Christmas looks like it belongs to men — Santa, Jesus, the Wise Men, even Frosty — but the holiday itself has always been built, carried, and saved by women.

In this episode of Bitchstory, we reclaim Christmas for the girls, the gays, and the theys by telling the stories history tends to forget:
the women whose words, labor, courage, and organizing shaped the holiday as we know it. In this episode we'll discuss 4 (of many!) women who have made Christmas into the nostalgic, magical time of year we know it as today.

From Victorian England to WWII France to Jim Crow Alabama to the North Pole, this episode reveals a truth hiding in plain sight:
Christmas has always run on women’s work.

So pour the eggnog, light the candles, put up your feet (you've earned it!!) and join us for a historically accurate, slightly unhinged, feminist retelling of the season.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

THE BLOG: kellymcclain.blogspot.com

THE EMAIL: heybitches@bitchstory.net

BITCHSCOPES: Patreon.com/bitchstory

CONTRIBUTE: 💲We insert zero ads and have no subscription fees. If you'd like to contribute to our work here at Bitchstory, we'd be thrilled to receive your financial support so we can keep going and maybe actually not be in the red.

Our venmo is @bitchstory

They were called the Glow Girls — until their glow started killing them. In this episode, we dive into the haunting story of the Radium Girls: the teenage dial painters who trusted their employers, lip-pointed their brushes, and unknowingly swallowed enough radiation to light up a dance hall. Their bodies became evidence, their fight became historic, and their courage forced the first real conversations about worker safety in America.

Back in the 1970s, when women were still told they needed a husband or father to sign for a loan, a group of bold Denver women said no more. They founded The Women’s Bank of Denver to claim not just access to money—but power. In this episode, we unpack how they built a bank from scratch in 1978, how they rewrote the rules of finance for women, and what their legacy means for us today. Expect feminist fire, financial clarity, and a blueprint for breaking ceilings made of glass and dollars. (Plus a surprise appearance from mini McBitch)

Jimmy Kimmel got headlines when he was suspended — but what about the women who’ve been silenced for speaking truth on TV? From Hazel Scott’s jazz-and-justice to Bea Arthur’s Maude, from trailblazing journalists to feminist comedians, women who dared to push boundaries have been canceled faster than Trump changes subjects .

In this episode of Bitchstory, Kelly and Lisa dig into the women who risked everything for free speech, feminism, and civil liberties — and paid the price. From blacklists and advertiser boycotts to Twitter mobs and corporate fear, the tactics change but the punishment stays the same.

The First Amendment protects against government censorship, but not against networks, sponsors, or platforms pulling the plug. From the Red Scare to cancel culture hashtags, women who speak truth are still paying a higher price than men.

• ​Please follow Bitchstory on Instagram @bitchstory.pod,
• ​email us at heybitches@bitchstory.net,
• ​and check out Kelly’s blog at kellymcclain.blogspot.com.

Because well-behaved women seldom make

history — but the canceled ones definitely do.

What happens when women refuse to stay quiet? This week, we’re telling the stories of badass whistleblowers who risked everything to speak the truth—about corruption, violence, and patriarchy’s dirty little secrets. Spoiler: honesty didn’t exactly win them any popularity contests.

From smear campaigns to erasure, we’ll unpack the gendered double standards of whistleblowing and celebrate the women who still delivered the message, no matter the cost.

CW: some discussion of rape and SA

💥 For more inspiration and bonus content, check out kellymcclain.blogspot.com.

📧Email: heybitches@bitchstory.net

💲We insert zero ads and have no subscription fees. If you'd like to contribute to our work here at Bitchstory, we'd be thrilled to receive your financial support so we can keep going and maybe actually not be in the red.

Our venmo is @bitchstory

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! <3

We have an admitted fixation on women who are spies. This episode focuses on women in WW2 who put it all on the line to fight fascism…and defeat Nazis. Not all of these women were spies, but some were. Some of these women are decorated heroines. Some were executed. Some had to keep their achievements a secret for many years. Some were very young. All of them were absolute badasses!

Ever heard of Ravensbrück? It was one of the largest women’s concentration camps and neither of us had ever heard of it!! Well now we have and so have you!

https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/ravensbrueck

**(CW: this episode briefly discusses rape as a weapon of war)

Below are the other episodes where we discuss women who were mostly non military that furthered the cause via spying, tricking, and dangerous things having pockets… be inspired ;)

Ep 20 - Spies Like Us

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4ZzV5EfTuBIbpBVUZyF9MW

Ep 26 - Spy Bitches of the Revolution

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5jyo0DubkDKCF1Ss6aRLub

Ep 50 - Civil War Lady Spies

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5PWDqYDkqpF9gUMNul67YG

Ep 70 - The Hidden Women of the Revolutionary War

https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Hqq6syGSlNThDawnw972v

Ep 71 - Women of the French Revolution - they weren’t just at home making cheese, Pierre!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4RDIiwR85fm6xzrTk1zk0P

Ep 88 - the Real Housewives of the Revolution

https://open.spotify.com/episode/46AK34dMhC8RvW5fzLy3JR

Ep 95 - the Ladies Behind the Plot that Tricked Hitler

https://open.spotify.com/episode/13ftY6LstQXmnBIxe1cxPP

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Blog:

https://kellymcclain.blogspot.com/2025/08/women-who-kicked-nazi-ass-nancy-wake.html

Email: heybitches@bitchstory.net

We insert zero ads and have no subscription fees. If you'd like to contribute to our work here at Bitchstory, we'd be thrilled to receive your financial support so we can keep going and maybe actually not be in the red.

Our venmo is @bitchstory

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! <3