Show Notes
Amy is joined by married partners - poet Phillip Brown and therapist Andres Brown - for an authentic and heartful exploration of queer identity, queer safety, queer relationships and patriarchy through an exchange of poetry and conversation. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy Phillip Watts Brown is a poet and artist after earning a BA in graphic design from Brigham Young University. He earned an MFA in poetry from Oregon State University. He is the author of Boy with Flowers in His Mouth, which was published by Gold Line Press in February, 2025. His work has appeared in literary journals and anthologies, including Ninth Letter, the Common, Ruminate, Nimrod, Tahoma Literary Review, and others. Phillip lives with his husband in northern Utah, where he works as a graphic designer. He's also a poetry editor for the online literary journal, Halfway Down the Stairs. Andres Larios Brown (They/Elle) is a Utah-based licensed marriage and family therapist dedicated to healing for LGBTQ plus communities. As training director and partner at Simple Modern Therapy and Institute, Andres focuses on trauma, healing, and wellbeing for those who feel marginalized or othered. Andres specializes in identity development and reclaiming healing practices for queer, trans, and BIPOC communities. As a therapist of both lived experience and learned expertise, they are committed to helping LGBTQ+ people thrive. In addition to providing therapy, Andres focuses on creating and facilitating training for therapists and teaches at U of V’s Masters of Social Work Program and U of O’s Couples and Family Therapy Program. They have co-authored a chapter in the Rutledge International Handbook of Couple and Family Therapy, as well as a number of other articles in different academic journals. Through therapy, teaching, training, and advocacy. They seek to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice. They and their husband of eight years live in northern Utah where they spend as much time with family and loved ones as possible.
More from Breaking Down Patriarchy
On the finale episode of the podcast Amy is joined by her daughters-Lindsay, Lucy, and Sophie-who help reflect on and celebrate the history of this project, some of the most valuable lessons learned along the way, and how the knowledge gathered through this work echoes both forward and backward across generations. Thank you for sharing this journey with us, listeners. Please join us on YouTube (@breakingdownpatrarchy) where Breaking Down Patriarchy is continuing to grow. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy
Amy is joined by Shirlee Draper of Cherish Families to hear her courageous account of leaving the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and a polygamous marriage, sharing personal stories, exploring the alarming similarities between the explicit patriarchy of the FLDS Church and the allegedly more egalitarian world beyond it, plus discussing the practical work we can all be doing to help while avoiding condescension. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy Shirlee Draper is a former member of the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints community. She holds an MA in Public Administration and is the Director of Operations for Cherish Families, a non-profit organization providing compassionate support to individuals and families from polygamous backgrounds.
Amy is joined by authors and educators Gloria and Bob Rees to discuss midrash --stories we write to interpret scripture and create meaning -- exploring the endless possibilities of imagination and the radical power that women hold to write our own midrash and change the spiritual landscape. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy Gloria Gardner Rees has taught English in the US, China, India, and Nepal. Her studies include nutrition, gerontology and adult development. Currently, she is involved in interfaith, humanitarian, and environmental work. In addition to writing midrash, she is co-editing a collection of essays by Latter-day Saints titled Pillars of my Faith. Robert A. Rees is a scholar, poet, and humanitarian. He is the author of “Toward a Mormon Feminist Midrash: Mormon Women and the Imaginative Reading of Scripture,” Sunstone (2012) and “The Midrashic Imagination and the Book of Mormon,” Dialogue (Fall 2011). His most recent book is Imagining and Reimagining the Restoration (Kofford Books, 2025).
Amy joins the renowned writer Carol Lynn Pearson in her home for an illuminating and tender conversation about the life and struggles of a major figure in LDS feminism, her insights into queer people in the Church, the lingering ghost of polygamy, and what it takes to be an independent thinker inside a patriarchal institution. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy Renowned Mormon feminist, Carol Lynn Pearson, is an American poet, author, screenwriter, and playwright. She frequently addresses the topics of LGBT acceptance and the role of Latter-Day Saint women. She has written many important works, including Goodbye, I Love You, The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy, and most recently, The Diaries of Carol Lynn Pearson – Mormon Author, Feminist, and Activist.
Amy is joined by author Naima Brown to discuss her newest novel, Mother Tongue, exploring the consequences of change, finding our authentic selves, motherhood, right-wing radicalization, and the importance of fiction in our fight against patriarchy. Donate to Breaking Down Patriarchy Naima Brown holds degrees in Middle Eastern Studies, Anthropology and Religious Studies. Her essays have appeared in Vogue Australia, the Guardian Australia, and more. She wrote, along with Melissa Doyle, the non-fiction book How to Age Against the Machine. She has spent over a decade working in news, current affairs and documentary - save for her brief stint in reality TV, which inspired her first novel, The Shot. She was born and raised in Northern California before living and working in Yemen and Afghanistan, and now lives in New South Wales with her husband and her dog. Her second novel, Mother Tongue, was published in March 2025.