"Who is she? What does she want? Why can't she have it?" Those are the questions the Newbery Medal-winning children's author asks about each of her young Latina protagonists. What Meg Medina wanted was to write professionally, but first, she had to get brave. 

Find her newest book Merci Suárez Can't Dance here. And follow Meg on Instagram @megmedinabooks. If you loved this episode, listen to What Sonia Manzano Knows Kids Need and  How Canticos Creator Susie Jaramillo Built an Inclusive Kids' Brand. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

The acclaimed designer took her experiences with chronic pain, an auto-immune disease, and the loss of her father, and poured them into her new hilarious and moving book, Maybe This Will Help: How to Feel Better When Things Stay the Same.

Follow Michelle on Instagram @michellerial. If you loved this episode, listen to How Majo Molfino Helps You Break the Good-Girl Myth and Why Author Valeria Luiselli?s Art Reflects Real Life. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

She got her big break playing Gloria Estefan in the musical hit On Your Feet. She cherished the role, but it also forced her to ?erase Ana to sustain Gloria.? Now, with Chicago, her second Broadway show under her belt, and big projects on the horizon?like Apple TV+'s Bad Monkey?Ana?s learning how to allow her art and her life to live side-by-side.

Follow Ana on Instagram @anavillafaneofficial. If you loved this episode, listen to America Ferrera Knows What Real Power Looks Like and How Queens' Star Nadine Velazquez is Making the Most of a Second Chance. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

The MacArthur "Genius" Grant winner is a public historian who interrogates some of the darkest parts of American history, and argues that grappling with our past is vital to developing solutions that address racial injustice.

Follow Monica @MonicaMnzMtz on Twitter. If you loved this episode, listen to For Sociologist Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve Getting Latinos to Care about Justice Reform Is Personal and What Activist Tania Rosario Méndez is Doing to Combat Femicide in Puerto Rico. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

The litigator turned ultra-marathoner and fitness instructor shares the personal trauma that helped redirect her from law into fitness, her commitment to showing up fully present and fully committed, and why her new children's book, Strong Mama, is a call to reimagine self-care.

Follow Robin @robinnyc on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to Vanessa Birnbaum Rosler?s Yoga Philosophy Ignited a Booming Business and Why Nathalie Huerta Founded the First Queer Gym in the Country. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

Her hilarious BuzzFeed portrayals of Latina moms hooked us, and now, her magnetic energy keeps us glued to Netflix's Gentefied. Julissa reveals what she willingly risked to earn roles that welcome her fullest self.

Follow Julissa @lajulissa on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to America Ferrera Knows What Real Power Looks Like and When Gentefied Co-Creator Linda Yvette Chávez Realized She Couldn?t Quit.  Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

It took her years to get back to herself, but now the singer-songwriter who exploded onto the world stage as part of Fifth Harmony has her first solo EP, Prelude. And she's also on a mission to help others heal. 

Follow Lauren @laurenjauregui on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to Why iLe?s New Album, Almadura, Is Both Departure and Evolution from Calle 13 and Why DaniLeigh is Destined to Be a Music Mogul.  Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

The star of Amazon's With Love, and Lifetime's Holiday in Santa Fe, opens up about how she sets a supportive tone on set, the experience of building her career alongside her equally talented husband (Prince Royce!) and what a loss taught her about the importance of cherishing life's smallest moments. 

Follow Emeraude @emeraude on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to America Ferrera Knows What Real Power Looks Like and How Queens' Star Nadine Velazquez is Making the Most of a Second Chance.  Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

En este episodio, Evaluna invita a su querido esposo Camilo a su sala para conversar del amor, cómo piensan crear a ?baby Indigo,? comparten anécdotas curiosas, se conocen un poco más, y hasta ofrecen sus 5 tips para una relación sana 

wondery.fm/ELS_Latina_To_Latina

Growing up near the U.S.-Mexico border, she became obsessed with questions of belonging. Now, the newly-minted MacArthur Genius is using film to explore those same themes and shine light on stories that too often go untold.

Find Cristina on Instagram @unasmovidas. If you liked this episode, check out Why Loira Limbal Spotlights Invisible People in Her New Film and How Documentarian Cristina Costantini Fed Her Soul While Making Mucho Mucho Amor. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Stacie de Armas, Nielsen's Senior VP of Diverse Intelligence and Initiatives shares fascinating insights from Nielsen's new report, "Inclusion, Information and Intersection: The Truth about Connecting with U.S. Latinos." Plus, her thoughts on how Latinas can use the data to help others understand the power of our communities. (Sponsored)

The Hollywood A-lister reveals how she advocates for herself, maneuvers through complex power dynamics, and deflects the ?Brown Discount.? She also shares all of the work that went into Season 2 of the smash hit, Gentefied, streaming on Netflix now!

Follow America @americaferrera on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to Why TV Showrunner Ilana Peña Craves Complicated Girl Characters and How Queens' Star Nadine Velazquez is Making the Most of a Second Chance.  Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

By 30, the actress had reached most of her goals but still felt like she was living a life someone else had chosen for her. Nadine reveals what it was like to hit rock bottom, and the conversation with a Hollywood A-Lister that changed everything.

Follow Nadine @nadinevelazquez on Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to Why Actress Lisa Vidal Believes "I'm here because this was supposed to happen" and Actress Aimee Carrero Embraces Her Weird, and We Love Her for It. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter! 

The Founder and CEO of Honey Baby Naturals and Botanika Beauty paired engineering and marketing to pave her own path into beauty. Aisha gets candid about the reality TV experience that clarified her vision, and the financial risks she took to realize her dreams. 

Follow Aisha on Instagram @aisharc. If you loved this episode, listen to How Fashion Entrepreneur Camila Coelho Went from Working Retail to Building a Beauty Brand and How Joanna Vargas Built a Beauty Empire with Her Hands. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The founder of All You Can Yoga reveals how she harnessed her love of the practice, marketing, and entrepreneurship to simplify the business of yoga, and bring it within everyone's reach. 

Follow Vanessa on Instagram @allyoucanyoga. If you loved this episode, listen to Fitness Entrepreneur Melissa Alcantara is Always in Beast Mode and How Health Coach Massy Arias Found Her Real Strength. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The comedian had her breakout moment on "Last Comic Standing,? and since, has used comedy to explore everything from politics to familial trauma. It?s all part of her new HBO Max special, Fighting Words. 

Follow Aida on Instagram @funnyaida. If you loved this episode, listen to How Gina Brillón Became a Comedy Junkie, and Trust Us, Cristela Alonzo Gets the Last Laugh. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

As Sesame Street's iconic "Maria," the actress and Emmy-award winning writer harnessed the power of make-believe and imagination to connect with children. Sonia shares how creativity provided respite from her tumultuous childhood, and how problem-solving inspired her new PBS children's animated series, Alma's Way. 

Follow Sonia on Twitter @soniammanzano. If you loved this episode, listen to Why TV Showrunner Ilana Peña Craves Complicated Girl Characters and This Is Why María Elena Salinas Is a Legend. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

From Neon Hum Media and LA Taco, this is Smoke Screen: The Sellout, a podcast about a politician dogged by allegations of corruption, harassment and pathological pettiness. It?s about the residents who fought gentrification even as their neighborhoods were auctioned off to the highest bidder.? And it?s about a community that feels the pain of betrayal ? from one of their own. 

From Capitol Hill to the State Department to Leadership for Educational Equity, this education policy advocate offers wisdom on the art of compromise and the necessity of standing your ground.

Follow Mildred on Twitter @millyoo3. If you loved this episode, listen to How Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto Made Room for Herself in Politics and How Alexandra Rojas Wants to Rewrite Politics. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon Supporter!

The founding editor-in-chief of Parents Latina and Ser Padres shares how she launched and built a media brand that infuses multicultural roots and inclusive parenting.

Follow Grace on instagram @brooklynwriter. If you loved this episode, listen to How O Magazine?s Arianna Davis Made It, on Her Own Terms and How Aimee Garcia Took Charge of Her Hollywood Career. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The Ivy League educated holistic psychologist is revolutionizing her field with Indigenous healing, curanderos, sound baths, and Reiki therapy. Dr. Buqué breaks down her work in mental wellness, and how we can use ?micro moments? to connect with ourselves.

Follow Dr. Buqué on instagram @dr.marielbuque and on twitter. If you loved this episode, listen to LEVEL UP: How to Approach Your Health Holistically and Nicole Mejia Wants You to Love Yourself?All of You. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

As co-founder and CEO of SweetBio, she?s harnessing the power of Manuka honey to heal advanced wounds and reimagine health outcomes. But early on, the biotech company nearly crumbled. Kayla describes the pivot that put them back on track, and the unique challenges of bringing health care products directly to consumers. 

Follow Kayla @kaykayroro on Twitter and Instagram. If you loved this episode, listen to How O Magazine?s Arianna Davis Made It, on Her Own Terms and Gia Morón Wants More of Us in the Weed Business. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The Latina Rebels founder and author of For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts: A Love Letter to Women of Color, opens up about imposter syndrome, colorism, and why shaking off traditional roles was key to finding freedom.

Follow Prisca and on instagram @priscadorcas. If you loved this episode, listen to How Nelini Stamp Sets Injustice Aflame and How Writer Karla Cornejo Villavicencio Maintains Control of Her Narrative. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The executive director of pro-choice Frontera Fund discusses the ramifications of the loss of abortion rights in Texas, and the challenges that lay ahead for the state and the the country. Zaena also gives Alicia insight into what it takes to keep abortion care at the forefront of the national healthcare movement.

Follow Zaena and Frontera Fund on instagram @fronterafundrgv. If you loved this episode, listen to For Sociologist Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve Getting Latinos to Care about Justice Reform Is Personal and Why Actress Selenis Leyva and Her Sister, Trans Activist Marizol Leyva, Are Closer Than Ever. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

As a teenager, she spent weekends in New York City museums. Today she?s big-time in her field. E. Carmen Ramos talks candidly about feeling unwelcome in her first museum job to challenging the art establishment to include more Latino artists in the country?s biggest art institutions.

Follow E. Carmen on instagram @wheightsgirl. If you loved this episode, listen to How Artist Scherezade Garcia Came to Work and Exist on Her Own Terms and Why Author Valeria Luiselli?s Art Reflects Real Life. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Jen, who is behind empowering T-shirt collections like the pink and red ?Latina Power? line, started out hand-drawing on coffee mugs while working at a Best Buy. She speaks with Alicia about what it was like launching a design company from her living room, and how being in the Rio Grande Valley fuels her sense of community and inspires JZD?s colorful, mantra-infused tees.

Follow Jen on instagram @jenzeano. If you loved this episode, listen to How Fashion Entrepreneur Camila Coelho Went from Working Retail to Building a Beauty Brand and Author Carmen Maria Machado on the Myth of a Queer Love Utopia. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Ana Lilia fell in love with breathing practices and affirmations as part of her own healing journey. Then she shared those gifts with others. Now she shares how to clear your mind, control your anxiety and rewrite your story?one breath at a time.

Follow Ana on instagram @_ana_lilia. If you loved this episode, listen to LEVEL UP: How to Approach Your Health Holistically and How Health Coach Massy Arias Found Her Real Strength. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The television executive turned entrepreneur took a major detour?mid career?to go back to school. She shares how that decision changed her life, as well as her insights on how to find your true purpose.

Follow Nely on instagram @nelygalan. If you loved this episode, listen to Fashion Entrepreneur Lilliana Vazquez: ?Build Something for Yourself? and How Carolyn Rodz Is Connecting Entrepreneurs with Opportunities. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The founder of Chic Influence, a public relations firm, shares her tips for telling an individual or brand?s story so that others want to listen. Plus, the powerful exercise she relies on to gain clarity and make big moves.

Follow Lissette on instagram @lissymarie. If you loved this episode, listen to Why Reina Rebelde's Founder, Regina Merson, Chose Herself Over Everything Else and LEVEL UP: How to Approach Your Health Holistically. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

To kick off this four part series, this non-profit CEO and professional coach shares the biggest obstacle her clients face when it comes to asserting what they really want, as well as the radical decision that transformed her life.

Follow Irene on Instagram @iquevedo. If you loved this episode, listen to LEVEL UP: Your Relationships Could Use a Refresh and LEVEL UP: How to Secure Your Financial Future Starting Today. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Ivelyse's personal experience of navigating the health care system inspired her to build a business that harnesses technology and intimate conversations to give individuals more control over their health. In this episode, she shares the power of taking up space and giving yourself permission to figure things out as you go.

Follow Ivelyse on Instagram @ivelyse. If you loved this episode, listen to this interview with Fitness coach Yami Mufdi on How to Approach Your Health Holistically and How Health Coach Massy Arias Found Her Real Strength. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The Executive Director of Taller Salud, a feminist organization in Puerto Rico, breaks down how the island's struggling economy and social systems fail survivors, what needs to change, and what we can each do to combat gender-based violence. 

Follow Tania on Instagram @taniarosariomendez. If you loved this episode, listen to this interview with Sociologist Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve about Justice Reform and How San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz Is Not Done Fighting. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Her own leap from investment banking to entrepreneurship inspired Hello Alice, a free platform that helps businesses learn and grow. Carolyn shares her roadmaps for entrepreneurs, and the source of her own eternal optimism.

Follow Carolyn on Instagram @carolynrodz. If you loved this episode, listen to Why Corporate America Couldn?t Change Carla Vernón at Her Core and How Bomba Curls' Lulu Cordero Unfurled Her Natural Hair and Ambition. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

She was a quirky kid who was obsessed with pop culture and learned the art of chisme from her abuela. It all prepared her to take our social media feeds by storm. Tefi shares her path from behind the scenes to the star of the show and the tricks she uses to make every performance ?just a conversation.? 

Follow Tefi Pessoa on Instagram @hellotefi. If you loved this episode, listen to Why Our Friend Dessa Likes Picking Brains Apart and How Jenny Lorenzo Became the Internet?s Favorite Cuban Abuela. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon Supporter!

Growing up in New Mexico, she read books like Our Bodies, Ourselves, and understood the importance of destigmatizing sexuality. Now the entrepreneur shares how her modern sexual wellness company is reimagining an outdated industry. 

Follow Éva Goicochea on Instagram @evagoicochea. If you loved this episode, listen to Why Tech Visionary Irma Olguin Jr. Went Back to Her Farming Roots and How Girls Night In Founder Alisha Ramos Started a Stay-at-Home Movement. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon Supporter! 

The iconic Mexican folk singer didn?t know if she would keep working in music, so she lost herself in Canada and started paying attention to signs from the universe. In this episode, she shares how she found her way back home and the rituals she relies on to bring new projects to life. 

Follow Natalia Lafourcade on Instagram @natalialafourcade and listen to her album Canto Por México Vol. II. If you loved this episode, listen to What Medium Tatianna Morales Sees in Her Own Future and What Singer Aymée Nuviola Left Behind for Her Art. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Karla Cornejo Villavicencio shot to fame when she wrote an essay about being an undocumented student at Harvard. But instead of book deals, she looked for more meaning in writing and exploring her identity. Along the way, she learned more about herself and tells Diane how the correct diagnoses, therapy, strict personal boundaries, and self-acceptance have all changed her life for the better.
 

If you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the United States at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). You can find a list of additional resources at SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
 

More information on borderline personality disorder here: https://www.borderlinepersonalitydisorder.org/consumer-recovery-resources/
 

Learn about DBT therapy here: https://www.onlinedbtcourses.com/
 

This program is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.
 

She learned on the job as an assistant to one of the most powerful women in Hollywood, and spent nine years at Twentieth Century Fox before making the leap to Netflix. Now its director of original programing, she lets us in on what it takes to sell a big idea.

Follow Carolina on Instagram @thedancingdiary. If you loved this episode, listen to How Showrunner Dailyn Rodriguez Stays in High Demand and LEVEL UP: This Life Coach Says Now's the Time to Level Up. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

She grew tired of seeing the women in her family sacrifice their ambition for their men, so she vowed to build a life that wouldn't force her to choose. At 17, she immigrated to the US, learned English, and decided to study aerospace engineering. Now at NASA, Diana is at the forefront of missions that could tell us if there is life beyond our planet.

Follow Diana on Twitter @FromCaliToMars. If you loved this episode, listen  to How Neurosurgeon Dr. Analiz Rodriguez Made Her Own Way and Why Our Friend Dessa Likes Picking Brains Apart. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Roller coaster auditions left no room for self-doubt, and filming was magical. But the release was pushed back a year amid the pandemic. The whole process taught Melissa to cultivate patience, underscored the need to constantly reintroduce yourself, and confirmed why diving deep into her own heartbreak was the only way to play Vanessa on her own terms.

Follow Melissa on Instagram @melissabarreram. If you loved this episode, listen to Alicia's previous chat with Melissa here, or this episode about How Aimee Garcia Took Charge of Her Hollywood Career. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

An athlete who loves the gym, she began presenting as more masculine and locker-room interactions became so stressful she stopped going. Then she took a $50 Target gift card and founded what would become The Queer Gym, the first LGBTQ gym in the nation.

Follow Nathalie on Instagram @homie-preneur. If you loved this episode, listen to How Health Coach Massy Arias Found Her Real Strength and How Bomba Curls' Lulu Cordero Unfurled Her Natural Hair and Ambition. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Her cousin's incarceration punctuated the ten years she spent studying the largest criminal court in the country. So she decided it was time to act, not just observe. Now a Brown University professor, Nicole still grapples with how to make people care about police killings, generalized corruption in the system, and the biases within Latino communities that detract from real progress.

Follow Nicole on Twitter @nvancleve. If you loved this episode, listen  to Code for America?s Amanda Renteria Lost Some Battles, but Is Winning the Political War and Why Gianna Nino-Tapias Embodies Labor Rights, and Why Her Tweet from a Blueberry Field Hit a Nerve. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Her life story is the stuff of movies. She was a goth kid in private school while her dad ran an underground gambling syndicate. A teacher suggested she write about it. And today she's the executive producer of USA's hit drama Queen of the South. The plot points connecting the two eras are filled with derailed projects, hard choices, and moments of euphoric triumph. In this lucid interview, Alicia gets every detail.

Follow Dailyn  on Twitter @dailynrod. If you loved this episode, listen to Why TV Showrunner Ilana Peña Craves Complicated Girl Characters and How Aimee Garcia Took Charge of Her Hollywood Career. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

When she read about a 24-hour daycare center, the producer and director knew it would become the heart of her next verité film. Filmed over two years, ?Through the Night? offers an emotionally searing portrait of the unpaid, often invisible work of motherhood and caregiving, and a masterclass on intimate storytelling.

Find Loira Limbal on Twitter @DJLaylo. If you liked this episode, listen to the interview with Cristina Costantini. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

The E! Host and style expert struggled with infertility for six years before becoming pregnant. Now, she's sharing her journey in the hopes of helping others feel less alone. Here, she reflects on the unique challenges Latinas run up against on their Advanced Reproductive Technology journeys, the loneliness of keeping her heartbreak a secret, and the life-changing power of surrender. 

Follow Lilliana @lillianavazquez. If you loved this episode, listen to How Doula Adriana Lozada Guides Parents to Their Own Ideal Birth and last year's Mother's Day Tribute to You, Your Mom, and All the Mamís. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Intuition is one thing. The ability to connect with the spirit world to help others is entirely another. And for Tatianna Morales a lifelong pursuit in understanding and channeling the wisdom in the occult has resulted in legions of fans, helped her find her purpose, and launched a lucrative business.

Follow Tatianna @tatiannatarot. If you loved this episode, listen to What Happened After Zulema Arroyo Farley Stopped Denying Her Own Truth and How Documentarian Cristina Costantini Fed Her Soul While Making Mucho Mucho Amor. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Growing up, Irma Olguin expected to join the next generation of farmworkers in her family. But the CEO of Bitwise Industries, which has turned California?s Central Valley into a thriving tech hub, says she experienced so much ?serendipity in her life? that she realized everything that lifted her out of poverty and struggle was possible for her home community. Someone just had to address the inequalities. The story of how she did it gave us goosebumps.

If you liked this episode, listen to How Neurosurgeon Dr. Analiz Rodriguez Made Her Own Way and Code for America?s Amanda Renteria Lost Some Battles, but Is Winning the Political War. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

A decade ago, she began sharing her fitness trials and triumphs online after experiencing the dark side of the industry. Since then, she has motivated millions to find their motivation, strengthening techniques, and focus?and built a wellness empire that includes an app and the TRU Supplements line. In this episode, Massy gets candid about her recent divorce, and all the things we don?t see on Instagram.

If you liked this episode, listen to Mend's Founder, Elle Huerta, Wants to Help You Beat Burnout and  How Girls Night In Founder Alisha Ramos Started a Stay-at-Home Movement. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!

Growing up, she was so close to her family, it was unimaginable she?d ever even go away for college. But a curious mind and an adventurous heart freed her to ?dream wild? and create her own ?fantasy version of my life.?

If you liked this episode, listen to How Writer Leslé Honoré Knows Poetry Changes Lives and How Writer Karla Cornejo Villavicencio Maintains Control of Her Narrative. Show your love and become a Latina to Latina Patreon supporter!