Explore the life and legacy of Kentucky-born author bell hooks, who wrote nearly 40 books and whose work at the intersection of race, class and gender is a lasting contribution to the feminist movement. Learn how bell’s childhood in Hopkinsville and her connection to Kentucky’s “hillbilly culture” informed her views and her belief that feminism is for everybody.

This KET documentary features selections read by Academy-Award winner Octavia Spencer and interviews with feminist activist Gloria Steinem, Kentucky writers Crystal Wilkinson and Silas House, bell’s younger sister Gwenda Motley and many others.

American Experience: Fly with Me
Learn about the women who became flight attendants when single women were unable to order a drink, eat alone in a restaurant, own a credit card or get a prescription for birth control. The job offered unheard-of opportunities for travel and independence. These women were on the frontlines of the battle for gender equality and transformed the workplace.

American Experience: The Life Savers
This story of the fight against cervical cancer revolves around three main people: Dr. George Papanicolaou, artist Hashime Murayama and Dr. Helen Dickens. The work of these three people slashed death rates of this previously unfightable cancer by more than 60 percent.

American Experience: The Sun Queen
For nearly 50 years, engineer and inventor Maria Telkes worked to harness the sun’s power. She designed and built the world’s first successfully solar-heated modern residence and identified a new chemical that could store solar heat. She is recognized as a pioneer in the field of sustainable energy.

American Masters: Mae West
Dive into the life and career of groundbreaking writer, performer and subversive star Mae West. Over a career spanning eight decades, she broke boundaries and possessed creative and economic powers unheard of for a female entertainer in the 1930s.

Call the Midwife
This series continues to explore complex medical and personal situations on the midwifery and nursing fronts. It’s 1969 now and more babies are being born in hospitals than ever before. Pressure for maternity beds remains high across the country but Poplar is coping better than most due to the work of Nonnatus House and the popularity of home births under the auspices of the sisters.

Connections
Catch these great interviews this month: Judi Jennings, Marta Miranda, LaTosha Reynolds and Tonya Lindsey, Drs. Susan Stone and Julie Marfell, Tanya Torp and Holly Houston, Emmie Sandford and Sheryl Withers Woolverton, Soreyda Benedit Begley, Diane Follingstad, Sister Helen Prejean, Crystal Wilkinson, Mary Gwen Wheeler, Elaine Chao, Dorothy Edwards and Diane Fleet, and Kendell Nash.

Facing the Laughter: Minnie Pearl
Small-town girl Sarah Cannon dreamed of becoming a Shakespearean actress; instead, she became famous as the comedian Minnie Pearl. With her “Howdee” greeting, her character became an icon of country music. The educated, serious Cannon and her playful, alter ego created a legacy of compassion, empowerment and humor.

Independent Lens: Breaking the News
This story of the fight against cervical cancer revolves around three main people: Dr. George Papanicolaou, artist Hashime Murayama and Dr. Helen Dickens. The work of these three people slashed death rates of this previously unfightable cancer by more than 60 percent.

Jane Addams – Together We Rise: American Stories
Jane Addams, born into wealth, was intrigued by social reform after visiting a settlement house in London’s impoverished East End. An inheritance helped her to bring that concept to Chicago in 1889. This documentary profiles the Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist and the women who joined her to enrich the lives of thousands of immigrant women and children, inspiring others to follow their lead.

Kentucky to the World: Carol Wyatt: 35 Years of TV Animation and Film
Legendary film animator Carol Wyatt, who grew up in Louisville, sits down for a conversation with Brooke Keesling, head of animation talent development at Bento Box. Wyatt talks about animation as a means of storytelling through color, allowing her to weave narratives through her work on programs such as The Simpsons, the Ricky Gervais Show, Amphibia and more.

The National Women’s Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
The ceremony celebrates the lives and achievements of 10 extraordinary women across a range of disciplines working to create change in their communities and the world. This program reminds us that hard work and inspiration can create good in this world. 2024 inductees include Patricia Bath, Ruby Bridges, Peggy McIntosh, Serena Williams and more.

Nolly on Masterpiece
This series tells the story of Nolly Gordon (Helena Bonham Carter), one of the most famous faces on British TV in the 60s and 70s, whose firing from her hit show at the height of her career was front-page news. A bold exploration of how the establishment turns on women who refuse to play by the rules, Nolly is a hilarious and entertaining ride and a sharp, affectionate, heart-breaking portrait of a forgotten icon.

Sandra Day O’Connor: The First
Discover the story of the Supreme Court’s first female justice. A pioneer who both reflected and shaped an era, Sandra Day O’Connor was the deciding vote in cases on some of the 20th century’s most controversial issues—including race, gender and reproductive rights.

Where I Became
This film traces the story of 14 women who left apartheid in South Africa to attend Smith College in the U.S. Narrated in their own voices and filmed between South Africa and the U.S., this film follows their stories from childhood to discovering themselves through the power of higher education.

Without Precedent: The Supreme Life of Rosalie Abella
This documentary explores the life and legacy of a legal icon. The child of Holocaust survivors, Justice Abella was born in 1946 in Germany in a displaced persons camp. Her family moved to Canada in 1950 as refugees. Her experiences shaped her career and in public speeches, she often intertwines her story with a discussion of human rights, morality and constitutional law.