logo
episode-header-image
May 2024
5m 50s

Workers: Irene Fernandez

Wonder Media Network and iHeartPodcasts
About this episode

Irene Fernandez (1946-2014) was a Malaysian human rights activist. She co-founded Tenaganita, a non-governmental organization that promotes the rights of migrant workers. When she raised the alarm about migrant workers’ welfare in government detentions, she became the subject of one of the longest trials in the country’s history 

For Further Reading:

This month we’re talking about workers: Women who fought for labor rights and shaped the way we do business today. They advocated and innovated to make the “office” – wherever it is – a more equitable place.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Hannah Bottum, Lauren Willams, and Adrien Behn. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

Follow Wonder Media Network:

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Today
Maritime Madams: Lehua Kamalu
Lehua Kamalu (c. 1980-present) was the first woman in modern history to captain and navigate a voyaging canoe using the traditional Polynesian practice of wayfinding. Without maps or GPS, she navigated the Pacific Ocean using cues from the currents, the winds and the stars. For F ... Show More
6m 33s
Yesterday
Maritime Madams: Radhika Menon
Radhika Menon is the first female captain in the Indian Merchant Navy. In 2016, she became the first woman to receive the IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea following a successful rescue mission that saved the lives of seven fishermen. For Further Reading: BBC, Indian woman ... Show More
3m 51s
Jul 7
Maritime Madams: Annie Edson Taylor
Annie Edson Taylor (unknown –1921) was an American schoolteacher best known as the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel. For Further Reading: Overlooked No More: Annie Edson Taylor, Who Tumbled Down Niagara Falls Into Fame - The New York Times’ Annie Tayl ... Show More
5m 1s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2024
Bonus Episode: How Does a Chicana Activist Find Her Place in History?
In honor of Women’s History Month, we are sharing a special bonus episode featuring Chicana activist and artist Irma Lerma Barbosa. Her legacy will be preserved for years to come in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History Collections. Irma attended college at a time ... Show More
18m 20s
Jun 9
The Patriarchy Playbook: How America’s Gendered Hierarchy Endures with Anna Malika Tubbs
This week on The Monday Edit, we have a very special guest joining in on the Monday fun: best selling author Anna Malaika Tubbs stopped by to tell us all about her new book, Erased: What American Patriarchy Has Hidden from Us and helps us hone in on real time examples of our Patr ... Show More
35m 20s
Aug 2024
Clara Nunes: Queen of Samba
Singer Clara Nunes is an icon of African Brazilian culture and known as the Queen of Samba.Her first samba song Ê Baiana was released in 1973.In 1974, the release of the song Conto de Areia secured her a place in history. Clara sold more records than any other Brazilian woman had ... Show More
9m 7s
Dec 2024
40. By Hook or by Crook
Lucy Worsle digs into the lives of bold women who choose - by hook or by crook - to escape a life of poverty, misfortune and hardship. This episode highlights the fascinating tales of four invincible women. Sophie Lyons, a bank robber who, by the power of the American Dream, turn ... Show More
27m 58s
Sep 2024
Sojourner Truth Read By D'Atra "Dee Dee" Jackson
Once there was a girl whose powerful voice would inspire people to fight for equality. Her name was Isabella Baumfree, but we know her now as Sojourner Truth. She was a Black woman born into slavery in Dutch-speaking rural New York in 1797. She escaped to freedom after nearly 30 ... Show More
20m 16s
Jan 2024
What Can We Learn From Historic Youth Movements?
UnTextbooked is back with a new episode in our series, “UnTextbooking the Museum Collections.” We're sharing the untold story of Irma Lerma Barbosa, a Chicana activist and artist whose work will be preserved for years to come in the National Museum of American History's Collectio ... Show More
42m 25s
Sep 2023
195: Serial Killer: Judi Buenoano
When 54-year-old Judi Beunoano was executed by the State of Florida on March 30th of 1998, she was widely known as Florida’s Black Widow. And that’s because, over the course of 12 years, Judi had made attempts on the lives of these four innocent men: James Edgar Goodyear, Bobby J ... Show More
1h 7m
Mar 2024
Birthrates Are Plummeting Worldwide. Why?
For a long time, the story about the world’s population was that it was growing too quickly. There were going to be too many humans, not enough resources, and that spelled disaster. But now the script has flipped. Fertility rates have declined dramatically, from about five childr ... Show More
1 h
Jun 11
Cynthia Nixon - ‘Being brave is feeling scared and doing it anyway’
Whilst Cynthia Nixon’s versatility is beyond question, it's fair to say that she has become permanently associated with one character, Miranda Hobbs, in Sex and the City and its companion piece, And Just Like That. She won an Emmy for her performance and a generation of fans who ... Show More
53m 44s
Dec 2024
Indian Ocean tsunami - Tamil Nadu
On 26 December 2004, an earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia sparking a tsunami which swept away entire communities around the Indian Ocean. In India, Choodamani and Karibeeran Paramesvaran’s children Rakshanya, 12, Karuyna, nine, and Kirubasan, five, were killed. A beref ... Show More
9m 12s