And Still We Rise

And Still We Rise is a bold, unapologetic podcast about gender justice, survival, and systemic change—rooted in intersectional feminism and led by longtime advocate Angela Marie MacDougall. Every week, we speak with frontline organizers, thinkers, and truth-tellers who are confronting gender-based violence, economic injustice, colonialism, and political fear—and building something better in real time. This isn’t commentary from the sidelines. It’s storytelling from the frontlines. Because the world is on fire, and feminism doesn’t wait. New episodes drop every Friday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and at bwss.org.

Who Gets a Home? Gender, Power, and the Cost of Belonging in Canada - Stefania Seccia, Women’s National Housing & Homelessness Network 05/16/2025

Who Gets a Home? Gender, Power, and the Cost of Belonging in Canada - Stefania Seccia, Women’s National Housing & Homelessness Network What happens when land meant to sustain life becomes a tool for profit? And who gets left behind when housing policy erases the systemic barriers gender, history and lived experience? This week on And Still We Rise, Angela Marie MacDougall sists down with Stefania Seccia of the Women's National Housing and Homelessness Network for a powerful, clear-eyed conversation about what's really driving Canada's housing crisis - and why women, Indigenous people and gender-diverse communities are being pushed to the edges. Together, they unpack the crisis from the ground up: How land was taken, repurposed, and priced beyond reach; How housing became an investment strategy, not a right; Why invisibility in housing policy isn't an oversight - it's design; Why "build more" won't work if we don't ask - for whom? Stefania shares what she told Canada's new Prime Minister, why the right to housing must be enforced - not just promised - and how feminist and Indigenous leadership is reshaping what safety, home, and justice could really look like. Whether you're living the crisis or just waking up to it, this episode is for anyone ready to ask harder questions - and demand better answers. /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/36588385

What Makes a Stronger Home: Gender, Power, and the Politics of Care - with Katrina Chen 05/15/2025

What Makes a Stronger Home: Gender, Power, and the Politics of Care - with Katrina Chen Former BC Minister and lifelong advocate Katrina Chen joins And Still We Rise to explore what it really takes to build safety - at home, in policy, and in public life. In this intimate and wide-ranging conversation, Katrina and Angela Marie MacDougall delve into surviving gender-based violence, leading childcare reform, writing through trauma, and walking away from politics to heal. At the heart of this conversation is Katrina's new children's book, A Stronger Home - a tender and courageous story of a mother and son fleeing violence, written to help young readers understand trauma, reslience, and healing. Angela and Katrina discuss how storytelling, survivor leadership, and trauma-informed public policy can shift what safety means for everyone. From early childhood education to economic survival, from Gaza to Vancouver, this episode connects the personal and the political in the fight for justice. What happens when leaders speak their truth? What does it mean to centre survivors in every system? And what do we owe to each other rnow, as the world tilts further into crisis? As Katrina says, "We heal together." Tune in for an honest, courageous conversation about care, trauma, and the power to building something better - from the inside out. /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/36586655

Beyond Rights on Paper: Reproductive Justice and the Work Ahead - with Frédérique Chabot 05/15/2025

Beyond Rights on Paper: Reproductive Justice and the Work Ahead - with Frédérique Chabot In this post election episode of And Still We rise, Angela Marie MacDougall is joined by Frédérique Chabot, Executive Director of Action Canada, recorded just before Canada's 2025 federal election - when reproductive justice was notably absent from the national political discourse. Together, they unpack the narrowing of election narratives, the weaponization of fear, and the real stakes behind the temporary elimination - and now reinstatement - of the Ministry of Women and Gender Equality. Drawing connections between reproductive justice, democracy, and economic policy, they expose how gender rightss are being used as political scapegoats and how this climate opens the door to broader rollbacks. Frédérique breaks down what reproductive justice actually means - including access, autonomy, and the right to raise families in safe, supported communities - and why it's central to any meaningful vision of public health and democracy. She explains how Action Canada and the feminist movement in Canada have pushed back against false economic choices and reframed reproductive health as part of a larger fight for dignity, safety and survival. /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/36586480

What If Justice Started With Girls? | Sue Brown on Survival, Criminalization, and Reimagining Power 05/09/2025

What If Justice Started With Girls? | Sue Brown on Survival, Criminalization, and Reimagining Power We kick off the relaunch of And Still We Rise with a bold conversation featuring Sue Brown, Co-Director of Justice for Girls. This episode dives into the reality facing girls in Canada. From the criminalization of survival to the erasure of MMIW and Girls, this conversation dives into what young women - especially Indigenous and racialized girls - are forced to survive in the so-called systems of "care". We ask: Why are girls punished for surviving violence? How does the state criminalize girlhood?...especially Black and Indigenous girls. What would change if policy, power and protection began with girls. And Still We Rise - hosted by Angela Marie MacDougall Producer - Jennifer-Lee Grunson /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/36504785

Angela Marie MacDougall | Black Women in Canada 03/01/2020

Angela Marie MacDougall | Black Women in Canada In commemoration of Black History Month and with few days until International Women’s Day, Angela Marie talks summarize the history of Black people and the experience of Black women and girls in Canada. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: Women Deliver: BWSS: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/13354853

Janice Abbott | Atira 06/01/2019

Janice Abbott | Atira On this episode of And Still We Rise, Angela Marie speaks with Janice Abbott CEO of Atira Women's Resource Society. They talk about the key role that transition houses have played in the last 30 years of organizing for women’s liberation and share personal stories and lessons. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: Women Deliver: Atira Women's Resource Society: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/10009775

Dalya Israel | WAVAW 06/01/2019

Dalya Israel | WAVAW On this episode of And Still We Rise, Angela Marie speaks with Dalya Israel, Executive Director of WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre. They talk about diversity and inclusion for marginalized genders, the rape crisis movement and #MeToo. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: Women Deliver: WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/10009763

Evelyne Guindon | Women Deliver 05/27/2019

Evelyne Guindon | Women Deliver Billed as the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and wellbeing of girls and women, Women Deliver conference is coming to Vancouver, June 3 – 6, 2019. On this episode of And Still We Rise, Angela Marie speaks with Evelyne Guindon, Managing Director, External Relations for Women Deliver. They talk Women Deliver work and how they are working globally for gender equality. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: Women Deliver: BWSS: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/9938855

Shannon Skilton, Emily Henry and Dawn Vanichuk | Chrysalis Society 05/23/2019

Shannon Skilton, Emily Henry and Dawn Vanichuk | Chrysalis Society In the midst of the opioid crisis and until recently, much less has been known about women’s substance use as most research and treatment focused on men. On this episode of And Still We Rise, Angela Marie speaks with Shannon Skilton, Emily Henry and Dawn Vanichuk women’s substance use specialists from Chrysalis Society. They talk about the social context for women’s substance use, share personal experiences and discuss what it takes for women to thrive in a world that needs so much healing. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: Chrysalis Society: BWSS: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/9897389

Julie Savard-Shaw | CanWaCH 05/18/2019

Julie Savard-Shaw | CanWaCH On this episode of And Still We Rise, Angela Marie speaks with Julie Savard-Shaw about abortion, reproductive justice, connecting the global and domestic feminist organizing, feminist policy development and Women Deliver Mobilization. Julie Savard-Shaw is CanWaCH's Director, Partnerships, Women Deliver 2019 Mobilization Canada. She works with stakeholders across sectors to ensure Canadian leadership in the promotion of domestic and global women and girls’ health, rights and well-being in the lead-up and at the 2019 Women Deliver Conference. Julie holds a Master of International Affairs from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and a Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management. Julie most recently worked at the Prime Minister’s Office, providing policy advice on international, gender and immigration-related matters. Prior to working in politics, Julie worked in the international development sector and successfully leveraged additional resources for global health and education initiatives. Julie also supports local organizations that provide shelter and assistance to women survivors of gender-based violence. In her spare time, Julie regularly travels to Peru, where she co-founded a music school in rural Lima which provides weekly music lessons to disadvantaged youth. --- Resources Mentioned in This Episode Women’s Groups and Funders Respond to Global Gag Rule Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: CanWaCH: BWSS: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/9835148

Raji Mangat and Elba Bendo | West Coast Leaf 05/12/2019

Raji Mangat and Elba Bendo | West Coast Leaf Angela Marie talks with Raji Mangat | Director of Litigation and Elba Bendo | Director of Law Reform at West Coast LEAF about personal trajectories and how the law is no place for justice. --- Show Hosted and Produced by Angela Marie MacDougall and Battered Women’s Support Services. Audio Engineering and Editing by Sarah Ellis Fox. --- To learn more please visit: West Coast Leaf: BWSS: /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/9748904

This is How We Rise... 05/10/2019

This is How We Rise... “And Still We Rise” is the latest offering of BWSS with host Angela Marie MacDougall. Launched in advance of Women Deliver, the international conference coming to Vancouver June 3 – 6, 2019, and to announce the counter-conference Feminists Deliver how local women and femmes are moving the dial on liberation efforts underway. /episode/index/show/andstillwerise/id/9736163

And Still We Rise

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