Gloria Steinem

Gloria Steinem is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who has achieved recognition and success for her work on human rights. Throughout her life, Steinem has advocated for the rights of women, especially those in the most marginalized communities, and has become a leading voice of the second-wave feminist movement.

Steinem was born in 1934 in Toledo, Ohio and raised in a family of Jewish and German ancestry. As a young girl, Gloria was shaped by the strong opinions of her father, who valued independent thinking and encouraged her to develop her own interests and opinions outside of his own. It was this early encouragement that taught Steinem to think outside the box and stay true to her values regardless of the criticism she faced.

As a young adult, Steinem attended Smith College. There she explored topics in philosophy, religion, and economics, and met life-long feminist allies Belle Wells and Dorothy Pitman Hughes. After college, the young women moved to Chicago and Steinem began working for the renowned activist Saul Alinsky. During her years in Chicago, Steinem wrote for several different publications, learning by doing.

In the early 1960s, Steinem wrote for the magazine Show, a publication that focused on entertainment, fashion, and lifestyle but also allowed her to cover important social issues. It is during this time that Steinem became increasingly aware of the rights of women, a place in which her awareness would continue to grow.

In 1971, Steinem and many of her allies founded Ms. Magazine, a magazine that celebrated the accomplishments and rights of women. The magazine provided a platform to shed light on some of Steinem's most important battles, like racial justice, the right to legal and safe abortions, LGBTQ rights, and equal pay.

After the success of Ms., and a semi-retirement from work in the 1990s, Steinem spent much of her time on the speaking circuit advocating for women's rights and social justice. With her popular book My Life on the Road in 2015, Steinem showcased real-life stories of how she got to become a leader and how others can, too. To this day, Steinem remains committed to her ideals, fighting for women's rights and social justice.

Over the years, Gloria Steinem has been presented with numerous awards for her work, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Woman of Vision Award. Despite her critical acclaim and her recognition as the face of second-wave feminism, Steinem's story is far greater than a number of awards. Her work remains a testament to the power of understanding and embracing social and political issues that challenge cultural, political, and economic norms. Today, she is widely embraced, respected, and revered as a woman who is not easily forgotten.