191 SHARES Share Tweet

We often point to nature in order to defend our own behaviour and patterns in human society. People will defend everything from violence, to rape, to male dominance by pointing to animal behaviour. But maybe instead of looking to defend patriarchy by looking to nature, we should look to nature for alternative structures and behaviours that challenge our own social norms.

When Caitlin Starowicz headed off to the Kenyan savannah, she found matriarchal and matrilineal societies that humans could certainly take cues from. Indeed, the king of the jungle may in fact be a queen.

Caitlin is co-director of a fascinating new documentary called Mommy Wildest, which follows female-led and female-centric lion, elephant, and baboon families, challenging the notion that male dominance is either the most natural or functional family structure.

In this episode, I speak with Caitlin about the documentary and what she learned from her time on the Kenyan savannah.

191 SHARES Share Tweet

Meghan Murphy Founder & Editor Meghan Murphy is a freelance writer and journalist. She has been podcasting and writing about feminism since 2010 and has published work in numerous national and international publications, including The Spectator, UnHerd, the CBC, New Statesman, Vice, Al Jazeera, The Globe and Mail, and more. Meghan completed a Masters degree in the department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies at Simon Fraser University in 2012 and lives in Vancouver, B.C. with her dog.