Did Zazil-Ha know that her rebellious love affair would save not just her kingdom, but the entire Yucatec Maya for a generation? Together with her shipwrecked Spanish husband, Zazil-Ha built a life beyond anything the 16th-century world could imagine. Preparing her people for a Spanish invasion, she created a future for the Maya that was radically new. And in the process, she became the brave, strong mother of the mestizo race. Katie interviews Gabriel Cemé, …
Mae Timbimboo was just eight years old when she entered a US federal boarding school designed to “kill the Indian to save the child.” The government hoped Native children like Mae would “assimilate” into Euro-American culture, but that certainly didn’t work on Mae. Instead, she harnessed her education to give voice to her people’s history. She told the world that they had the 1863 “Battle of Bear River” all wrong: it was a massacre. Our …
What’sHerName presents our very first Mother’s Day Special! Come “meet the ancestors” as six What’sHerName listeners introduce some truly remarkable women from their own family history! From Ukraine to Japan, Uzbekistan to Mexico, we’re traveling around the world, and through 275 years, to discover these amazing ancestors in this special double episode. Our guests are What’sHerName listeners Irit Namatinya, Susan Stone, Lisa Williamson, Adrienne, Sachiko Burton, and Michelle Thorley. Rosalia and her daughter Sophia survived …
Margaret Verble ‘found’ Cherokee America Rogers in a cemetery while visiting her grandfather’s grave. This “jaw-dropping” name sparked a journey into her own family history, the neglected stories of the Civil War in Indian Territory, and her newest novel, Cherokee America. Discover the remarkable woman behind this remarkable name, and the under-told and misunderstood history of Cherokee women in the nineteenth century. Our guest is Margaret Verble, author of Maud’s Line and Cherokee America, …
Malintzin has been one of Mexico’s greatest villains for 500 years. A native of Veracruz, she translated for Hernán Cortés, the conquistador who destroyed the Aztec Empire. But she did more than translate: she birthed his children, helped him win battles, and saved his life again and again as they trekked from the Maya coast to the heart of the empire. Through it all, she alone spoke for Cortés – and for everyone he met. …
What if you had a vision for your life, but absolutely everyone around you told you it was impossible? Edmonia Lewis lived a life so improbable, that if we didn’t have the actual evidence that she really existed, we’d never believe it! The orphaned daughter of a Native American mother and Caribbean father in mid 19th century America, she set out on the most unlikely path: to become a famed classical sculptor in Rome, all …
Te Puea Herangi was one of the most important and influential Maori leaders of the 20th century. Born into the family of the Maori King, she was a tireless activist for her people. Her work to assure economic prosperity in the Waikato region, her fierce battles for justice for Maori communities harmed by illegal land seizures, and her passionate dedication to Maori cultural revival assure that she will long be remembered as a critical voice …
