>> Nam: MOST CANADIAN WOMEN PROBABLY CANNOT IMAGINE HOW DIFFERENT THEIR LIVES MIGHT HAVE
BEEN IF THEY'D BEEN BORN JUST 30 OR 40 YEARS EARLIER.
ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS.
A NEW NOVEL BRINGS THAT STORY TO LIFE.
IT'S CALLED: "LOOKING FOR JANE."
THE SWEEPING HISTORICAL NARRATIVE IS THE DEBUT WORK BY HEATHER MARSHALL, AND SHE JOINS
US NOW.
HI, HEATHER.
>> Heather: HI, NAM.
HOW ARE YOU?
>> Nam: GREAT BOOK.
TERRIFIC.
I DON'T WANT TO SPOIL ANYTHING ABOUT THIS BOOK.
I THINK IT'S ONE OF THOSE BOOKS THAT YOU NEED TO READ YOURSELF.
IN OUR CONVERSATION, WE'LL KIND OF TRY TO STEER AWAY FROM THE DETAILS, BUT JUST TO GET US
STARTED, I WANTED TO READ A LITTLE EXCERPT FROM YOUR BOOK.
>> Nam: SO, WITHOUT GIVING AWAY TOO MUCH OF THE PLOT, CAN YOU TELL US BROADLY WHAT
"LOOKING FOR JANE" IS ABOUT?
>> Heather: YES.
SO IT FOLLOWS THE LIVES OF THREE WOMEN OF THREE DIFFERENT GENERATIONS, ALL LIVING IN
TORONTO, AND IT'S ABOUT FAMILY SECRETS, A LOST LETTER, AND WOMEN'S ABILITY TO DICTATE THEIR
OWN LIVES.
>> Nam: WHAT INSPIRED THE BOOK TITLE "LOOKING FOR JANE"?
>> Heather: I'M ACTUALLY GLAD YOU ASKED THAT.
I GUESS TO BEGIN, THERE'S TWO TYPES OF WRITERS.
ONE IS PLOTTERS, WHO PLAN EVERYTHING FROM THE VERY BEGINNING AND THEN WRITE THE
BOOK; AND THE OTHER IS WHAT WE CALL PANTSERS, THOSE WHO FLY BY THE SEAT OF THEIR PANTS.
SO I'M DEFINITELY A PANTSER.
I USUALLY KNOW THE LAST SCENE OR SENTENCE OR CHAPTER OF A BOOK.
IT'S USUALLY WHAT COMES TO ME FIRST AND WHAT I WRITE FIRST AND THEN I SORT OF WORK MY WAY BACK
FROM THAT.
AND WHEN I CONCEPTUALIZED "LOOKING FOR JANE," THE LAST SCENE -- I WON'T GIVE ANYTHING
AWAY -- BUT THE LAST LINE AND THE LAST SCENE CAME TO ME VERY, VERY CLEARLY AND I THOUGHT,
OKAY, I KNOW THE TITLE.
THE TITLE IS "LOOKING FOR JANE."
AND AGAIN WITHOUT GIVING TOO MUCH AWAY, EACH OF THE THREE MAIN CHARACTERS ARE IN SOME WAY
OR ANOTHER LOOKING FOR JANE.
SO IT CAME TOGETHER QUITE BEAUTIFULLY, I THINK.
>> Nam: I'M GOING TO HAVE TO STEAL "PANTSER" FROM NOW ON?
>> Heather: (LAUGHING) IT'S A THING IN THE WRITING COMMUNITY.
WE'RE QUITE ASHAMED.
WE WISH WE WERE PLOTTERS BUT NOT ALWAYS THE WAY.
THE CREATIVE PROCESS HAS A MIND OF ITS OWN.
>> Nam: YOU MENTIONED THAT THE STORY REVOLVES AROUND THREE WOMEN IN THREE DIFFERENT
GENERATIONS.
WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO WRITE IT THAT WAY?
>> Heather: I THINK FOR ME AS A CONSUMER, AS A READER, I REALLY ENJOY MULTIPLE
PERSPECTIVES ON A STORY, AND AS A WRITER, I ALWAYS THINK THAT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, ALWAYS MORE
THAN ONE SIDE TO EVERY STORY, AND SO THAT KIND OF FORMAT ALLOWS ME TO EXPLORE THAT SAME
STORY FROM DIFFERENT ANGLES.
SO I THINK IT DOES IN SOME WAYS JUST GIVE A MORE FULSOME PICTURE OF WHAT'S GOING ON, BUT IT ALSO
ALLOWS ME TO HAVE A BIT OF FUN WITH IT IN A WAY.
YOU CAN USE DIFFERENT LITERARY DEVICES, DIFFERENT VOICE.
SO FROM A CREATIVE PERSPECTIVE, I GET TO SORT OF WRITE, YOU KNOW, THREE DIFFERENT BOOKS
WITHIN ONE BOOK, OR THREE DIFFERENT STORIES WITHIN ONE BOOK.
SO, YEAH, FROM A CREATIVE PERSPECTIVE, I REALLY ENJOY THAT.
BUT FOR THIS BOOK, PARTICULARLY, AS I SAY, IT'S KIND OF MY PREFERRED FORMAT, BUT WHEN I SET
OUT TO DO IT, I DON'T THINK I REALIZED QUITE HOW AMBITIOUS IT WAS UNTIL I WAS INTO THE WEEDS
ON IT.
BUT I WANTED TO SHOW THIS KIND OF SWEEPING HISTORY OF WOMEN'S REPRODUCTIVE CHOICE IN CANADA
THROUGHOUT THE DECADES.
SO HISTORICAL FICTION WAS SORT OF THE RIGHT GENRE FOR THAT BUT ALSO THIS FORMAT THAT ALLOWED ME
TO SHOW DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF THOSE WOMEN LIVING THROUGH THOSE YEARS WHERE THINGS WERE
VERY DIFFERENT FROM ONE YEAR TO THE NEXT OR ONE DECADE TO THE NEXT.
>> Nam: YOU SAY THAT HISTORICAL FICTION WAS THE RIGHT GENRE TO TELL THIS STORY.
WHY IS THAT?
>> Heather: QUITE NATURALLY, YOU KNOW, IT WAS THE MATERNITY HOME SYSTEM WAS IN OPERATION
THROUGH THE 1940s THROUGH TO THE '70s, SO THAT IN ITSELF IS HISTORICAL FICTION, AND THEN
EVERYTHING EVEN FROM THE '80s TO PRESENT DAY WAS MORE KIND OF THE NEAR PAST.
AND, AGAIN, BECAUSE I SORT OF WANTED TO REALLY SHOW THE EVOLUTION AND HOW FAR WE'VE COME
AND HOW FAR WE STILL HAVE TO GO IN SOME WAYS, HISTORICAL FICTION WAS JUST THE RIGHT METHOD FOR
THAT.
>> Nam: I WANT TO COME BACK TO THE MATERNITY HOME SYSTEM IN A LITTLE BIT.
BUT IN YOUR AUTHOR'S NOTE, YOU WRITE THAT YOUR FIRST INCLINATION IS TO SAY THAT THIS
BOOK -- IT'S A BOOK ABOUT ABORTION BUT THAT IT ISN'T.
WHAT DID YOU MEAN BY THAT?
>> Heather: YEAH, SO IT WAS ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THIS THREAD OF THE NOVEL THAT'S ABOUT
WOMEN'S FIGHT FOR REPRODUCTIVE CHOICE IN CANADA THROUGHOUT THE DECADES, BUT THEN THERE'S THIS
OTHER THREAD THAT'S ALL ABOUT THE MATERNITY HOMES AND WHAT CONNECTS THEM IS MOTHERHOOD AS A
THEME.
SO I DO THINK THAT THIS NOVEL IS ABOUT MOTHERHOOD.
IT'S ABOUT THE LENGTHS SOMEONE WILL GO TO END A PREGNANCY OR TO BECOME PREGNANCY AND ALL OF THAT
GRAY AREA IN BETWEEN.
I HOPE THAT'S WHAT I'VE EXPLORED HERE, BUT I WOULD SAY IT IS ABOUT MOTHERHOOD AND MANY FACETS
OF IT.
>> Nam: WHEN WOMEN REACH A CERTAIN AGE, THERE IS STILL THIS ASSUMPTION THAT MOTHERHOOD IS
SOMETHING THAT ALL WOMEN WANT.
YOU WRITE THAT "LOOKING FOR JANE" IS ABOUT MOTHERHOOD, ABOUT WANTING TO BE A MOTHER AND NOT
WANTING TO BE A MOTHER AND ALL THE GRAY AREAS IN BETWEEN.
WHY DID YOU WANT TO CONFRONT THAT STIGMA ABOUT MOTHERHOOD?
>> Heather: I MEAN, IT'S -- YOU KNOW, WE MAY GET INTO THIS A LITTLE BIT LATER, BUT MY
PERSONAL BRAND OF FEMINISM IS ALL ABOUT CHOICE, AND SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE
ACKNOWLEDGE WOMEN'S DIFFERENT CHOICES WHEN IT COMES TO MOTHERHOOD.
THERE'S OFTEN AN ELEMENT EVEN OF IT BEING SOME KIND OF A RACE.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE CHILDREN BY A CERTAIN AGE, THAT THERE'S SOMETHING SORT OF WRONG WITH YOU
OR YOU'VE MADE A MISTAKE OR YOU'VE FAILED IN SOME WAY.
AND I REALLY WANTED TO EMPHASIZE THAT PEOPLE'S CHOICES, THEIR INDIVIDUAL CHOICES, ARE VALID IF
THAT'S WHAT'S RIGHT FOR THEM.
PARENTHOOD IS NOT FOR EVERYONE.
I'M A PARENT NOW AND I CAN TOTALLY UNDERSTAND WHY SOME PEOPLE MIGHT NOT WANT TO DO
THIS.
IT'S A LOT OF WORK AND YOU HAVE TO BE VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT IT, I THINK.
SO THE ASSUMPTION THAT ALL WOMEN WANT TO BE MOTHERS AND IF THEY DON'T THAT THERE'S SOMETHING
WRONG WITH THEM IS A STIGMA THAT I CAN'T BELIEVE IS STILL STICKING AROUND.
SO IT'S ONE OF THE ELEMENTS THAT I REALLY WANTED TO EXPLORE IN THIS BOOK.
>> Nam: AND THE BOOK HAS A LOT OF HISTORICAL FACTS WEAVED THROUGH THIS STORY THAT YOU
TELL.
THROUGH THE COURSE OF YOUR RESEARCH, WAS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU FOUND OUT THAT KIND OF
SHOCKED YOU?
>> Heather: OH, I THINK, YOU KNOW, THE HISTORY OF ABORTION ACCESS AND WOMEN ACCESSING
ILLEGAL AND TERRIBLY UNSAFE ABORTIONS WAS UNFORTUNATELY NOT SHOCKING TO ME.
BUT I THINK THE BIGGEST SHOCK WAS THE RESEARCH ON THE MATERNITY HOME SYSTEM, AND THAT
WAS I THINK SOME OF THE MOST EMOTIONAL RESEARCH I'VE EVER HAD TO DO IN STUDYING HISTORY.
AND I HAD TO SORT OF STEP AWAY FROM IT SOMETIMES, TAKE A BIT OF A BREAK FROM IT.
I HAD KNOWN ABOUT MATERNITY HOMES JUST KIND OF IN THE ETHER BUT NEVER REALLY GAVE IT MUCH
CONSIDERATION, WHAT THEY WERE, WHAT THEY MEANT OR THAT THERE WERE REAL WOMEN AND GIRLS THAT
WERE DEEPLY TRAUMATIZED BY THEM.
>> Nam: WE'VE MENTIONED THE MATERNITY HOME SYSTEM A COUPLE OF TIMES, BUT WHAT WAS THAT
SYSTEM?
>> Heather: SO THOSE WHO AREN'T FAMILIAR, IT EXISTED IN THE '40s THROUGH COMPANY 0s
AS I MENTIONED AND THEY WERE RESIDENTIAL INSTITUTIONS WHERE GIRLS WOULD GO GENERALLY BECAUSE
THEIR FAMILIES OR PRIESTS HAD SENT THEM THERE WHEN THEY WERE UNMARRIED AND PREGNANT, AND THEY
WOULD WAIT OUT THEIR PREGNANCIES THERE, GIVE BIRTH, AND USUALLY STAY FOR SOME PERIOD OF TIME TO
WORK OFF THEIR ACCOMMODATION IN LABOUR, AND THEN THEY WOULD GO HOME.
AND THEY WERE IN CITIES ALL ACROSS CANADA, EVERY MAJOR CITY, AND IN THE U.S., THE U.K.,
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND -- THEY WERE ALL OVER THE PLACE.
AND THE CONDITIONS AND THE TREATMENT THAT THE GIRLS EXPERIENCED THERE, BASED ON MY
RESEARCH ANYWAY, IT WAS ANYWHERE ON THE SPECTRUM FROM NOT GREAT TO HORRENDOUSLY ABUSIVE.
AND THAT'S WHY IT WAS, YES, SOME OF THE MOST DIFFICULT RESEARCH I'VE EVER HAD TO DO BUT IT ALSO
MADE ME FEEL QUITE PASSIONATELY ABOUT WRITING THIS NOVEL AND DOING IT JUSTICE.
>> Nam: I HAD NEVER HEARD ABOUT THE MATERNITY HOME SYSTEM, AND IN THE BOOK YOU MENTION I
THINK THE NUMBER WAS 300 THOUSAND WOMEN WERE IMPACTED BY THIS.
>> Heather: THAT'S RIGHT.
>> Nam: HOW WIDESPREAD WAS THIS IN CANADA?
>> Heather: FAIRLY.
AGAIN, IT WAS IN EVERY MAJOR CITY AND EVEN SOME SMALLER TOWNS, WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT
SURPRISING GIVEN THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON SECRECY AND
ANONYMITY IN THESE HOMES BUT THEY WERE EVERYWHERE.
THERE WAS AN ORGANIZATION CALLED ORIGINS CANADA, AND I COULD TALK ABOUT THEM FOR QUITE A WHILE,
BUT THEY WERE ESTABLISHED TO HELP TRY TO REUNITE THESE WOMEN WITH THEIR CHILDREN IN LATER
YEARS, AND THEY HAVE A LIST ON THEIR WEBSITE OF ALL THE ADDRESSES WHERE THEY WERE, EVEN
JUST IN THE CITY OF TORONTO.
SO YOU CAN LOOK IT UP AND SEE WHERE THEY USED TO EXIST.
AND I WAS SHOCKED AT HOW MANY THERE WERE, ACTUALLY.
BUT THEY WERE JUST -- THEY WERE IN NEIGHBOURHOODS.
THESE GIRLS WERE JUST SQUIRRELLED AWAY IN SECRECY, BUT THEY WERE STILL IN THE CITY.
>> Nam: IN YOUR AUTHOR'S NOTE, YOU WRITE THAT A SENATE COMMITTEE STUDIED THE POST-WAR
MATERNITY HOMES.
WHAT WAS FOUND?
>> Heather: YES.
SO IN I BELIEVE IT WAS LATE 2017, THEY STRUCK A COMMITTEE AND HAD SOME HEARINGS WHERE THEY
HEARD FROM THE WOMEN WHO WERE SENT TO THEM AS YOUNG WOMEN AND GIRLS, AND ALSO THEIR CHILDREN,
AND THEY WERE ESSENTIALLY VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENTS.
AND THEY DID FIND, THEY RELEASED A REPORT IN 2014 WITH THEIR FINDINGS AND THEY ACKNOWLEDGED
THAT THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA HAD A LARGE ROLE TO PLAY IN SEPARATING THESE WOMEN FROM
THEIR CHILDREN, AND IN THAT THEY ALSO MADE SEVERAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WHAT THE
GOVERNMENT COULD DO FOR REPARATIONS, ESSENTIALLY.
AND AMONG THOSE WAS A RECOMMENDATION THAT THE GOVERNMENT ISSUE A FORMAL
APOLOGY AND ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO THESE 300,000-PLUS WOMEN THAT WERE IMPACTED AND TRAUMATIZED BY
THIS SYSTEM.
THEY GAVE THE GOVERNMENT ONE YEAR TO RESPOND.
THAT WAS IN 2018.
SO WE'RE COMING UP ON FOUR YEARS FROM THEN.
AND THE GOVERNMENT HAS TAKEN NO ACTION YET.
>> Nam: ANOTHER HISTORICAL EVENT THAT YOU DO TALK ABOUT IN THE BOOK IS THE ABORTION
CARAVAN.
WHAT WAS THE ABORTION CARAVAN AND WHAT ROLE DID IT PLAY IN MAKING ABORTION LEGAL IN CANADA?
>> Heather: IT WAS QUITE FASCINATING.
SO THE ABORTION CARAVAN TOOK PLACE IN 1970 AND IT BEGAN IN VANCOUVER AND IT WAS FEMINISTS
WHO BELIEVED IN ABORTION ACCESS AND REPRODUCTIVE CHOICE AND THEY TOOK THEIR PROTEST ON THE ROAD.
SO THEY CAME ACROSS FROM VANCOUVER, ACROSS CANADA TO OTTAWA, AND THEY ARRIVED IN
OTTAWA I BELIEVE ON MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND IN 1970, AND THEY HAD A MASSIVE PROTEST ON THE LAWN AT
PARLIAMENT HILL.
AND A COUPLE DAYS LATER, THEY ACTUALLY GOT INTO THE HOUSE OF COMMONS AND THEY CHAINED
THEMSELVES TO THE RAILING IN THE CHAMBER TO DISRUPT THE PROCEEDINGS AND I BELIEVE IT WAS
THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY THAT THE CHAMBER HAD BEEN SHUT DOWN DUE TO A PROTEST, AND THAT WAS
ALL TO RAISE AWARENESS AND TRY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND SHED SOME LIGHT ON THE ISSUE OF
ABORTION ACCESS IN CANADA.
>> Nam: SPEAKING OF ACCESS, ACCESSING AN ABORTION IN CANADA DEPENDS IN PART WHERE YOU LIVE.
IT'S HARDER TO ACCESS IF YOU LIVE IN RURAL AREAS.
THERE IS A LACK OF CLINICS.
AND STIGMA STILL EXISTS IN ABORTION PROVIDERS AND WOMEN SEEKING THEM FACE HARASSMENT.
SOME PROVINCES HAVE EVEN HAD TO IMPLEMENT SAFE ZONES AROUND CLINICS TO KEEP WOMEN SAFE AND
THE PEOPLE WHO WORK THERE SAFE.
HAVING DONE THE RESEARCH FOR YOUR BOOK AND KNOWING THE HISTORY IT TOOK TO GET HERE, ARE
YOU SURPRISED THAT ACCESS IS STILL NOT AVAILABLE TO ALL?
>> Heather: IT'S SHOCKING.
IT'S 2022 AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS DECRIMINALIZED IN 1988.
AND I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE THAT THIS IS STILL AN ISSUE.
>> Nam: WATCHING WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE UNITED STATES WHERE THE DEBATE AROUND Ro E
V. WADE HAS BEEN REOPENED, THE CASE THAT ESTABLISHED NEARLY 50 YEARS AGO IT WAS A
CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO HAVE AN ABORTION.
DO YOU WORRY ABOUT THAT HAVING A RIPPLE EFFECT HERE IN CANADA?
>> Heather: I DO.
NOT TO BE ALARMIST, BUT I'M OF THE VIEW THAT RIGHTS THAT ARE SO HARD WON NEED TO BE DEFENDED
WITH CONSTANT VIGILANCE AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE LIKE TO SEPARATE OURSELVES FROM OUR
AMERICAN NEIGHBOURS IN SOME WAYS AND WE LIKE TO THINK THAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, MORE PROGRESSIVE IN
SOME WAYS, BUT IT'S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE AND I THINK WE TAKE IT FOR GRANTED AT OUR PERIL.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT DOES NEED TO BE DEFENDED AND, YOU KNOW, IN THIS BOOK I'VE EXPLORED AND
TRIED TO GIVE A VOICE TO THE MANY WOMEN WHO MADE THESE INCREDIBLE SACRIFICES, TOOK
OUTRAGEOUS RISKS, JUST ORDINARY WOMEN TO SECURE THESE RIGHTS FOR US AND FUTURE GENERATIONS OF
CANADIANS, AND I THINK QUITE FRANKLY WE OWE IT TO THEM TO DEFEND IT.
SO I WOULD CAUTION PEOPLE TO NOT GET ENTIRELY COMPLACENT AND KEEP AN EYE OUT.
>> Nam: WHEN IT COMES TO PRO LIFE HAVE PRO CHOICE, OBVIOUSLY NOT ALL WOMEN ARE ON THE SAME
SIDE OF THE ISSUE.
DOES YOUR BOOK TRY TO REACH ACROSS THAT DIVIDE?
>> Heather: A LITTLE BIT, YEAH.
I MEAN, IT'S -- YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S SUCH A RANGE OF OPINION ON ABORTION, FROM, YOU
KNOW, PRO CHOICE TO ANTICHOICE AND, AGAIN, SORT OF EVERYWHERE IN BETWEEN.
AND I THINK IT'S OFTEN SORT OF SEPARATED INTO THAT KIND OF BINARY, WHERE YOU'RE EITHER FOR
OR AGAINST, AND I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE VERY MIXED VIEWS OF ABORTION FOR VARIOUS REASONS.
YOU KNOW, MY HOPE WITH THIS BOOK AND THE DEPICTIONS IN THE BOOK IS THAT PEOPLE CAN PERHAPS,
REGARDLESS OF WHY SIDE YOU LAND ON OR SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE, THAT YOU CAN MAYBE JUST, YOU
KNOW, TRY TO HAVE A BIT OF COMPASSION FOR OTHER PEOPLE'S CHOICES, EVEN IF THEY'RE CHOICES
THAT YOU YOURSELF WOULD NOT MAKE IN THE SAME SITUATION.
>> Nam: YOU MENTION THAT YOU HAVE AN INFANT.
CONGRATULATIONS.
>> Heather: THANK YOU.
A LITTLE TIRED.
>> Nam: YOU WERE PREGNANT WITH YOUR FIRST CHILD DURING THE WRITING OF THIS BOOK.
DID IT CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON ABORTION?
>> Heather: SO I ACTUALLY WROTE THE BOOK BEFORE I BECAME PREGNANT, BUT I WAS PREGNANT
DURING THE EDITING PROCESS WHILE WE WERE STILL DOING A LOT OF REVISIONS.
AND IT ABSOLUTELY DID.
I TALK ABOUT THIS A BIT IN THE AUTHOR'S NOTE, KIND OF SHARING A BIT OF A PERSONAL STORY THERE
THAT I THOUGHT WAS APPROPRIATE IN THIS CASE.
BUT I WAS A BIT SHOCKED DURING MY PREGNANCY ABOUT HOW MUCH I FELT LIKE I WAS NO LONGER IN
CONTROL OF MY OWN BODY, AND I FOUND IT A BIT UNNERVING IN SOME WAYS, EVEN THOUGH I WAS SO HAPPY
TO BE PREGNANT, AND SO IT REALLY OPENED MY EYES TO HOW IT WOULD FEEL TO BE PREGNANT AGAINST YOUR
WILL AND NOT HAVE ANY CONTROL TO END THE PREGNANCY IF YOU WANTED TO.
YOU KNOW, I HAD ALWAYS BEEN A PASSIONATE DEFENDER OF A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE, BUT I DON'T
THINK I HAD QUITE THE SAME LEVEL OF EMPATHY AS I DID AFTER I HAD EXPERIENCED MY OWN PREGNANCY.
>> Nam: FINALLY, IT IS INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY TODAY.
WHAT DOES THIS DAY MEAN TO YOU?
>> Heather: YEAH, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE TALK ABOUT FEMINISM AND OBVIOUSLY THIS IS A FEMINIST
BOOK AND I TOUCHED ON THIS A LITTLE BIT BEFORE, BUT I THINK MY FEMINISM AND WHAT I CELEBRATE
ON INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY IS WOMEN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE, NOT JUST REPRODUCTIVELY, BUT THEIR
ENTIRE LIVES, THEIR CAREER, THEIR RELATIONSHIPS, YOU KNOW, DECISIONS BIG AND SMALL.
I THINK THAT'S THE CELEBRATION.
THAT'S WHAT FEMINISM DOES FOR US.
I DON'T SUBSCRIBE TO THE IDEA THAT THERE'S SORT OF THIS FEMINIST RULE BOOK AND IF YOU
HAVE DECISIONS OR OPINIONS THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF THAT RULE BOOK, THAT MAKES YOU A BAD FEMINIST.
I THINK IT IS REALLY AN INDIVIDUAL THING, BUT ON INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY, I
THINK THE SAME HOLDS TRUE, YOU KNOW?
IT REPRESENTS DIFFERENT THINGS TO DIFFERENT PEOPLE BASED ON THEIR INDIVIDUAL LIFE
EXPERIENCES AND WHAT THEY WANT TO CELEBRATE IN TERMS OF WOMANHOOD.
>> Nam: AND, HEATHER, I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT THIS IS YOUR FIRST TELEVISION INTERVIEW BECAUSE YOU
WERE TERRIFIC.
CONGRATULATIONS.
>> Heather: THANK YOU.
>> Nam: -- ON THE BOOK.
AGAIN, THERE'S AN INCREDIBLE TWIST THAT IS JUST AMAZING.
I DID A LITTLE DANCE AROUND MY LIVING ROOM.
BUT CONGRATULATIONS ON THE BOOK.
AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SPENDING SOME TIME WITH US TODAY.
WE APPRECIATE IT.
>> Heather: THANK YOU SO MUCH, NAM.
I APPRECIATE IT.