Everybody Hates Me: Let's Talk About Stigma

As a community organizer, artist, activist, academic and at times a “professional”, Jessica Lynn Whitbread is interested in doing work that creates spaces for dialogue about social justice and social change. She does this through public installations, consciousness raising, workshop development and facilitation, engaging in direct action, policy review, research and any other method that allows a variety of stakeholders to engage in a diversity of ways. She believes that acts of kindness are stronger than acts of fear and that strong, united hearts can overcome the inequalities of this world. Jessica was the youngest and first queer woman to be elected as the Global Chair for the International Community of Women Living with HIV – ICW (2012), the founder of the first International Chapter of Young Women, Adolescents and Girls living with HIV (2010) as well as a long standing Steering Committee member for AIDS ACTION NOW!, and a Board member of the Canadian HIV Legal Network.  Learn more about Jessica here In this podcast we speak with the legendary Jessica Lynn Whitbread, whose projects include Tea Time, Love Positive Women, No Pants No Problem, and PosterVIRUS (AIDS ACTION NOW!). Jessica discusses how we can all engage in action and work for social change to improve the lives of women living with HIV. To learn more about how you can participate in, and contribute to, LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN: Romance Starts at Home! (LPW) visit here and check out this LPW implementation guide by WHAI. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

We have two podcast guests on this episode of stigma and im/migration. Dr. Shira Goldenberg is an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University and Director of Research Education at the Centre for Gender & Sexual Health Equity. Her research focuses on sexual and reproductive health among im/migrant and refugee women, and the impact of laws and policies on sex workers’ health, safety and human rights. You can find her research here, Shira's twitter here and the Centre for Gender & Sexual Health Equity here. Stefanie Machado is a Research Associate at the Centre for Gender & Sexual Health Equity and a PhD Candidate at the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. Stefanie’s doctoral research focuses on intersectional determinants of im/migrant women’s sexual and reproductive health access during COVID-19 and beyond. On this podcast we discuss the intersection of xenophobia, racism, COVID-19 stigma, and sex work stigma with stigma targeting im/migrants. Structural change, societal change, and individual change are needed to recognize dignity, rights and shared humanity to challenge im/migration stigma. We talk about learning from Black Lives Matter, migrant justice and rights work, defunding the police, sex worker rights movement, and standing up against harassment.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

Dr. Lisa Bowleg is Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychology at GW. She is a leading scholar of intersectionality in behavioral and social science research. She is the Director of the DC CFAR's Social and Behavioral Sciences Core. Learn more about Dr. Bowleg's work here and follow her research here. We talk about Dr. Bowleg's work documenting intersecting stigma and discrimination, and the foundation of intersectionality in the works of Audre Lorde, bell hooks, and Sojourner Truth. We discuss how racism and other forms of discrimination: limit people's potential, rights and freedoms; manifest in health problems; and reduce opportunities to thrive. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

Dr. Angela Mashford-Pringle is an Algonquin (Timiskaming First Nation) Assistant Professor and Associate Director at the Waakebiness-Bryce Institute for Indigenous Health, Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Angela is the Director of the Master of Public Health – Indigenous Health program, Director of the Collaborative Specialization in Indigenous Health and Founding Editor of the Turtle Island Journal on Indigenous Health. She works with Indigenous communities in urban and rural settings with issues related to Indigenous health including cultural safety, land-based learning, and climate action. You can find Angela here and the Turtle Island Journal here.In this podcast Dr. Mashford-Pringle talks about her journey to promoting Indigenous cultural safety inspired by the Oka Crisis. She describes the current and historical contexts of discrimination and violence toward Indigenous peoples, including residential schools,  forced sterilization, and mistreatment by police and healthcare workers. Dr. Mashford-Pringle explains the 3 P's-power, privilege and positionally-central to understanding Indigenous cultural safety. We also discuss the significance of sports teams changing their names, respect for Mother Earth, and the interconnectedness underlying climate change.  Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

Angelique Jenney, PhD, RSW, is an Assistant Professor and the Wood’s Homes Research Chair in Children’s Mental Health in the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Calgary. Dr. Jenney has over 20 years’ experience in intervention and prevention services within the child protection, children’s mental health and violence against women sectors. Dr. Jenney’s research and program development has been devoted to understanding and responding to the impact of violence in families. Find a recent blog post Angelique wrote on stigma and children's mental health access and experiences. We discuss how stigma is a barrier for children and adolescents accessing early interventions for mental health--despite its potential to change the trajectory of their lives. Mental health stigma contributes to bullying and social isolation of children, and blaming of parents. We discuss stigma, fear, stereotypes and misinformation toward parents and families with children with mental health issues. Angelique shares how we need more dialogue about complicated feelings (and the magic of Inside Out!) and how we can use our range of emotions to know ourselves. Angelique recommends saying yes to opportunities that you may be afraid of, and being ok with being uncomfortable so we don't reject everything that we are afraid of. We also invite dream future podcast guests: Barack Obama, Dan Levy and Bruce Springsteen.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

Professor Voisin has served as Dean of the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work since 2019. He holds the Sandra Rotman Chair in Social Work. Prior to his appointment at the University of Toronto, he was Professor at the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago for two decades where he was a Faculty Affiliate at the Center for the Study of Race, Culture, and Politics and the Center for Health and the Social Sciences. A central focus of Voisin’s scholarship is examining the impact of structural, neighborhood and police violence on the life chances and behavioral trajectories of urban youth and the protective factors that protect youth in the presence of such adversities. His latest book is America the Beautiful and Violent: Black Youth and Neighborhood Trauma in Chicago, published by Columbia University Press in 2019. You can find more of Dr. Voisin's work here.We talk about Dr. Voisin's work on race, class and place-based stigma and the implications for people's lives and wellbeing. We talk about the costs of stigma and how we all pay the price for not addressing social inequalities. Dr. Voisin shares how COVID-19 has laid bare how race, place and class-based inequalities in one area of a city impact a city's wellbeing. We discuss who we pay attention to in situations of police violence toward Black persons, including how women and gender diverse persons' names may be less known to the general public. He talks about how people engage in stigmatizing practices to feel superior, and how how we are all sinners, sufferers and saints when it comes to stigma. Moving forward we need to find true power innate within ourselves, rather than illegitimate forms of power from stigmatizing. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.

Dr. Kaitlin Schwan is Lead Researcher for the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing, and Director of Research for The Shift. Kaitlin teaches social policy at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Social Work, where she is appointed Assistant Professor, Status Only. She is also a Senior Researcher at the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (York University). Since completing her PhD in Social Work at the University of Toronto, Kaitlin’s research has focused on homelessness prevention in Canada and beyond, particularly for women and youth. Across her work, Kaitlin uses research to build bridges between evidence, advocacy, policy, and lived expertise in order to advance housing justice for all. You can follow The Shift here and Kaitlin here. In this episode Kaitlin shares the importance of understanding the ways that stigma produces invisibility of people who are unhoused. Kaitlin talks about shelter practices that deepen feelings of shame, stigma and increase exposure to violence, as well as human rights violations in public spaces. We talk about the need for a radical redistribution of wealth, a tackling of poverty, and a reflection on policies and everyday practices that exacerbate vulnerabilities of people who are unhoused. We discuss the need to trust people who are unhoused as the experts in their own lives, and engage all people as members of our community. Finally Kaitlin reminds us of the importance of lifting as you climb.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs. 

Dr. Gillian Einstein is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto where she leads the Einstein Lab on Cognitive Neuroscience, Gender & Health. She is also the Founder of the Collaborative Specialization in Women’s Health at the University of Toronto, The Wilfred and Joyce Posluns Chair of Women’s Brain Health and Aging, and Guest Professor of Neuroscience and Gender Medicine, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden. She founded the Canadian Organization for Gender & Sex Research. You can learn more about her work here and find her lab on Twitter.We talk about how the social can become biological. Stigma and stress are connected to brain health, including Alzheimers and dementia, as well as metabolic issues such as diabetes. We discuss how COVID-19 stigma impacts older persons framed as vulnerable and the need to understand the long-view and wisdom that older people bring to society. Dr. Einstein likes to startle people to get them to shift their perspective to become alert and aware. We shout out the Lofoten Islands as a dream destination. Gillian talks about following your heart and your pleasures to have an honest life. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. 

Dr. Ramona Alaggia is a Professor at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto where she is deeply engaged in examining gender based violence issues from the standpoint of survivors of child sexual abuse, sexual violence and intimate partner violence. She is an international speaker and her research contributes to developing anti-discriminatory policies and practices for people living with and disclosing gender based violence. Ramona is currently running a large scale study on the impact of the #MeToo movement on gender based violence disclosures in Canada. The 3rd edition of her co-edited book "Cruel But Not Unusual: Violence in Relationships and Families in Canada" will be released in 2020.In this episode we talk about stigma around sexual violence and how this impacts sexual violence disclosure experiences (and decisions of whether or not to disclose). Ramona provides examples of helpful, and less helpful, responses to sexual violence disclosures. We talk about the intersectional impacts of stigma on who is believed (and who is not) in disclosing sexual violence. Ramona discusses the history of the #MeToo movement, trauma-informed approaches to disclosure, and the need to change public perception (including media) portrayals of sexual violence survivors. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Informational resources on violence can be found below:Assaulted Women’s Helpline (national); 1-866-863-7868; www.awhl.orgToronto Rape Crisis Centre; 24-hour crisis line: 416-597-8808; crisis@trccmwar.caKids Help Phone (national): Text 686868; 1-800-668-6868Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Care Centre; Women’s College Hospital, 76 Grenville St., Toronto Room 1305; 416-323-6040Distress Centres of Greater Toronto; www.dcogt.com; (416) 408-HELP (4357)

Dr. Nadine Nakamura is a Professor of Psychology at the University of LaVerne and a licensed psychologist. She is committed to understanding the unique needs of multiple minorities, LGBT immigrants and asylum seekers, as well as LGBT international issues. Dr. Nakamura co-edited a book recently, alongside myself, published by the American Psychological Association on LGBTQ Mental Health: International Perspectives and Experiences. Nadine talks about how stigma can look like omission, and the need to amplify voices on the periphery. Nadine discusses the importance of broadening the conversation of what LGBTQ mental health looks like outside of North America. She talks about LGBT asylum seekers' experiences navigating multiple marginalized identities and finding spaces of acceptance. Nadine discusses how parents can first get comfortable talking about racism, as that will help them have these conversations with their children, and how these conversations need to address power. She also talks about the need for rest to sustain ourselves over the long game. We discuss the importance of celebrating the small wins, loosening the grip of productivity, and the personal project of stopping oppressing ourselves.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. 

Dr. Stefan Baral is a physician epidemiologist and an Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH). He is the Key Populations Program Director at the Center for Public Health and Human Rights at JHSPH. Stefan has also been involved in HIV epidemiology, prevention, and implementation research focused on the epidemiology, human rights contexts, and effective interventions for gay men and other men who have sex with men, transgender women, and female sex workers across Western and Central, and Southern Africa and parts of Asia. Find more of Stefan's work here, including on COVID-19, and you can follow him on Twitter here.  Dr. Stefan Baral discusses his journey to focusing on human rights, stigma and HIV. Stefan's work on stigma is sex positive and highlights the importance of people being able to have the sex they want. He discusses how stigma manifests in assumptions and poor health services. Stefan talks about the need to consider the complexity of stigma, its pervasive negative effects on communities and their wellbeing, and the importance of an equity framing of public health and human rights. We talk about being inspired by persons who work hard on their craft to achieve excellence. He shares his favourite place to eat fresh fish in Senegal. Stefan reminds the listeners to not discount their ideas before they are released in the world. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. 

Dr. Alex Abramovich is an Independent Scientist with the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research at CAMH. He is an internationally recognized leader in the area of LGBTQ2S youth homelessness. Learn more about Alex's work here and read some of his work here. We talk about the role of stigma in contributing to homelessness and mental health challenges among LGBTQ2S youth. Alex discusses the need for LGBTQ2S youth specialized services, such as the one he works with at Sprott House, Canada's first transitional housing program for LGBTQ2S youth. We talk about LGBTQ2S youth trying to live their authentic self and experiencing a lack of acceptance in families and shelter systems. Alex shares advice on how to ground yourself when feeling overwhelmed. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program. 

Yasmeen Persad is a trans activist who has been providing education and training around LGBT related issues for the past 10 years. Her experience ranges from working with trans youth, women living with HIV, sex workers and many diverse populations. She provides training to service providers around Trans community inclusion and support. Yasmeen has presented at many conferences across North America on various topics about access for trans people. She is currently a Research Coordinator at Women’s College Hospital, working with Trans Women and HIV as part of the Trans Women HIV Research Initiative. You can learn more about Yasmeen's TPOC (Trans People of Colour) Project. Find out more about our TRANScending Love research here.We talk about stigma experienced by trans people, including in journeys to healthcare. Yasmeen provides suggestions of how people can use their voice to support trans people. We talk about stigma as a loaded word and misconceptions that all trans people, or trans women of colour, experience barriers and have a 'sad life'. We discuss celebration and the need for affirming one another. Yasmeen talks about some questions she would like to clear up with Jesus. Yasmeen shares the importance of staying humble, saying no, and taking care of yourself (however that looks for you).Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. 

Tonia Poteat, PhD, PA-C, MPH, is Assistant Professor of Social Medicine at UNC-Chapel Hill, as well as core faculty in the UNC Center for Health Equity Research. Dr. Poteat’s research, teaching, and practice have focused on HIV and LGBT health disparities with particular attention to the health and well-being of transgender communities. Find more about Dr. Poteat here  And find more of her work here In this podcast we talk about the courage, strength and safety needed to be your authentic  self in a stigmatizing world. We discuss stigma and its effects among transgender people, and the historical and current effects of racism. We talk about having a vision for building a functioning, healthy, loving, equitable and just society. We also discuss the importance of beloved community, collective work (and rest) inspired by Sweet Honey in the Rock's 'Ella's Song'. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation(CFI) and Canada Research Chairs program. 

Dr. Travis Salway is a social worker and social epidemiologist who tries to understand how and why queer people experience higher rates of mental distress (including suicide and anxiety) as compared with heterosexual people. He is an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, where he is supported by the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. He works in collaboration with the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control  the Community Based Research Centre  and the Centre for Gender and Sexual Health Equity.  In 2019, Travis gave testimony to the Canadian House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Health, specifically calling for a reexamination of “conversion therapy” practices in Canada. He has since worked with conversion therapy survivors to better describe where, how, and why conversion therapy continues to occur in Canada. You can find more about Travis here and on Twitter. Here is an example of Travis' writing on conversion therapy. In this episode we talk about Travis' work on highlighting the harms of conversion therapy. We talk about queer mental health and suicide, how common conversion therapy is (answer: very!), and discrimination as the tip of the iceberg of how people are devalued. We talk about needing to move beyond 'tolerating' to celebrating LGBTQ persons. We plead for Dan Levy to come on this show as a podcast guest because we are in love with how Schitt's Creek's imagines and models LGBTQ acceptance. We talk about comprehensive sexuality education as an opportunity to reach LGBTQ youth and let them know they are wanted, seen and valued. We also discuss gems of wisdom Travis is inspired by, and shout out future dream podcast guests.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program.

Dr. Notisha Massaquoi is a highly respected expert in designing programs and services which aim to increase access to primary healthcare for racialized communities. During her lengthy career she has facilitated the development of several health organizations for Black communities in Canada including Africans in Partnership Against AIDS and the African Resource Centre. She is the Principal Consultant at Nyanda Consulting. She recently retired after 21 years as the Executive Director of Women’s Health in Women’s Hands which is the only community health centre in Canada that specifically provides primary healthcare for racialized women. Her research and numerous publications have focused on the use of health equity data to improve health outcomes for Black women as well as the impact of racism on the health and wellbeing of Black communities. She is the Co-Chair of the Anti-Racism Advisory Panel of the Toronto Police Services Board which was recently responsible for producing the first mandatory race-based data collection policy for a police service in Canada. You can follow Notisha here.  And find some of her research here. You can also learn more about Women's Health in Women's Hands here.In this podcast we talk about the need for race-based data in COVID-19 health outcomes, and how this pandemic is highlighting the racial health disparities we already know exist. Notisha walks us through how stigma shapes the journey to healthcare, and how early experiences of racism in healthcare can shape health seeking across the life course. We talk about Notisha's work with LGBTQ African refugees and how she integrated her social work background to provide support in the immigration process. We talk about caring about the outcomes of racialized persons beyond the data, seeing people as worthy of living, and being invested in their survival. We also consider the importance of how you represent people you are working with, clarifying your intent, and the longevity of your commitment. Notisha talks about the need to move out of our own bubbles to make real changes. Finally we talk about the importance of mentorship and moving beyond the 'no's' to reach your goals and dreams.Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program.

Dr. Anne Stangl is a social and behavioral scientist and President of Hera Solutions, an independent firm providing research and advisory services to organizations, companies and governments to strengthen health equity. Anne is also Associate Faculty with the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She has 18 years of international public health experience in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean with a focus on stigma, qualitative and quantitative research methods, research design, statistical analysis, systematic reviews and monitoring and evaluation. Her research focuses on understanding and addressing the social and structural determinants of health that impede access to and uptake of health services among underserved populations globally. Anne is a leading expert on health-related stigma and discrimination and has contributed to theoretical understanding of how the stigmatization process operates in the context of health to inform stigma mitigation interventions and stigma measurement. She is also actively engaged in utilizing research findings to inform global policy and action. You can find more about Anne on twitter and here. In this episode we talk about sex--and the need to talk more about sex with youth using comprehensive sexuality education. We also discuss stigma as infringements on human rights, stigma elements that are 'common to its core', and the need for structural approaches to address underlying drivers of stigma. Being able to recognize stigma is a critical first step so that you can stand up against it. We also talk about Anne's love of Ruth Bader Ginsberg and dream dinner plans with her (in case you are reading this RBG, there is a great Baltimore restaurant Anne would love to take you too...and we would love to host you on the podcast). Anne of Green Gables and kindness also pop up in our discussion. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program. 

Dr. Rosemary Morgan is an Assistant Scientist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the Department of International Health, with a joint position in the School of Nursing. She has expertise in gender, gender analysis, and intersectionality. She currently leads the Sex and Gender Analysis Core for the NIH funded Sex and Age Differences in Immunity to Influenza (SADII) Center. In addition, she works as a gender advisor on RADAR, an initiative developing tools to assist in the implementation of measurement approaches for maternal, neonatal, and child health and nutrition programs. Learn more about Rosemary's work here and find out about the Gender and COVID-19 working group, and where she is gathering data on the sex and gender dimensions of COVID-19 here.In this podcast we talk about gender power relationships, who has a seat at the table on COVID-19 leadership, and how gender inequities impact all of us. We discuss how intersectionality helps us to see the nuances of gender, race and linkages with health outcomes, how gender is fluid and dynamic, and the impact of gender inequities on labour, decision making, and perceived worth. Most healthcare workers on the front lines working with patients are women, and women are disproportionately infected with COVID-19: could this be related to the lack of medical masks designed for women's bodies? We talk about the need for both policy and grassroots change and the slow moving nature of change. At the family level, showcasing examples of how caregiving, dishes, and vacuuming are adult (not gender specific) responsibilities can be combined with policy and procedural changes to level the playing field. We talk about COVID-19 as a window of opportunity to accelerate change on gender norms. Finally we talk about zombie movies as a different genre of horror, and cats--how many cats are ideal and how we can make a difference one cat at a time.  Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program. 

Muluba Habanyama is an experienced communications specialist who was born with HIV. She has written for Flare magazine, Huffington Post and more. She works with the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) as a Social Media Specialist and is a Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) Youth Ambassador. She also works with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) HIV Clinical Trials Network (CTN). Read more about Muluba's work here and here. Find Muluba on twitter and on her website and instagram. In this episode we talk about Muluba's journey to giving herself her best chance by becoming open about her HIV status. We discuss experiences of stigma in childhood, her process of finding support as an adult, and her experiences cooking in Casey House's June’s HIV+ Eatery, a pop-up restaurant in Toronto with chefs living with HIV. Muluba also provides recommendations for allyship and how we all can take the initiative to educate ourselves about HIV and stand up against stigma. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program. 

Bergen Cooper, M.P.H., is the Director of Policy Research at the Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE). She develops and evaluates research and builds CHANGE’s institutional knowledge of sexual and reproductive health and rights. She leads forums, webinars, and workshops for global health advocates that focus on translating research into policy. Bergen also works with the World Health Organization, where her research since 2012 has focused on interventions within primary care to improve the sexual health of both adolescents and adults. She has evaluated, designed, and taught sexuality education for adolescents and young adults in Washington, D.C. and New York City.  Since 2014 Bergen has been researching the sexual and reproductive rights of women past reproductive age, and is widely considered an expert on gender-based violence and the sexual rights of older women. She is also the co-convener of a global network of nearly one hundred researchers on the Global Gag Rule. Learn more about Bergen's work here and find a recent interview with Bergen on pregnancy stigma here. In this podcast, we reminisce about Salt-N-Pepa's groundbreaking songs about sex and HIV, and discuss the importance of recognizing stigma about sex across the life course, from adolescents to older age. Stigma around fertility (and infertility), pregnancy, abortion, and contraception are global issues. We talk about the continued need to talk about and remove the stigma surrounding sex, the need to critique public health messaging (using creative means including defacing signs when necessary), and the power of harnessing our various platforms to promote social change.Find the SRHR Index we discussed here. Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Original music and podcast produced by Cozmic Cat. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovationand Canada Research Chairs program.