On today’s show, we’re joined by author and scholar Dr. Sagashus T. Levingston who talks about her new book, A Pot to Piss In. She tells host Ali Muldrow about economic shame and the power of homeownership for her “little disheveled band of humans.”

Dr. Levingston wrote her first book, Infamous Mothers, while in graduate school researching feminism, motherhood studies, and rhetoric. She wanted to write a dissertation on the teen moms, recovering women, single moms, and/or divorces, who are “infamous mothers,” but the source material didn’t exist. She had to create it and to create a space for Black women outside of respectability politics to see themselves as heroes.

She says a core principle of her work is that mothering isn’t martyrdom. Research shows that women are more dissatisfied as wives, partners, and mothers when they take traditional roles out of pressure or expectation versus women who choose their own roles. These women who reject convention are less likely to resent their children or partners and are more likely to raise children who know how to fulfill their dreams. 

They also talk about the chapter in the book called “The Orgasm Project” and how it became an exploration of pleasure, fulfillment, and sacrifice. And they pull the curtain back on what it means to shift your parenting when you transition from being a renter to a first-time home owner. Enjoy the call outs to Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, Erykah Badu, James Baldwin, and more. 

Dr. Sagashus T. Levingston was Born in Chicago and raised in Bronzeville. She is a mother of six, a scholar, and the founder of Infamous Mothers, LLC. She is the author of several books including Infamous Mothers and A Pot to P*ss In as well as journal articles that have been featured in Forbes, Essence, BRAVA, Demeter Press, and more. She serves as Chair of the Board at End Abuse Wisconsin and sits on the Board of Directors at Doyenne.

Featured image of Dr. Sagashus Levingston from Infamous Mothers.

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