Summary
- NEW YORK: Gloria Steinem, the influential American writer, journalist, lecturer and women’s rights activist who spent more than five decades campaigning for gender equality and women’s civil and reproductive rights, has died at the age of 92.
- In 1971, Steinem helped establish the National Women’s Political Caucus alongside former US Representatives Bella Abzug and Shirley Chisholm, as well as writer Betty Friedan.
- Through journalism, activism and political organising, Steinem became one of the defining voices of American feminism and left a lasting impact on the struggle for women’s equality.
AI Generated Summary
NEW YORK: Gloria Steinem, the influential American writer, journalist, lecturer and women’s rights activist who spent more than five decades campaigning for gender equality and women’s civil and reproductive rights, has died at the age of 92.
Steinem’s foundation announced her death on Thursday, saying she had died the previous day. She became one of the most recognisable figures of the modern feminist movement and played a major role in advancing women’s rights from the late 1960s onward.
As a co-founder and consulting editor of Ms. Magazine, Steinem helped give the women’s movement a powerful national platform. Her work and public advocacy influenced generations of women and made her an enduring symbol of social and political change.
Film and theatre director Julie Taymor, who portrayed Steinem’s life in the 2020 film The Glorias, described her as an American leader whose journey transformed her from an initially reluctant public spokesperson into an influential force for positive change. The film was based on Steinem’s bestselling 2015 autobiography, My Life on the Road.
Steinem’s life and career also inspired other major productions, including the 2018 stage play Gloria: A Life and the 2011 HBO documentary Gloria: In Her Own Words.
Steinem often described herself as an “entrepreneur of social change”. She believed that listening to women and sharing their experiences were essential to creating meaningful empowerment. Her activism focused on connecting women’s individual experiences with broader social and political inequalities.
In 1971, Steinem helped establish the National Women’s Political Caucus alongside former US Representatives Bella Abzug and Shirley Chisholm, as well as writer Betty Friedan. Friedan’s influential 1963 book The Feminine Mystique had helped spark the second wave of feminism in the United States.
Throughout her career, Steinem was involved in founding and supporting numerous organisations dedicated to women’s rights, including the Coalition of Labor Union Women, the Women’s Media Center, Voters for Choice and the Ms. Foundation for Women.
Her contributions received the highest civilian recognition in the United States when President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013.
Steinem was also known for her distinctive appearance, including her long, centre-parted hair and aviator-style glasses, which contributed to her image as a modern and fashionable face of feminism. However, she consistently argued that the movement needed to represent women from every racial and social background.
She frequently acknowledged the influence of Black women and women of colour on her understanding of feminism, stressing that discrimination should be challenged across all levels of society.
Born on March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio, Steinem was the younger of two daughters. Her father worked as a travelling antiques dealer, and the family moved frequently, meaning she did not attend school consistently until around seventh grade.
Her parents separated when she was 11, after which Steinem lived with her mother, who experienced depression and a mental health crisis. The experience strongly influenced Steinem’s later views about marriage, inequality and women’s independence.
After graduating from Smith College, she began working as a freelance journalist. In 1963, she spent 11 days working undercover as a Playboy Bunny for Show magazine. Her resulting two-part investigation, A Bunny’s Tale, exposed the low wages and sexist treatment experienced by the women working at the Playboy Club. The story later became a television film starring Kirstie Alley.
Through journalism, activism and political organising, Steinem became one of the defining voices of American feminism and left a lasting impact on the struggle for women’s equality.
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