Gloria Steinem

Gloria Steinem was born on March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio, to a Jewish father who sold antiques and a mother who had worked as a journalist before mental illness led to challenges in Steinem's childhood; after her parents' divorce, she cared for her mother while excelling academically and attending Smith College, graduating in 1956. She moved to New York City in 1960, initially working as a freelance journalist, including a notable undercover stint as a Playboy Bunny in 1963 that exposed exploitative working conditions, before shifting to political reporting for New York magazine in 1968, where her column 'The City Politic' covered progressive issues. Her feminist activism ignited in the late 1960s after attending a Redstockings meeting and speaking publicly about her own abortion experience at a 1969 speak-out; that year, her New York article 'After Black Power, Women's Liberation' gained national attention, positioning her as a movement leader. She co-founded Ms. magazine as a New York insert in 1971, which became independent in 1972, and helped launch the National Women's Political Caucus with Betty Friedan, Bella Abzug, and Shirley Chisholm to support women in politics. Steinem campaigned for the Equal Rights Amendment, testified before Congress, and marched in events like the 1970 Women's Strike for Equality. Throughout the 1970s and beyond, Steinem co-founded organizations including the Ms. Foundation for Women, Coalition of Labor Union Women, Voters for Choice, Women Against Pornography, Free to Be Foundation, and Women's Media Center, while authoring books like Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions (1983), Revolution from Within (1992), Moving Beyond Words (1994), My Life on the Road (2015), and The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off (2019). She expanded internationally, helping establish Equality Now, Donor Direct Action, and Direct Impact Africa. In later years, she hosted the 2016 documentary series Woman, received the 2013 Presidential Medal of Freedom, and continues lecturing and writing as a consulting editor for Ms.