Gloria Steinem, Feminist Trailblazer and Journalist, Dies at 92
One of the most recognizable faces of feminism, Gloria Steinem inspired a generation of women to fight for equality.
Gloria Steinem, one of the most prominent faces of the women’s liberation and feminist movements, died on Wednesday at her home in New York City at the age of 92.
Her passing was announced on social media with no cause given. “Gloria’s greatest gift was her ability to listen to others, to make others feel seen and heard. Her words, actions, and example gave people permission to be their truest selves,” the statement said.
For decades, Steinem has been the personification of the women’s movement, leading the protests and consciousness raising sessions, writing the essays and giving the speeches that helped shape much of the second wave of feminism.
Steinem launched Ms. Magazine, which was the first glossy publication created, owned and run by and for women and brought conversations about taboo issues such as abortion, lesbianism, domestic abuse and gender roles into homes across America. Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou, Angela Davis and Adrienne Rich were all among the writers who contributed to Ms. which later became the inspiration of Dolly Parton classic film 9 to 5.
Over 50 years ago, Steinem also helped found the Women’s Action Alliance, a group dedicated to raising discussions feminism to the national level. Additionally, Steinem co-founded the National Women’s Political Caucus which provided support and training for women who wished to enter politics.
Steinem went on to continue to be a fierce advocate for reproductive rights, driven by her own experience having an illegal abortion as told in her memoir My Life on the Road. She founded Choice USA, now Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equality, in 1992 which is a reproductive rights and justice youth-led non-profit.
In 2013, Steinem was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama for her work in activism. “Because of her work, across America and around the world, women are afforded the respect and opportunities that they deserve,” President Obama said. “She also changed how women thought about themselves.”
Over the 50 years she lived in her New York City brownstone, Steinem welcomed hundreds of guests into her living room for what her foundation called Talking Circles. The consciousness raising practice continued to live on through Steinem and her foundation has said that the gatherings will continue. “I have now lived for more than fifty years in this brownstone, in rooms that have witnessed lives before mine, and will know others after I am gone,” Steinem wrote in her forthcoming book An Unexpected Life.
For Gloria, community was the only way through. “I think the most important thing is that we have each other, because we are communal animals as human beings. So even though there’s a lot we can accomplish by ourselves to survive and do well, we do need each other,” Steinem told GO in 2018. “The most important thing I would say is to make sure that you have some friends, colleagues, people you trust, however different you may be, and who support each other. I think that’s absolutely crucial.”
