Becky and Taina try something new in this episode—a looser, more conversational format inspired by their friends from BRB, Crying. Each host brings a “messy situation” to unpack together.

Taina starts with a real-life scare: police chasing a man through her backyard in Baltimore. The conversation unfolds into a raw discussion about policing, white conditioning, racialized fear, and what “abolish the police” really means. Together, they pull apart the myths of “good cops” and community safety, tracing policing back to its roots in slavery and exploring what real care-centered community safety could look like.

Then Becky brings her own messy topic: a threads debate about whether all landlords are unethical. As a small-scale landlord herself, she wrestles with her own complicity in a capitalist system while still trying to do right by her tenant. The pair examine how housing, like policing, reflects deeper systemic issues—and why nuance matters when we talk about ethics and liberation.

The conversation winds into reflections on whiteness, masculinity, and how even our attempts to “opt out” of oppressive systems (like calling yourself a “non-practicing white”) can be another form of avoidance. This one is layered, uncomfortable, and exactly the kind of conversation Messy Liberation is built for.

🧠 Themes

• The conditioning of fear and trust around policing
• How racialized power shows up even in “liberal” white responses
• The difference between policing and community accountability
• Ethical gray areas in housing and capitalism
• Why abolition is about care, not chaos
• Reckoning with privilege, whiteness, and the myth of neutrality

🔗 Resources Mentioned

• Designer Terrence Williams
• The BRB, Crying podcast

🎤 WE ARE PROUD MEMBFRS OF THE FEMINIST PODCAST COLLECTIVE

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Coaching can feel like a solo sport, but it doesn’t have to!

Join Becky Mollenkamp and Taina Brown for a free live workshop on October 30th at 2 p.m. ET where we’ll explore what it really takes to grow as a coach rooted in liberation, not just business.

🌟 In this session, you’ll learn:

• What liberation can look like for you and your clients
• The 3 essentials every coach needs for a sustainable, liberatory practice
• How community can fuel your growth with fresh ideas, accountability, and support

This isn’t just another workshop—it’s a doorway into deeper connection with coaches who share your values.

👉 Reserve your free spot today: https://evt.to/eodmahasw

(If you can’t make it live, sign up anyway—replay will be available!)

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Becky and Taina are joined by fitness coach Laura Thomas for a brutally honest conversation about body image, aging, and what it really means to feel at home in your body.

They unpack how diet culture is a tool of patriarchy and capitalism, how the “male gaze” shapes even the most “empowering” wellness trends, and how we can start to reclaim movement as a way to care for ourselves rather than control ourselves.

This episode invites all of us, especially those socialized as women, to stop outsourcing our worth and start listening to our bodies again

Discussed in this episode:

• Why gyms can feel unsafe (and how to reclaim movement on your own terms)
• How diet culture and anti-fatness are rooted in anti-Blackness
• Decentering men and re-defining beauty on your own terms
• The emotional labor of unlearning body shame
• How patriarchy, racism, and capitalism keep us disconnected from our bodies
• Why movement is resistance, not punishment

Resources mentioned:

• “Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia” by Sabrina Strings
• “The Body Liberation Project” by Chrissy King
• “The Body Is Not an Apology” by Sonya Renee Taylor
• “Why Does Patriarchy Persist?” by Carol Gilligan and Naomi Snider
• “More Than a Body: Your Body Is an Instrument, Not an Ornament” by Lindsay and Lexie Kite

💪 Learn More About Laura Thomas

• Website: laurathomasfitness.com
• Instagram: @laurathomasfitness

🎤 PROUD MEMBERS OF THE FEMINIST PODCASTERS COLLECTIVE

•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•

Coaching can feel like a solo sport, but it doesn’t have to!

Join Becky Mollenkamp and Taina Brown for a free live workshop on October 30th at 2 p.m. ET where we’ll explore what it really takes to grow as a coach rooted in liberation, not just business.

🌟 In this session, you’ll learn:

• What liberation can look like for you and your clients
• The 3 essentials every coach needs for a sustainable, liberatory practice
• How community can fuel your growth with fresh ideas, accountability, and support

This isn’t just another workshop—it’s a doorway into deeper connection with coaches who share your values.

👉 Reserve your free spot today: https://evt.to/eodmahasw

(If you can’t make it live, sign up anyway—replay will be available!)

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What happens when two podcasts built on honesty, healing, and humor come together?

In this special crossover between Messy Liberation and brb crying, Becky and Taina sit down with Angela (“Nins”) and Ariana (“Arns”), lifelong best friends and co-hosts of brb crying, for a heartfelt, hilarious, and deeply real conversation about what it means to feel your feelings in a world that rewards suppression.

They unpack why crying is a radical act of self-trust, how vulnerability is a muscle that takes practice, and what it looks like to de-armor yourself in a culture that treats emotions like weakness. They also talk about creative rebirth through fan fiction (yes, really), the burnout cycle of podcasting, and how anti-capitalist rest practices can help us find joy again.

This one’s equal parts therapy session, slumber party, and masterclass in liberation.

Check out brb, crying:
Website: https://www.brbcryingpodcast.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brbcrying.podcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB3O5-2SWBN4AYpb061iipg

Discussed in this episode:

• The power of crying as emotional liberation
• Why vulnerability is a practice — not a personality trait
• Creative healing through fan fiction and rediscovering joy
• The burnout cycle of podcasting under capitalism
• Safety, embodiment, and learning to feel at home in your body
• The balance between vulnerability and humor
• Partnership, community, and the importance of feeling seen
• Rest and joy as acts of resistance
• Human Design, astrology, and honoring your energy type
• Releasing capitalist urgency and redefining success

🎤 PROUD MEMBERS OF THE FEMINIST PODCAST COLLECTIVE: http://feministpodcastcollective.com/