Being Safe in Our Bodies ft. Shawna Potter

Howdy, folks! I have the privilege, this week, of talking with Shawna Potter. She is the front-person for War On Women, musician, and author of the book titled “Making Spaces Safer”. We get into sexism, harassment, and what it is like to be a woman in the world today.

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What we talked about

As we discuss all that's in her book, Shawna shares with me some of her personal experiences on her journey through entertainment, writing, and teaching. Her goal in all this? To help everyone get to a less violent world. Awesome!

Shawna Potter, singer for the band War On Women, has tackled sexism and harassment in lyrics and on stage for years. Taking the battle to music venues themselves, she has trained night clubs and community spaces in how to create safer environments for marginalized people. Now she’s turned decades of experience into a clear and concise guide for public spaces of all sorts, from art galleries to bagel shops to concert halls, that want to shut down harassers wherever they show up. The steps she outlines are realistic, practical, and actionable. With the addition of personal stories, case studies, sample policies, and no-nonsense advice like “How to Flirt without Being a Creep,” she shows why safer spaces are important, while making it easier to achieve them. Eschewing theory, she assumes the reader is already an ethical creature and jumps right in with candor, punk passion, and righteous anger to get the job done!

Remember, folks, people don't feel sexy when they feel unsafe.

More about Shawna

Shawna Potter is the only child of a single mother and, therefore, a feminist. Her experiences with street harassment, and the desire to respond to it effectively, turned her from a self-absorbed apolitical feminist into an active and intersectional one.

Her recently published book, “Making Spaces Safer: A Guide to Giving Harassment the Boot Wherever You Work, Play, and Gather,” is an excellent guide for anyone looking to make their community more fun and inclusive. Based on her years of experience empowering people through workshops and trainings, it’s an actionable guide that doesn’t get bogged down in theory. Shawna has seen first hand that most people want to do the right thing, they just need to know how to do it. She loves being part of that learning process for both groups and individuals, online or off.

Shawna Potter is the front-person for War On Women, is ordained to perform wedding ceremonies, and runs Big Crunch Amp Repair. She is available for speaking engagements, workshops & trainings, music collaborations, appearances, and other special projects. An avid TV watcher, cross-sticher, and compulsive straightener-upper, Shawna is not satisfied waiting for the world to change.