Episode 112: "Cat Person," Black Maternal Mortality, and Elf on the Shelf

In this week's episode, Neil, Niki, and Natalia debate the viral New Yorker short story “Cat Person”, the disproportionately high maternal death rate among black women, and the Elf on the Shelf phenomenon.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:

• Kristen Roupenian’s New Yorker short story “Cat Person” went surprisingly viral last week. Natalia cited Laura Kipnis’ Unwanted Advances to dissuade readers from equating bad and coercive sex. Natalia cited Jennifer Weiner’s New York Times op-ed about the snobbery often directed at her career writing “chick lit.” Neil recommended Roupenian’s interview with Deborah Treisman.
• ProPublica published a damning article highlighting the many reasons black women die in pregnancy and childbirth. Neil recommended anthropologist Carolyn Rouse’s book Uncertain Suffering: Racial Health Care Disparities and Sickle Cell Disease, and Natalia recommended Alondra Nelson’s Body and Soul: The Black Panther Party and the Fight Against Medical Discrimination and Susan Reverby’s Examining Tuskegee: The Infamous Syphilis Study and its Legacy.
• We discussed the newest Christmas tradition – the now decade-plus old Elf on the Shelf.

In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History:

• Neil discussed the history of the claw foot tub.
• Natalia commented on the new PBS documentary, Pervert Park.
• Niki shared The Cut article, “The Life and Death of a Radical Sisterhood.”