. Today there are nearly 6000 confirmed cases—and counting—across the country. If you’re a member of the queer community or an ally, we implore you to make the spread of monkeypox a personal problem—and to put pressure on elected leaders to take this outbreak seriously. Dr. Thrasher's work is central to understanding how and why this virus is spreading, so we'll be posting updated commentary from him, and other resources, to our @CuriouswithJVN social media pages in the coming days. Viral spread, this week’s guest reminds us, “happens through very normative life activities: sex, breathing, handshaking, hugging, just being. The things that we have to do to stay alive.” So what happens when we encounter viruses through these activities? The answer often depends on who “we” are. Listen in as Dr. Steven W. Thrasher and Jonathan explore how social inequalities in the US and beyond shape how viruses spread—and who is most vulnerable when they do.   CW: This episode discusses police violence, bodily harm, and hateful rhetoric.   Steven W. Thrasher, PhD holds the inaugural Daniel H. Renberg chair at Northwestern University's Medill School, the first journalism professorship in the world created to focus on LGBTQ research. A columnist for Scientific American, his writing has been widely published by The New York Times, Nation, The Atlantic, Journal of American History, Esquire and New York Magazine. In 2019, Out Magazine named him one of the 100 most influential and impactful people of the year, and the Ford Foundation awarded him a grant for Creativity and Free Expression. The Viral Underclass is his first book.   You can follow Steven on Twitter @thrasherxy. You can follow Celadon Books on Twitter @CeladonBooks for updates on The Viral Underclass and other books.    Join the conversation, and find out what former guests are up to, by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.    Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jonathan is a guest on one of our favorite podcasts this week: Scam Goddess. And we’re releasing that episode on our Getting Curious feed, too. Did we scam host Laci Mosley and her team into producing an episode of Getting Curious for us? Perhaps. Will you love what you hear? Absolutely. Listen in as Laci and Jonathan discuss an iconic scam from art history, and get a feel for how Jonathan gets curious from the guest seat.   Head to the Scam Goddess podcast feed for notes and sources from this episode, and make sure to subscribe. You can follow Laci on Instagram and Twitter @divalaci, and Scam Goddess on Instagram and Twitter @scamgoddesspod.   “Scam Goddess” is a podcast dedicated to fraud and all those who practice it! Each week host Laci Mosley (aka Scam Goddess) digs deep into the latest scams alongside some of your favorite comedians! It’s like true crime only without all the death! True fun ass crime!  Scam Goddess was featured in the top 10 comedy podcasts of 2020 by Vulture magazine. It’s been praised by Essence, Marie Claire, Vox, Harper’s Bazaar, Time Out, and was also featured in New York Times. Scam Goddess won the 2021 and the 2022 Webby Awards for Best Crime and Justice Podcast. Scam Goddess is also the winner of the 2022 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards for Best Crime Podcast.   Laci Mosley is a Black American actor, comedian, and podcaster. She performs improv comedy at UCB Los Angeles and is a series regular in Season 2 of HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show, and in the Showmax comedy series Florida Girls. She is also a cast member in Paramount+’s iCarly reboot and a contributor on ABC’s The Con.   Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2015, Senator Jim Inhofe brought a snowball to Congress to “prove” that climate change wasn’t real. Only God, he claimed, could change the climate. He was wrong on two fronts: one, climate change is real. And two, faith and climate science are *not* incompatible. This week, Dekila Chungyalpa joins Jonathan to discuss her work collaborating with faith leaders on climate efforts, how she confronts climate change disinterest and skepticism, and why she’s bringing the sacred back into science.    Dekila Chungyalpa is the founder and director of the Loka Initiative, a capacity building and outreach platform at the University of Wisconsin – Madison for faith leaders and culture keepers of Indigenous traditions who work on environmental and climate issues. She received the prestigious Yale McCluskey Award in 2014 for her work and moved to the Yale School of Environmental Studies as an associate research scientist, where she researched, lectured and designed the prototype for what is now the Loka Initiative. Dekila is originally from the Himalayan state of Sikkim in India and is of Bhutia origin. You can keep up with Dekila by visiting her Facebook and by following her on Twitter and Instagram @dchungyalpa.  For more information about the Loka Initiative, visit their Facebook page or follow them on Twitter @LokaInitiative and on Instagram @loka.initiative.  Struggling with eco-anxiety? Read Dekila’s five tips on how to alleviate eco-anxiety or visit SoundCloud, Tricycle Magazine, or the Healthy Minds app for contemplative practices to address eco-anxiety and climate distress.     Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.   Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, here we are. Roe v. Wade has been overturned, and it’s more urgent than ever to rally for reproductive rights across the country—and understand how we got to this point. This week, Professor Jacki Antonovich joins Jonathan to explore the history of abortion care and forced sterilization in the US, how white supremacy has shaped reproductive politics, and why Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman isn’t the historical fiction we may think it is. CW: This episode includes descriptions of bodily harm and discussion of racist ideologies. Jacqueline Antonovich is an Assistant Professor of History at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA. She is the author of the article, “White Coats, White Hoods: The Medical Politics of the Ku Klux Klan in 1920s America,” and she is currently working on a book on the history of women physicians and medical imperialism in the American West. Jacqueline is the creator and co-founder of Nursing Clio, a collaborative blog project that examines the historical roots of present-day issues surrounding gender, health, and medicine. Make sure to follow Professor Antonovich on Twitter @jackiantonovich and Nursing Clio on Twitter @NursingClio and at nursingclio.org.  Looking for further reading? Here are some books Professor Antonovich recommends:    Killing the Black Body by Dr. Dorothy Roberts Medical Bondage by Dr. Deirdre Cooper Owens Medicalizing Blackness by Dr. Rana A. Hogarth   Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation, and find resources in light of the SCOTUS decision.   Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

July Fourth got us thinking: what does “independence” look like for American-controlled territories? To explore that question, we’re re-running an episode from the archives with Professor Kaysha Corinealdi, where she and Jonathan discuss the political history and legacy of the US-controlled Panama Canal Zone. And all week on our @CuriouswithJVN social media pages, we’ll be highlighting episodes from our archives that interrogate the idea of “freedom” in the US and abroad. Kaysha Corinealdi is an interdisciplinary historian of modern empires, migration, gender, and activism in the Americas. Her forthcoming book Panama in Black, available for preorder now, centers the activism of Afro-Caribbean migrants and their descendants as they navigated practices and policies of anti-Blackness, xenophobia, denationalization, and white supremacy in Panama and the United States.   Her research can also be found in Black Perspectives (September 14, 2021), Caribbean Review of Gender Studies (Issue 12, 2018), the International Journal of Africana Studies (18:2, Fall-Winter 2017), and the Global South (6:2, Fall 2013).   You can follow Professor Corinealdi on Twitter @KCorinealdi, and read more of her work here and on her website.    Join the conversation, and find out what former guests are up to, by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.  Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Love listening to Getting Curious? You can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in.   Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.   Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital.   Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.   Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When we first met Lee Hennessy, he introduced himself as “a farmer, doing farmer things, living the farmer life, who happens to be trans.” To round out our “Pride In Nature” series, we’re learning all about Lee’s life running Moxie Ridge Farm & Creamery, what it was like to come out after opening the farm, and what farming has taught him about sex and gender. A note to listeners: Lee’s work as a livestock farmer involves creating and selling animal products, including things like cheese, wool, and meat. If this topic is challenging or uncomfortable, we encourage listeners to approach the episode if/when they're ready and to visit Moxie Ridge's values to understand Lee's approach to making animal products. Lee Hennessy is the founder, farmer, and cheesemaker of Moxie Ridge Farm. Lee is a first-generation farmer and a transgender man with a surprising background in both wine and Hollywood. He lives and works in Argyle, NY and in his spare time he enjoys spending time with his goats, reading long fantasy series, learning to play instruments and singing. You can follow Lee on Instagram @hennessie. Want to know what Moxie Ridge Farm is up to? Follow them on Instagram @moxieirdgefarm. If you’d like to help finance a security system for Moxie Ridge Farm, you can donate to their GoFundMe – this piece explains why trans-owned farms like Moxie Ridge need security. Consider supporting Moxie Ridge’s Patreon, which will help support not only the maintenance and development of the farm, but also allow Lee to mentor future marginalized farmers. Join the conversation, and find out what former guests are up to, by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Love listening to Getting Curious? You can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in. Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson. Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital. Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, f*ck. In light of the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, we on team Getting Curious wanted to check in with our listeners.  We are devastated by this news. We also know that in difficult moments, it’s important to be in community and conversation with each other. We have an episode in the works all about the history of reproductive care in the United States. It’s not slated for release until July— But today, we’re bringing you a preview.  Here is an excerpt from our upcoming conversation with Professor Jacki Antonovich that explores the history of abortion care in the US, and why today’s decision is so egregious. Jacqueline Antonovich is an Assistant Professor of History at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA. She is the author of the article, “White Coats, White Hoods: The Medical Politics of the KuKlux Klan in 1920s America,” and she is currently working on a book on the history of women physicians and medical imperialism in the American West. Jacqueline is the creator and co-founder of Nursing Clio, a collaborative blog project that examines the historical roots of present-day issues surrounding gender, health, and medicine. Make sure to follow Professor Antonovich on Twitter @jackiantonovich and Nursing Clio on Twitter @NursingClio and at nursingclio.org.  Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation, and find resources in light of the SCOTUS decision. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Love listening to Getting Curious? Now, you can also watch Getting Curious—on Netflix! Head to netflix.com/gettingcurious to dive in. Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson. Our socials are run and curated by Middle Seat Digital. Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Getting Curious merch is available on PodSwag.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices