One of the main voices of the women’s liberation movement in the United States, activist and journalist Gloria Steinem passed away on June 24, 2024, at the age of 92. The information was confirmed by the writer’s foundation, which released the news.
The organization reported in an Instagram post that Steinem “departed peacefully” at her New York City residence surrounded by loved ones.
Gloria Steinem, who also worked as a writer and magazine editor, co-founded the Women’s Action Alliance, a group dedicated to fighting sexism that was established more than half a century ago.
She began her career as a journalist in New York in the 1970s and later collaborated in the creation of Ms. magazine. This was one of the first publications to address feminine themes that went beyond household chores and beauty.
During the 1970s, Steinem emerged as a central voice in campaigning for women’s reproductive rights, among other causes.
In her youth, at the age of 22, she herself had to resort to an illegal abortion in London. Decades later, it celebrated the US Supreme Court’s 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade. Wade, who guaranteed the constitutional right to abortion. Almost half a century later, she witnessed the reversal of this important decision, which underscores the persistence and complexity of the battles for women’s rights across generations.
Furthermore, Steinem openly defended the legalization of same-sex marriage and equal rights and pay for women. She has also spoken out against the death penalty and female genital mutilation.
Her foundation stated that “she continued working for equality until the end”.
Born on March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio, Gloria Steinem had a challenging childhood and only attended school full time from the age of 12.
After completing university in the late 1950s, she traveled to India on a research scholarship, where she spent two years in a variety of roles. During this period, she helped women in villages organize non-violent protests against government policies, which sparked her interest in grassroots activism.
She then moved to New York in the early 1960s to begin her journey as a freelance writer. His big break came with an investigative report on the working conditions of the “Playboy Bunnies.”
He eventually became a columnist for New York Magazine, before founding Ms. magazine in 1972.
The foundation reinforced that “she continued working for equality until the end.”
The organization described that “Gloria’s greatest gift was her ability to listen to others, to make people feel seen and heard. Her words, actions and example gave people permission to be their true selves. Gloria lived true to her independent spirit, always with curiosity and a great sense of humor.”
The foundation also reported that Steinem spent his final years dedicating himself to the community and writing, receiving guests at his home for “Rodas de Conversa”, a tradition that the institution says will continue.
The commitment to transforming her home into a center for social justice movements, along with the book “An Unexpected Life”, which will be released posthumously, are “among the many gifts Gloria left for the world, with the hope that they will have lasting effects for future generations”, concluded the foundation.
