Spending more than fifty years fighting for women’s rights, Gloria Steinem has emerged as a leading feminist of all time. Read more on newyork1.one.
You might remember her as the voice of the women’s liberation struggle or as the creator of Ms. magazine. However, the Ohio native has plenty of other achievements to her credit. She has had a variety of tasks in her life, from working undercover as a club declassification rabbit to being Christian Bale’s stepmother.
Her work continues to inspire new generations of activists and forces society to rethink the role of women in the modern world.
Read more about what the world-famous Gloria Steinem is remembered for in the article.
Early years
G. Steinem was born on March 25, 1934 in Toledo, Ohio, the second child and daughter of Leo and Ruth Steinem. Her father was a traveling salesman (an intermediary between the seller of goods and the buyer).
Unfortunately, her parents divorced in 1944, forcing the young Steinem to tend to her mentally ill mother in Toledo. After finishing high school, her sister had come to look after their mother. Thus, Steinem entered college in Massachusetts. She pursued a degree in public administration.
In 1956, Gloria completed college with honors and was awarded a coveted Chester Bowles scholarship. The latter gave her the opportunity to travel to India to do studies for two years. Her time abroad awakened her concern to actively fight for equal rights.
Journalistic activity
G. Steinem began her journalistic career in NYC, authoring freelance content for several magazines.
As you know, it was in the late 1950s and 1960s that women found it difficult to get challenging and well-paid positions when men ran editorial offices. In the 20th century, women mostly fulfilled clerical and support functions.
Steinem’s first writings focused on women’s topics only, such as nylon stockings or lifestyle or fashion.
Steinem once reflected that when she expressed a desire to write political articles, the editor of the publication flatly refused to give her such assignments.
Despite this, G. Steinem did not stop. She continued to look for more serious tasks in the field of journalism.
In 1963, Gloria did not go unnoticed. She garnered national acclaim when Show magazine assigned her to report undercover on working life at Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Club.
Unfortunately, Steinem’s coverage of the club exposed a less-than-glamorous, sexist and low-paid life for the workers. But after that task, Steinem tried to build a good reputation for herself. The woman wanted to be seen as a serious journalist.
Steinem worked hard to build a name for herself. In 1968, she co-founded New York magazine. There, the woman worked as an editor and political journalist.
At New York magazine, Steinem covered political campaigning and advanced social topics, such as the women’s liberation movement.
Steinem’s first public appearance was in 1969. It was an event in favor of legalizing abortion in New York State. There, she shared the story of an abortion she had had abroad when she was 22 years old.
This event changed G. Steinem’s life. After that, the columnist actively attended and lectured at various rallies and gatherings. The woman’s powerful intelligence and attractive appearance led her to become a sought-after press personality and spokesperson for the cause.
Gloria’s involvement
Every year, Steinem got more and more mixed up in the rallies and protests for women and their rights.
In 1968, Steinem signed the Writers and Editors War Tax Protest pledge, promising not to pay taxes to oppose the Vietnam War.
In 1969, she penned a piece that propelled her to national attention as a women’s rights leader.
On July 10, 1971, Steinem was one of more than three hundred women who founded the National Women’s Political Caucus (Address to the Women of America).
In 1972, she ran as a delegate for Shirley Chisholm in New York, but lost.
Despite her influence in the feminist movement, Steinem was also critiqued by some feminists who questioned her commitment to the movement. Some activists believed that Gloria was an advocate for her own benefit and to promote her glamorous image, although this is a completely false statement.
Personal life
Despite the fact that Gloria was actually against marriage and believed that a woman does not need a man, in 2000, at the age of 66, the long-time single Steinem got married for the first time in a Cherokee ceremony in Oklahoma.
Her husband was a business owner and activist David Bale. Unfortunately, the marriage did not last long, as David died of lymphoma four years later.
“He had the greatest heart of anyone I’ve known,” Steinem said in an interview with O magazine.
Journalist’s awards
Gloria has received many awards. The woman wrote and released her own books. Her work is known to have been published and republished in numerous anthologies and textbooks.
In 2013, then-President B. Obama presented her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s top civil distinction.
In her name, Rutgers University established the Gloria Steinem Endowed Chair in Media, Culture and Feminist Studies in 2017.
Interesting facts about the journalist:
- G. Steinem’s mother was a writer. Before Steinem was born, her mother Ruth was a newspaper reporter and editor. She used a male pseudonym to get her work accepted for publication. The nomadic lifestyle that her husband chose for the family did not bring in any income for the family. As a result, she suffered from depression and developed a dependence on tranquilizers. Young Gloria became her guardian.
- In 1992, Steinem initiated the creation of the Take Our Daughters to Work Day. This event was aimed at teaching young girls that life is not limited to household chores. The first celebration was in April 1993.
- Gloria’s early activism was inspired by events in India. After graduating from Smith College in 1956, Steinem was awarded a Chester Bowles Fellowship. As a result, she lived in India for two years and participated in non-violent protests. During this time, the woman fully realized gender inequality and the harm of racial and caste systems. She was also greatly influenced by the work of activist Mohandas Gandhi, and considers his work to be her main source of inspiration. This experience opened her eyes to the problems created by such a stark gap between the richest and poorest members of society.
- Steinem has lived in the same building for 50 years. The journalist began renting an apartment between Park and Lexington Avenues on Manhattan’s Upper East Side in 1966. She has lived there ever since. The woman finally bought an apartment in the 1990s and bought another one soon after. In 2017, she purchased the third of five apartments in the building with plans to use it as a meeting place for traveling feminists. Having lived in the city for more than 50 years, the Midwestern native is as much a true New Yorker as those who were born there.
“I couldn’t live anywhere else,” Gloria said in a New York Times interview.
Steinem’s tireless struggle for justice made her an icon of the women’s liberation struggle. She remains an important figure in the history of the fight for human rights.
