“I don't ever want to make the mothers have to be the ones to gatekeep for who comes in. I'm going to do that for them.”

La Leche League is a charity that was set up to offer mother-to-mother breastfeeding support and to protect the natural course of breastfeeding and the mother-baby dyad.

Ruth, Rej, and Loreto all had their accreditation as LLL breastfeeding counsellors removed by LLL International for “breaches of the LLL Code of Conduct” and “actions that led to the public discrediting of LLL.” This occurred after they made a public statement and spoke to journalists as trustees about the conflict that had been exposed between the policy of supporting male lactation and the LLLGB charitable objects and beneficiaries, which do not include males.

In this episode the former LLLGB trustees and breastfeeding counsellors have a conversation with Julie Bindel about how gender ideology has captured the world’s oldest breastfeeding organisation to the point that it has abandoned its mission. You might think that something as essentially female as breastfeeding would be safeguarded for women ‒ think again!

 We are increasingly hearing about cases of strangulation of women, both in relationships and, thanks to porn culture, increasingly in our sex lives. In this episode, Sally Jackson, FiLiA Trustee; Bernie Ryan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Institute for Addressing Strangulation (IFAS); and Marianne McGowan, Survivor Liaison and Research Worker for IFAS, discuss the dangers, who it affects, and what we can do to raise awareness of the realities of the danger it presents.

Please note this podcast episode references a conference event with a date that has since passed. We apologise for any confusion this may cause and encourage listeners to check for updated information on upcoming events at IFAS Tackling Strangulation - Working Together to Save Lives.

 "I don't feel that loneliness anymore. I feel part of something."

After attending FiLiA in Portsmouth, one woman returned to her workplace determined to set up a women’s group. Two years later, the group has grown in size and confidence. In this interview, Kiri Tunks discusses with the women how they set up the group, what they do in their meetings, and how it has transformed their relationships and lives.

Episode Note: When there is a large group in the room, issues with sound quality are inevitable. We’re sure you’ll agree that it’s far more important to share these women’s voices. Thank you for your understanding.

Does prison work for Women? What alternatives are being tried and how successful are they - what do we even mean by 'success'?

"The short answer to How many Women are in prison, is far too many! The biggest challenges are funding and investment"

In this episode FiLiA trustee Sally Jackson, Dr April Smith, a criminologist and psychologist, and Rhona Hotchkiss, ex-governor of Cornton Vale Women's prison, discuss the issues for Women caught up in the criminal justice system designed for men.

FiLiA is a member of Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE)

In this podcast we find out more about WAVE's work. Sally Jackson interviews, Stephanie Futter Orel Executive Director WAVE, Branislava Aradjan Project and Youth ambassador Coordinator and Beverly Mtui, Communications Coordinator of WAVE

WAVE is a network of over 170 European women’s NGOs working towards prevention and protection of women and children from violence. "We build the capacity of our members, advocate for better legislation, conduct research and raise awareness on violence against women and girls. Celebrating 30 years of activism this year."

https://wave-network.org/toolkit-for-victim-friendly-judicial-practice-in-child-custody-contact-and-visitation-matters/  

In this episode Luba Fein, FiLiA volunteer, Alyssa Ahrabare, Advocacy Manager for European Network of Migrant Women and Hema Sibi, advocacy coordinator for The Coalition for the Abolition of Prostitution discuss a huge legal victory in France.

The European Court of Human Rights upholds France's right to ban the purchase of prostitution. France enforces a law that aims to abolish prostitution, while helping its victims exit. A group of individuals, supported by pro-prostitution organisations, appealed against this law to the ECHR. According to the appellants, this legislation radically damaged their right to dignity, private life, personal autonomy and sexual freedom. 

The court ruled that the problems related to prostitution raise sensitive moral and ethical questions, which gave rise to different, sometimes contradictory opinions. That said, the French authorities were at their legitimate discretion in enacting the ban. Among other things, the judges stated they were aware of the multitude of problems identified with the phenomenon of prostitution (such as the violence of the sex buyers towards the people in prostitution). Still, they were not sure whether this was the result of the law or a phenomenon inherent to prostitution.

Sex trade survivors and feminists globally celebrate this vast achievement. 

"It is not our job to question individual choices of women in prostitution. We must examine the system and the context in which women's choices take place" Anna Zobnina

In February 2024, Dunja Mijatović, the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, published a statement entitled "Protecting the human rights of sex workers". It was a problematic statement that undermined the efforts of hundreds of feminist organisations and dozens of prostitution survivor organisations to eradicate the sex industry.

In this podcast, Luba Fein, a FiLiA volunteer, discusses this statement and its consequences for women in the sex trade and society in general with two prominent feminist activists: Alyssa Ahrabare and Anna Zobnina from the European Network of Migrant Women (ENoMW)

https://www.migrantwomennetwork.org/
http:/twitter.com/ENoMW
https://www.facebook.com/migrantwomeneurope
https://nordicmodelnow.org/

Tragically Chloe felt her only escape from the coercive and controlling behaviour she was subjected to was to end her own life. Her Mum Sharon wants the perpetrator held to account for her death and so is campaigning for a change in the law so that he could be charged with manslaughter by coercive or controlling behaviour. Hear about how they have developed their grassroot campaign and how you can help.

Petition please sign and share:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/648948

Link to the report mentioned:
vkpp.org.uk/publications/publications-and-reports/

Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555467394371
https://x.com/shazmataz72

"I just hope that in capturing these stories that we've done something to archive working class, women's experience and that it'll be there if people wanna watch it or read it. We've done our bit and we can use the methods to look at any issue we want" - Paula Boulton

This podcast is about working class women and the theatre women make. It is  a discussion between playwright and theatre director Paula Boulton (67) and three members of her Corby Women's Theatre Group. Betty MacPherson (78) Danijela Bastajic (47) Dannie Smith (39) Questioned by interviewer Jo Campbell they explore the issues raised in their most recent production Corby Women, Then and Now. Reflecting on the need to tell the hidden stories about working class women, how being part of this community project empowered them, and how the method can be used in the future.

The plays are available for others to use in the accompanying book, Women's Ways, Women's Plays.

Paula's book "Women's Ways, Women's Plays is available at all major bookstores
or direct from Paula's bookshop https://www.facebook.com/lunarlinkpublishingcollective/

You can view Paula's plays on her YouTube channel  https://www.youtube.com/@paulaboultonsplays3877

https://shouttheatre.org/

https://www.facebook.com/CorbyWomensTheatreGroup

Raquel Rosario Sanchez and Sarah Ditum discuss the tropes and stereotypes about women in the public eye and how they reflect on the wider struggles women face in society. Ditum's clever analysis dissects how patriarchy operates to ensure that women, including those who are extremely privileged, are used as examples to venerate and later on to destroy in order to appease a misogynist system.

Buy Sarah Ditum's Toxic from the FiLiA Book Shop