This week’s Archetypes podcast is “The Audacity of the Activist with Jameela Jamil and Shohreh Aghdashloo.” The Duchess of Sussex focuses on how women’s activism is diminished, mocked, ignored and marginalized across all spectrums of society. Meghan also speaks with Ilana Glazer and Lisa Tetrault, author of The Myth of Seneca Falls. I like the framing Meghan and Ilana Glazer made about “hiding your vegetables,” as in women feeling the need to soften their opinions or activism to make everything more palatable. Here’s the pod:
Honestly, for years I haven’t really been able to stand Jameela Jamil, but I listened to most of Meghan’s interview with her and I came out of it feeling differently. Meghan gives her a platform to discuss the proliferation of diet culture online, then they talk about how the media has gone after her. Jamil is right – we’re rarely seeing celebrities posting about their “fat-burning teas” or diet whatever, and she was a huge part of that change. Jamil also admits that she entered spaces and conversations that she shouldn’t have, which is a huge reason why I tuned her out years ago – she thought she was the most important person to ever speak on every issue, ever. There’s a difference between “bold, loud and passionate activist” and “a narcissist using various causes to get attention for themselves.” Jameela was both at various times.
This pod, for me, got a lot more interesting when Meghan talks to Lisa Tetrault about the history of women’s activism and women’s movements, from the Suffrage movement, to Angela Davis, Gloria Steinem and Tarana Burke. Then around the 37-minute mark, Meghan begins speaking to Shohreh Aghdashloo, the Iranian actress and activist. She was an actress in Iran before the 1979 revolution and she, like many Iranians, fled their country under the ayatollah. Shohreh made me cry – she spoke about what it was like after the shah was overthrown and how she was stoned by pro-revolutionaries. Meghan uses this conversation to highlight the murder of Mahsa Amini by Iran’s morality police and the subsequent protests all around Iran, with women removing the hijabs, cutting their hair and fighting for their rights.
Photos courtesy of Spotify, Archewell, Avalon Red.
-
- 171684, Shohreh Aghdashloo at The 2017 AMD British Academy Britannia Awards in Los Angeles. Los Angeles, California – Friday October 27, 2017. Photograph: © PacificCoastNews. Los Angeles Office (PCN): +1 310.822.0419 UK Office (Photoshot): +44 (0) 20 7421 6000,Image: 522099639, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS – DIRECT SALES ONLY- Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: PacificCoastNews / Avalon
-
- Shohreh Aghdashloo CELEBRITES: 59eme Festival TV de Monte Carlo – Ceremonie d ouver,Image: 536284385, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Norbert Scanella / PanoramiC / Panoramic / Avalon
-
- Actress Jameela Jamil wearing a Georges Chakra gown arrives at the 62nd Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Staples Center on January 26, 2020 in Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 563122750, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
Shohreh is a queen. Stoned…I can’t bear to hear it. Thinking of our Iranian friends today and crying.
This episode has my in tears, literally sobbing. Women, Life, Freedom.
I was crying, too. This was so powerful. Definitely one of my favourite episodes. The plight of Iranian women is horrible, their strength needs to be highlighted and we all have to help them fight. So glad for this amplification.
I’m glad people are seeing another side of Jameela, I’ve always found it annoying how people react negatively to her, she’s full of fire and she’s trying to fight. There is no blueprint so of course she’s had missteps, but she’s learning and growing.
I’ve just finished listening and came on to say the same thing. It was so powerful. I sat in my room stunned. Excellent podcast.
Agreed! Not sure I’m ready for this one.
I wasn’t sure if I would be into this episode but it was fucking 🔥 🔥🔥🔥. I loved both of her guests and was applauding everything Jameela said and deeply moved by Shohreh.
Meghan has gotten better with every episode and she’s just getting started. Spotify must be THRILLED with this quality content.
Did anyone see that Britney Spears quoted Meghan? I wonder if Meghan will have her on as a guest.
Yes they’re, someone from the Spotify said she is in the top ten in the World.
I cannot wait to listen to this episode later today! I agree that she’s just getting better with each episode.
Meghan wouldn’t touch Britney with a ten foot pole. (And not just because she’s very erratic right now.) The absolute last thing she needs is to poke the Britney hive and turn their obsessive attention toward her.
It really was. A lot of times the problem may not even be us being on the receiving end of the labels mentioned in Meghan’s podcast. Someone may be trying to use them to get other people to dismiss the woman they’re targeting and those people to participate in her abuse. Being aware of those situations, refusing to join in and calling them out may slowly take away the power these labels have to hold women back over time.
I loved Shohreh on The Expanse especially the first couple of seasons, she was one of the highlights for me. Looking forward to hearing about her real life experiences.
She was so amazing on that show!! Definitely my favorite character.
She’s always so good, her voice has to be one of the most distinctive in film and television. Instantly recognizable and I get excited every time I know she’s in something.
Meghan is doing her homework or at least working with people who are. It’s impressive and not just a superficial touch on these important topics. I’m impressed and I was not thinking that I would be.
If she wasn’t doing her homework too, she wouldn’t be able to ask effective follow-up questions, which is what takes interviews from good to exceptional.
Sooooooo! agree with you.
I enjoyed this episode so much. Jameela shaded the hell out of the UK press.
As always, the Daily Fail has jumped on this week’s pod episode first, to set the (attacking) tone in the media (yess!!, that’s why they do it so quickly each week; the know that the lazy media in the UK and worldwide always copy these as*hole’s pieces instead of listing and form their own opinion about the theme/pod), but they talked around the parts where Jameela and Meghan refer to their degusting behaviour of demonizing and vilifying women with a voice, especially the ones who dear to be activists.
Another great episode. Jameela sure did a great job voicing the shady UK press and their sycophants. Loved the discussion of how what is actually said is completely misrepresented. We’ve seen this with every Archetypes episode (and pretty much anything Meghan has said over the last 6 years), along all the others whose words have been twisted.
My curiosity got the better of me and I looked. It was a Fail reporter in 1906 that came up with ‘suffragette’. I thought, “Well, of course, that makes perfect sense.”. Loved that women in Britain decided to claim the word and pronounce it as suffra get.
https://time.com/4079176/suffragette-word-history-film/
Word.
Shohreh is amazing as an actor and, more importantly, as a person. The more I learn about her, the more I like her.
I really enjoyed this episode; I was pretty unfamiliar with Jameela but I did like how she recognized she shouldn’t speak on every issue just because she is asked. That’s something everyone can take to heart, it doesn’t mean you don’t support certain issues, just that you realize your voice shouldn’t be the one that is being elevated. Also, I really hope they release a behind the scenes, or outtakes of the episodes. Meghan has interviewed so many people in the beginning of each episode that I would love to hear a full interview from, or at least a little more on their thoughts on the subjects.
I’m happy to see Jameela making better choices and getting back some of the credibility she lost because she was ABSOLUTELY right to go after the Kardashians and everyone else using shitting teas. A whole generation of young girls are getting beaten over the head with toxic messages on social media about their bodies, so good for her for doing what she can to push back.
Another amazing episode for me. Loved hearing from Jamil re her perspective. I guess I have an amazing way of tuning noise out that I do not agree with. Some of Jamil points re current events before this Podcast, I tuned out because for me the larger issue is she stands for something and uses her voice to support women. Therefore, I never found it necessary to agree with her every utterance. Grateful Meghan is giving these amazing women a platform to address their concerns. These Podcast are so very powerful, I hope Meghan continues using her voice re Podcasts for a long time.
Thank you. People get distracted by little things and don’t see the bigger picture. Both guests today were exceptional.
I have never thought about the notion of female activism being used to attack women. So, I’m looking forward to listening to this.
Most ME sufferers are women, and I was totally shocked when I found out how horrible the docs who are suppose to be the experts on ME spoke about “ME activists”. People who are fighting for more research to find a cure, mostly from their bed or couch, are called all sorts of horrible things. Because sufferers speak up when they don’t recover with the psyk methodes the docs think should cure it. Because sufferers speak up about shady research. It’s sickening. In one way I would love for Meghan to make a pod about it, but I also know she’ll get a whole new group hating her for it.
As a long-hauler – absolutely, we’re usually invalidated from the word go. It seems like people can’t get past the fact that the call was made in the 70s, as I recall, to treat post-viral syndrome diseases as psychological rather than physical. Which is biting them in the bum with the emergence of Long Covid.
I was lucky at least that my doctor at the time of diagnosis had known me since I was a toddler and knew there was something wrong – it just took a while to figure out what.
I cried. This is a powerful episode. The rota and the brf will absolutely hate this episode and will pull out all stops to make people NOT listen to it.
So many points in this episode where I went, that’s what they did and are still doing to Meghan! And at one point, because I was reading the transcript, I had to scroll back to see that it wasn’t Meghan describing the smear campaign against her, it was Jameela talking.
And btw, rota and brf, despite your hateful smears. Meghan’s voice IS global and powerful women are eager to talk to her. I love this quote from Shohreh, translated from Farsi:
“Shohreh: What I said was, my dear friends, people of Iran, the world has heard your voice and they are supporting you lovingly and they are willing to echo your voice to the whole world. I am talking to miss beautiful Meghan Markle, and I’m so thrilled that I know that with her this talk will go all around the globe. Millions and millions of people would hear us and would know what you’re doing in Iran and would support you even more.”
This is power.
When Shohreh told the story about the nurse treating her wounds, I broke. Everything Shohreh was saying was powerful/important. It wasn’t until I was listening that I realized she was one of my favorite characters from 24. What a life she’s lived.
This is one of my fave episodes because the message is so important.
Cant wait to check this one out <3
Shohreh’s voice! My god… I could listen to this woman read the phone book. Megan’s voice (a light alto?) is already so good. Purely for aural quality, this pod would be like ASMR.
This is exactly what the royal family was threatened by: her substance and intellect. Lord almighty, imagine what she could have done for them.
They despise that Meghan will be neither dimmed nor controlled.
Such powerful and informative episode…. It’s sooo good I’ve listened two times already. Absolutely brilliant! Go Meghan
I cant tell you how much I love Meghan and how she’s lived her life…….from even before she met Harry. From all thats in the public domain about her, its so obvious that she had clear aspirations for herself and lived her life – (despite having a shidty father who she so obviously wanted to love and be loved by, but instead, she had to placate his big, underdeveloped, vindictive arse all her life) – in a way that kept her focused on her goals and, along with being blessed with a genius-level brain, managed to stay on a path that has led her to this powerful place in her life.
I’m sure not even she could have imagined that she would be doing what she is doing now on the scale that she’s doing it. But what she was and is, is PREPARED!
Consider her high-level competence in all the communication and interpersonal skills: she has such a solid foundation in the essential comm skills of writing; reading; listening; and speaking. As a former teacher and HR prof I can tell you, if youve not honed these basic skills in your youth, i:e HS & college years, youre gonna have a hard, slogging time of realizing your full potential………..you have to work on each one deliberately and purposefully to become as highly skilled as M is in all these skills. Also add in her fascination with other languages & cultures other than the one she was born into and her willingness to experience them.
Then consider the social and personal skills that she also deliberately sought to develop within herself (chef-level cooking; calligraphy; interior decorating; and these are only the ones we know about;) her genuine love of travelling. Her demonstrably passionate love of children and animals.
This exceptional woman deliberately created the life she wanted to live and the person she wanted to be. And she’s achieved that. Nothwithstanding the highly publicized price she has had to pay in recent times.
I so admire her and I send nothing but positive vibrations to her and her loved ones, as I do with everyone for whom I want nothing but the best.
PS: I’m also learning NOT to spend my energies hating on those I despise;……..that affects me more than it does them. But that continues to be a work in progress.
+1000 @kingston
Yes, @Kingston! Well said! Meghan, and your description of her, are incredible. Meghan is intellectually curious, well-spoken, courageous, intelligent, confident, gorgeous, unapologetic, charismatic, warm, articulate, expressive, adaptable, resilient, and strong. And knowing the circumstances from which she has risen, makes it all the more impressive.
hear, hear!
Well said Kingston. My god. When I heard she was dating Harry I thought nothing much of it. Thought she was going to be an average royal wife albeit with more media training. I did not watch Suits so had no idea who she was. It was when she spoke at the foursome panel I was taken back by her passion and that it was so obvious she knew what she was talking about. She did homework! This is an intelligent, hard-working, compassionate, accomplished woman who quickly became one of my top female role models 🥰
Shohreh is an amazing person.
I really hope Meghan has Leah Remini on a future episode. Leah has stood up to the cult of Scientology almost single handedly (as a celebrity). I think her tough and tenacious spirit would be a great future guest on this podcast.
That’s a great idea. She could include Jenna Miscavige Hill and Lisa Pulitzer who wrote “Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape”. I’ve read the book and it is jaw-droppingly shocking.
Most compelling episode yet. It anchors all the others. I feel that this was a very climactic episode. Really looking forward to what kind of impact the last two episodes will have.
It does, it pretty much covers the tantrums about all the others. Maybe someone gets pissed over the fact that they get any response other than a Yass Kween after ranting about how women are bimbos, or have *real or made up* mental health issues/trauma and shouldn’t be included because of it. Maybe a gross comment about submission, #Metoo, gratitude, or purity isn’t taken as an inclusive compliment meant for Asian women or other women of color. As soon as there’s criticism from women of any of the labels that have been discussed on Meghan’s podcast, you hear the whining about woke SJW snowflakes needing to be put in their place. Some people have a deep seated fear of women putting a name to the things they experience, and putting a name to things that are used to either harm other women or, as discussed in today’s episode, to get them to harm themselves.
The Audacity of the Activist is now my #1 episode of Archetypes. I was fist-pumping as Jameela Jamil was talking. Most importantly, Jameela called out the rota tabloid attacks on Meghan. She did not sugarcoat her words, she just delivered a lot of truth.
Shohreh Aghdashloo’s interview was powerful. As she said “It has to win. Let’s put it this way. It has to win. With millions of Iranians rising against tyranny. It has to win.”
Zen Zindagi Azadi. Woman, life, freedom
This episode was amazing. Listening to Jameela Jamil speak was thrilling at times; she was so bold and forthright. I’m grateful for the way she has supported Meghan, and it was lovely to hear her speak of the way Meghan has quietly supported women including Ms. Jamil, herself.
I’m going to have to learn more about Shohreh Aghdashloo. It was a pleasure and yet also sobering listening to her.
Any chance of an Archetypes – Season 1 book, at all, Meghan, please..?
I have to say that, as much as I love Meghan, Jameela is a bully and I wasn’t thrilled she was given this kind of platform. However, I love Shohreh – she’s marvelous in everything she’s done.
I agree with you
Archetypes is nominated for a People Choice Award. Winners are announced on Dec 6 the same day as Ripple off Hope. Watch the BRF and BM throw a fit if Meghan gets a double win.
Today’s podcast was so pertinent in how there’s strength in numbers. It’s a lonely road to travel for female activist to keep up the good fight. Last week’s election victories help heal some of the micro- aggressions for the moment.
Iove JJ and always have.. She’s not perfect, but the need to demand ‘perfection’ from a woman who speaks out otherwise she’s ‘annoying’ is exactly what people in power want. I am curious about the ‘oh I never liked her’ brigade because who is influencing your thinking? It sounds exactly like how people I know speak about Meghan.
Anyone who can possibly call out diet culture, Kardashian culture (I know they’re biz people but it’s not what they teach) is fire in my books. I belong to one sm group which has a lot of young women and it’s shocking at times. Young women study how to be ‘high value’ to men, so they can find rich husbands. They use waist trainers. The do work to change their faces to look more Bambi, get butt work done to look more K. they don’t aspire to be successful on their own but to marry successful. There are very popular books and YouTube channels who coach this. It’s sad to someone of my age that some young women are like this. It’s literally a Jane Austen era mode of getting a husband.
Also on the same topic of JJ that we see Kate praised in the media constantly for her thinness (possible Ed) and I have had friends daughters die from eds, I just say JJ keep talking and call all this bs out. I’m horrified by sm and young women.
I just can’t imagine what’s going on in Iran. I don’t relate at all to that level of brave. I’m not brave. I pray every day for women and men who put their life on the line for others. This is a pod I will listen to often.
I don’t know Jameela Jamil at all and the only time she came to my attention was when she criticized Karl Lagerfeld after his death. Tributes were pouring in and she went totally in the opposite direction. I was amazed at her courage. And I hardly knew anything about *him* except he made horribly insulting remarks about Pippa Middleton. He sounded awful and JJ wasn’t going to pretend otherwise simply because he had passed
I’ve enjoyed each podcast because the subject matter promotes conversation. Meghan worked diligently to become the woman, mother, and wife of her dreams. She and Harry are a beautiful match.
Jameelah had a rough childhood and like most who grow up on the wild side, finding your way out of the dark is not easy. Many never succeed, and it takes a brave person to admit the mistakes made along the road to progress. She stands firm in her conviction of who she is. In contrast, many pretended not to see the daily attacks on Meghan. Jameelah spoke up, and she paid the price. She didn’t make money by using her name, and for that, I will always respect her.
I loved both guests. The situation in Iran is alarming. I remember when life for Iranian women was so different before the Khomeini regime. Religion has never protected women, even in America.
Only two episodes remain. The UK media will spend weeks discussing why they are glad it’s over until Spotify announces season two (wishful thinking).
Patriarchy is dead, and in the words of the late Gil Scot Heron, “The revolution will not be televised.”
Thanks as always for posting the podcast Kaiser. I don’t know anything about Jameela but I enjoyed this podcast’ I wish when she said that Meghan has taken a lot of shit from the British media, that she had continued that by saying Just because their white prince fell in love with a beautiful, smart, capable, biracial American woman and those bitter Karen’s and Kevin’s couldn’t handle it. It was incredible to listen to shorah.
Also, as I listen to this episode, I couldn’t help but think about Kate. I wonder if she listens to these podcasts. I highly doubt it. She hasn’t got the range or curiosity for it. But when Meghan said when you stand for nothing.i kept seeing Kate. She has a huge platform and does zero with it because all Kate cares about is her jewelry and buttons and wiglet collection.
i hope the TRA community hears this podcast and realize that women have fought long and hard and have died and been tortured since the beginning of time for the rights we have today so those of us nastily labeled as TERFs are not stating we don’t want trans people to have rights, we just don’t want OUR rights to be eroded based on men dictating what and who women are because THEY FEEL like women, whatever that means.
I hope we can appreciate people like JK Rowling her are out here using their platform to uplift, protect and elevate women and to keep men from trying to cause us further hard with their awful toxic patriarchal bs and misogyny.
I hope if there is space to see where Jameela is coming from we as women stop supporting anything that seeks to destroy all we have worked hard to build and get behind other like her who are trying to point out all the harmful things that still could hurt us whether it’s about our body autonomy, people claiming to know what it’s like to be a woman, the right to refuse/take vaccines, the right simply exist without someone trying to steal our joy and our peace.
These ladies are just a small sample of the brave woman from every race, creed, religion and nationality, who fight the good fight everyday.
Listening to Meghan’s podcast today reminded me it’s never wrong to use my voice to stand up for women’s rights even if the trend is to allow men to define us and mock us and belittle us for it.
I hope that at some stage Meghan has some U.K. based guests on her show, that would be interesting.
I have a feeling that she will end this run with a big surprise person.
What a hoot if she got Kate to be a guest..lol!
This was my favorite episode so far. Meghan is using a powerful combination of her celebrity and her drive for social justice in a way I’ve never before encountered. She will leave a big mark on the world, much for the better.