The Bipolar Feminist Podcast
by Nikita Ramkissoon
Intersectional feminism, journalism, mental health, and leftism from a Master's graduate in Gender Studies, Nikita Ramkissoon. Raised in an anti-apartheid activist household, Nikita grew up with a love for human rights and good books. Being a survivor of childhood sexual assault, she developed bipolar disorder and wishes to debunk myths about mental illness and shed light on survivor issues through her writing. Some might call her a raging feminist ... and she is. Guided by bell hooks, Angela Davis, and other black feminists, Nikita wishes to uplift voices of women of colour in media spaces.
Episodes
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Interview: Leon Bijan Kianzad speaks on Germany's first Israel Apartheid Week
Leon and I spoke about the state of activism for Palestine in Europe, Germany's imperialist white supremacy problem, and the issue of empathy under empire.
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Interview: Kefaya Khraim talks about Palestinian detention and abuse by Israel
TRIGGER WARNING: This episode is heavy and talks about sexual and other physical forms of violence, racism, sexism, and psychological torture. Kefaya Khraim is a passionate advocate for human rights, particularly women’s rights, and is currently exploring Israeli crimes that discriminate against...
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Interview: Rebuild Gaza 24 talks about the devastation in the healthcare system
Dr Mohamed from Rebuild Gaza 24 talks about how dire the humanitarian crisis is in Gaza and says it's not a crisis of humanity - it's a crisis of the lack of humanity.
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Interview with the creator of Submit - a kink community with a focus on safety
I interviewed Apollyon, the creator of submit.gg - a social site for kink and BDSM, which focuses on knowledge, safety, and creating a space where diversity can flourish.
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Interview with storyteller Satori Shakoor
Satori Shakoor, creator of The Secret Society of Twisted Storytellers, is all about healing through authentic stories.
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Interview with Caeleinn Hogan - writer of Republic of Shame
Caeleinn Hogan talks about the book, Republic of Shame, and the mother and baby homes in Ireland - and the culture that produced the State's methods of "disappearing" unwanted people.
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How whiteness uses POC to further white supremacy
White supremacy is not merely sustained by white individuals but is deeply embedded in social, economic, and political systems that strategically co-opt POC. By analysing historical and contemporary examples, we see how whiteness employs people of colour to maintain its power. Understanding these...
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Podcast: Interview with Mark of Lorehammer fame
The Warhammer franchise, spanning tabletop games, novels, and video games, has cultivated a massive and passionate global fanbase. With its deep lore, expansive universes, and strategic gameplay, Warhammer has captivated millions. However, as with many gaming and geek culture spaces, Warhammer's...
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Period poverty and its effects
One of the primary ways to address period poverty is by ensuring that menstrual products are affordable and accessible to everyone. Some countries, such as Scotland and Aotearoa, have made strides in providing free sanitary products in schools and public spaces. Making menstrual products exempt...
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The keffiyeh and Hirbawi telling Palestine's stories through fabric
The Palestinian keffiyeh has become a universal symbol of resistance and solidarity. It started as a piece of clothing worn by farmers, but history turned it into something much bigger. It represents defiance against oppression, a call for freedom, and a connection between struggles across...
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From racialised to racial cleanliness
Cleanliness, as both a physical and moral concept, has long been entwined with racialised discourses that reinforce systems of power and hierarchy. From colonial frameworks to modern social practices, the politics of cleanliness intersect with notions of race, class, and identity, perpetuating...
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Interview with alchemist Elianne el-Amyouni
Elianne, known as Twitchy Witch on social media, has recently completed her PhD in Palestinian identity through hip-hop culture, and we talk about Palestine, identity, resistance, and alchemy.
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Elon Musk and his Nazism problem
It's not that he's autistic. He's just racist.
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Podcast: Not all men? It's 70,000
They say “not all men” as it will absolve men of being the number one perpetrator of violence over every other population in the world - other men, women, nonbinary and trans folk, and children. So not all men, you say? Well, it’s 70,000 of them. There are group chats of over 70,000 men giving…
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Interview with musician Leila Hegazy
Leila Hegazy has been a musician and organiser for Palestine and now she's got an album of originals and covers out to raise funds for the Palestine Children's Relief Fund - and it all started with Palestine-related spoofs of popular songs on TikTok.
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Colonialism and language
Have you ever wondered why school and university subjects that are seen as universal are taught in colonial languages? Mathematics, sciences, economics and the like are seen as historically and theoretically neutral (which they’re not) and English. French, Spanish, and Portuguese, among other...
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Fatphobia
Fatphobia is a pervasive and harmful form of discrimination that affects people's physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. It is crucial to recognise that body diversity is natural, and a person's worth is not determined by their size.
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Interview with sex worker and educator Violet Beauregarde
Violet is a professional dominatrix who runs workshops on dirty talk and how to sub, and talks with me on issues of race, sex, consent, and boundaries, among other delightful things. You can find her work at Studio Lux in Berlin.
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Celebrity activism and its issues
While there are celebrities who do the work silently and in a real capacity rather than for show, and some use their platforms to raise funds, it’s all too little when you look at the amount of influence and money these people actually have.
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Sudan in crisis
Having control over the resources in the region would enable capitalist exploitation and bargaining power on the world economic stage.
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Poverty should be the burden of the powerful
The idea that individuals can solve poverty is a myth. It lies in the hands of the powerful who have the ability to stop hoarding wealth, exploiting people and resources, and fueling discord among the most vulnerable people.
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What is going on in the DRC?
Ultimately, It comes down to the unwillingness of the West to let go of its capitalist and imperialist hold on the Global South.
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Interview with Dr Jill Stein
I interview Dr Jill Ellen Stein, an American physician, activist, and politician. She is currently running for president in the 2024 United States presidential election and is the only candidate who is advocating for an end to the Israeli apartheid occupation of Palestine.
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Interview with Palestinian activist Haya Tamimi
Welcome to Season 7! I can't believe we are here already. We kick off the season chatting with Palestinian Haya Tamimi, who is heading up a petition to invoke Article 6 of the UN Charter that removes any party that does not work in the organisation in the spirit of freedom and self-determination…
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Interview with two Syrian rights activists
I interview Sam Masri and an activist known as Rebel about Syria's history of occupation and its brutal war against the Syrian people led by the Al-Assad family.
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Queerness, pinkwashing, and genocide in Palestine
There are queer Palestinians. The Israeli army boasting that the first time the Pride flag being flown in Gaza was by them in 2023’s invasion is ignorant at best and a dangerous narrative at worst, assuming that queer people inside Palestine are only at risk from their own.
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Palestine's children and their life in trauma
Growing up amid conflict and displacement can lead to a fractured sense of identity and belonging, which is actively being targeted by Israel and its allies with Palestinian cultural and historical erasure being part of the Israeli agenda.
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Finding home
Home is where we feel we belong, where we’re accepted, and where we can just be ourselves. And we have to understand that under our current realities, the most marginalised people all over the world are denied that sense of home even in our own homes and countries.
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Podcast: Student protests for Palestine
Pro-Palestinian campus groups have for years called on their institutions to support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, as a means of pushing back against Israel. No US university has ever committed to the BDS framework, although some have cut specific financial ties in the past.
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Interview with Al Jazeera journalist Hani Mahmoud
I speak with Hani Mahmoud, Gaza's war correspondent for Al Jazeera, about the state of journalism and the genocide in Gaza.
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The global digital intifada
Social media enables Palestinians to share videos about the realities they experience and they have experienced success in getting the attention of many international communities.
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Interview with Sundos Hammad of the R2E Campaign
I speak with Sundus Hammad, coordinator of the Right to Education Campaign, who says Palestinian education is under attack but the more aware we become, the more we can resist Israel's occupation and scholasticide.
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Podcast: GBA Podcast interviews me on Palestine and some other stuff
Nez Reign from the GBA Podcast in Germany and I chat about Palestine, journalism, gender identity, and Abu Obeida.
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Genocide, its definition, and characteristics
It was more than seventy years ago that United Nations member states approved the Genocide Convention born out of the desire to ensure that “never again” would any person face the horror of genocide. Since then, we have seen that the world is not free from the threat and reality of the “odious...
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The New York Times and its credibility problem
If the Times wanted to serve its readers and the world, especially in this volatile time, it would launch a transparent investigation into this botched article, the biggest failure of journalism at the newspaper since Judith Miller’s infamous and discredited articles on weapons of mass…
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Deconstructing Israel's claims of rape on 7 October
I can safely say that while I believe women regardless - sometimes to my detriment - I do not believe the Israeli government, media, and military.
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Analysis of the ICJ ruling against Israel
There are mixed feelings and has been much analysis on why it’s either a success or failure or both. Presiding Judge Joan Donoghue said the court was acutely aware of the extent of the human tragedy unfolding in the region and is deeply concerned about the continuing loss of life and human...
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An intersectional approach to Palestine
Intersections of privilege and oppression play a large part in the current genocide of the Palestinian people and the rhetoric surrounding it.
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Germany, the Holocaust, and Palestine
In Germany’s eternal search for atonement, it has instead found further imperialism that does not atone for its genocidal past - it feeds into colonialist aims that are built on the eradication of a people that have wanted nothing but self-determination.
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Palestine and press freedom
The challenges faced by journalists in Palestine serve as a stark reminder of the importance of protecting this fundamental right worldwide. A free press is not only essential for the people in the region but also for fostering understanding and empathy on a global scale.
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Interview with Gaza journalist Ahmad Ghanim
"My heart is cut into pieces." This is just one of the heartbreaking things Gazan journalist Ahmed Ghanim said to me as we spoke about the state of Gaza and his work as a journalist in the area, where journalists are being killed at an unprecedented rate.
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Scapegoating the marginalised
The reason they look for a scapegoat is simple. Whiteness is fragile and indefinable - it is constantly shifting and evolving to current and sometimes future needs and white privilege evolves with it.
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Interview with Roshan Dadoo of the BDS Coalition
Roshan Dadoo explains the meaning of Boycott, divestment, and sanctions, as well as the political landscape of South Africa's relationship with Israel and Palestine.
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Interview with Dr Khaled Qadomi from the Palestinian resistance
I interviewed the physician and representative of the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, about the current situation in Gaza.
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Interview with Busy Wizard Dice featuring Dumbledore and Dobby
I interviewed Lauren from Busy Wizard Dice, who is a bespoke dicemaker from the US, making custom and chaotic dice for D&D. You can find her on social media as @busywizarddice. We talk about D&D, and being a woman on the internet, and have a few cute interruptions by Lauren's cats, Dumbledore and...
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Capitalism, colonialism, and multigenerational homes
Extended families come with great strengths. An extended family is one or more families in a supporting web. The prevalence of extended families living together meant that things that took a village to do meant families had a village to do it with. When colonisation takes hold of our communities,...
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Women in Palestine
In the occupied Palestinian territory, Palestinian women and girls endure systemic discrimination, human rights violations, and the harsh consequences of occupation, with specific gender-related repercussions. These challenges are exacerbated by occupation policies such as expanding settlements,...
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Queerness, communism, and the church with The Trans Narrative Podcast
The Trans Narrative Podcast and The Bipolar Feminist speak to Ross Cheetham about the church, communism, and queerness. On a personal note, Ross is a friend whom I love dearly and is an integral part of this Patreon community and my life as a whole. He is, to this day, the longest-subscribing...
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From the river to the sea
Israel is the symbolic bastion of colonial thought, sentiment, and action. A physical reminder to the global south that we are not safe from imperialism. An imperialist-colonialist project in its very essence, from its inception to its current execution.
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Living with Dissociative Identity Disorder
It’s sometimes a feeling of suddenly becoming an observer of my own speech and actions. It’s sometimes hearing voices. In some cases, the voices accompany multiple streams of thought and it feels like everywhere is loud, no matter where I turn and I have no control over it.
About this show
Intersectional feminism, journalism, mental health, and leftism from a Master's graduate in Gender Studies, Nikita Ramkissoon. Raised in an anti-apartheid activist household, Nikita grew up with a love for human rights and good books. Being a survivor of childhood sexual assault, she developed bipolar disorder and wishes to debunk myths about mental illness and shed light on survivor issues through her writing. Some might call her a raging feminist ... and she is. Guided by bell hooks, Angela Davis, and other black feminists, Nikita wishes to uplift voices of women of colour in media spaces.
Hosted by
Nikita Ramkissoon