In this episode of Wine, Women, and Revolution, Heather is joined by Kate Moore, author of Radium Girls. Radium Girls tells the story of a group of women who were slowly poisoned by radium paint their job encouraged them to ingest, and their fight for justice against overwhelming odds. This is a tragic story of capitalism, exploitation, and death. These women changed the world because of their strength and dedication. We all owe them a debt and need to learn their names and histories.
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Kate Moore 0:00
But the company told them no, it’s absolutely safe. There’s no reason to be afraid. But of course, that wasn’t true. And actually, it wasn’t true even at the time. Because yes, you know what’s marketed it all the newspapers and magazines and the drugstores is that radium is a wonder drug. But actually, when you look at who was funding the research that supposedly said that, it was the radium firms who were making money out of all those products, the radium chocolate and radium water and the radium dressings and so on.
Heather Warburton 0:36
This is Wine Women and Revolution with your host, Heather Warburton. Hi, and welcome to Wine Women and Revolution. I’m your host Heather Warburton coming at you here on Create Your Future Productions. You can find us online at www.YourFutureCreator.com. Follow us on all the social medias and get us wherever you get your podcasts from. Today, I have an interview that’s been so long in the making. I’ve been so excited about it for so long. I think I reached out to my guest today, not this past summer but the summer before to have her as a guest on my show. And she’s like no, no, I’m working on a new book. Hit me up again in the spring. Well, we all know what happened in the spring, COVID destroyed everything. And then over the course of the late summer, I dissolved my previous company and started up this brand new company here so. But everything finally worked out and all the stars managed to align so I’m so excited to have my guest today. Today I have with me New York Times Best Seller author of the basically modern classic of Radium Girls, Kate Moore Welcome to the show.
Kate Moore 1:45
Thank you so much. Lovely to be here at last.
Heather Warburton 1:49
It took us a while but uh, you know, your book pretty much i think is on the shelf of every leftist woman that I know.
Kate Moore 1:58
That’s that’s an amazing thing to say.
Heather Warburton 2:03
But for anyone that hasn’t heard of Radium Girls, can you give me a little summary of what the general gist of the book is about?
Kate Moore 2:12
Sure. Well, I think the most important thing to say is it’s a history book. It’s all true, it’s nonfiction. And it tells the true story of a group of American women from the First World War and roaring 20s era who were poisoned by the radium paint that they work with. Their employers refuse to admit responsibility. So these incredibly strong women embark on a landmark fight for justice.
Heather Warburton 2:38
So what got you interested in this subject?
Kate Moore 2:42
Well, I came to the story of the Radium Girls through a play actually, and didn’t know anything about them. It literally was just looking. I typed into Google great plays for women. Because as a female director, I like to tell stories about women I wanted to put on a play with great parts for actresses. And one of the plays that came back was called These Shining Lives by Melanie Marnich. And it’s about the Ottawa, Illinois dial painters. So I got into the story through a play. And what really connected with me about it was the women themselves. For me, it was always about the radium girls and the individual radium girls as well, because I think if people have
