Podcast Launching
Late 2025

Medication Underground will…

  • PROVIDE REAL RELIABLE NEWS

    Our top priority is to bring our listeners the medical news other outlets aren’t, free from the financial influence of pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, and health insurance companies.

  • HAVE A UNITY LENS

    Our coverage of healthcare stories will be relevant to patients with a wide variety of diagnoses. Today, many medications are used for seemingly contrasting conditions. When MU is discussing a drug, we won’t just be talking about it’s application for the most common disease. Whenever possible MU seeks to unite siloed chronic illness and disability communities.

  • ENCOURAGE ACTION

    Instead of simply bombarding you with difficult information, our podcast will highlight work already being done by community organizers and activists. Our goal is to inspire you to also take action regularly to improve your community and the world around you.

  • GIVE BACK

    With our combined years of mutual aid organizing experience, MU will be offering free consulting services for mutual aid organizers. What will evolve into more structured leadership development programming in the coming years, begins with an open invitation to collaborate with any organizers in need of assistance here.

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Organizers & Podcasters from South Africa & the United States coming together…

Though on different continents and in opposite hemispheres, South Africa and the United States have a number of remarkable similarities—particularly when it comes to our shared history of the oppression and dehumanization of Black people. As fascism permeates global society in 2025, we’re coming together now.

This collaboration bridges voices across the world, uniting storytellers, activists, and experts from South Africa and the United States. Through shared narratives, in-depth discussions, and collective advocacy, we amplify diverse perspectives, uncover under-reported stories, and foster cross-cultural understanding.

By blending journalistic integrity, grassroots organizing, and the power of podcasting, we will create a platform that not only informs but inspires action. Whether tackling social issues, highlighting underrepresented voices, or exploring global connections, this partnership builds a bridge between two vibrant storytelling landscapes.

The Team

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  • Zoe is a writer and activist whose work has been published in major US outlets including Teen Vogue, Glamour, SELF, and Jezebel. Some of her insulin and diabetes activism has been referenced in CBS News, Health, Prism, and Human Rights Watch. Talking about her experience rationing insulin due to cost helped inspire Human Rights Watch’s 2022 report “If I’m Out of Insulin, I’m Going to Die,” which ultimately recommended, “[The United States’] Congress should consider legislation to provide insulin to all insulin-dependent individuals in the country free-of-cost.” She authored the 2022 and 2023 State of Diabetes in America Survey, and is currently working with Dr. Katherine Wentzell to analyze the 2023 data. Zoe loves food, astrology, aliens, movies, fashion, design, and her cats.

  • Thapi Semenya is a dynamic advocate whose journey from managing diabetes to emerging as a leading voice in public health has shaped her mission. Her personal story, chronicled in detail on Diabetes Voice, reflects her evolution from diagnosis to dedicated advocacy. Her work has been prominently featured on Diabetessa and InsulinAt100, underscoring her commitment to improving healthcare access. Thapi’s efforts to empower women and girls in the health sector are highlighted on the Knowledge Action Portal, and she has been recognized among 200 Young South Africans. Additionally, her initiatives to promote accessible healthcare and a healthy lifestyle have been showcased in a feature by We Can Change, while her innovative approach to leveraging technology in diabetes care is profiled on TechCabal. Her contributions to global health discussions are further underscored by her involvement in a comprehensive WHO report, reinforcing her role in advancing health equity.

  • Noah Kernis is insulin dependent, a disabled cyborg, an artist, and activist. Their art takes many forms, including video, code, and electronics. It questions the logic of computer based devices, like insulin pumps, that aim to use algorithms to automate labor, care, and decision making. They make art under the name GENERIC_ERROR. Noah has experience working in Television, Podcasting, and Software Engineering.

  • Max is a pediatric occupational therapist striving to make healthcare and educational settings safer for people with disabilities. He is passionate about health literacy and the power of self acceptance for both children and adults with chronic health conditions. Having been a type 1 diabetic for over 20 years, he hopes to one day only need to work one job to afford his prescriptions. When he’s not working, you can find Max catering to his 9-year-old English bulldog’s every whim and forcing his husband to watch reality TV.