Episode 104

"Financial independence is not just about freedom; it's about survival."

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Links

To learn more about Lina and follow along with her work, tap or click HERE.

To listen to Lina on the Financial Feminist podcast (the episode I mention throughout our conversation), tap or click HERE.  

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Sound credits: Levels by Yung Kartz ($HMONEY theme song - intro/outro music)

Edited and produced by Anastasia Barbuzzi, founder and creative director of $HMONEY ($HMONEY Radio).

Episode Summary

New York-based Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Lina AbiRafeh is a published author, women's rights expert, feminist activist, and gender equality advocate with over 25 years of experience in over 20 countries. Committed to building a better world for women, she has worked with the United Nations as its Gender-Based Violence In Emergencies Specialist. She is also the Senior Advisor and Former Executive Director of the Arab Institute for Women.

As a young girl, Dr. AbiRafeh and her family left Beirut for Saudi Arabia, then immigrated to Northern Virginia, where she had a self-described "unusual upbringing." She was quickly exposed to how women's history is a history of violence, "from fetus to funeral," which sparked her interest in women's rights. In this episode, we discuss Dr. AbiRafeh's path to embracing her anger over gender inequality and using it for good, as well as: 

  • cultural forms of violence towards women

  • the "angry woman" stereotype

  • feelings about the words "resilience" and "empowerment"

  • COVID as a leveller of women's experiences, particularly unpaid care

  • how having an income is like "ammunition" and central to control

  • how to "start where you stand"

  • why financial independence is not just about gaining freedom but fighting for survival for women around the world

And much more! The bottom line: when you've got money, you've got choices.

Also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Google Podcasts, Overcast, Castro, Castbox, Podfriend, Pocket Casts & Stitcher.

Anita Cheung