Gloria Steinem, the writer, journalist, and pioneering leader of the women’s liberation movement in the United States, died peacefully at her home in New York City on Wednesday at the age of 92, surrounded by those she loved. Her foundation confirmed the news on Instagram, saying she “continued working for equality until the very end.”
Steinem co-founded Ms. magazine in 1972, one of the first publications to address women’s issues beyond housekeeping and beauty. She also co-founded the Women’s Action Alliance, dedicated to fighting sexism, and spent decades as one of the most visible and influential voices for women’s reproductive rights, equal pay, same-sex marriage, and the abolition of female genital mutilation. She spoke against the death penalty and used every platform available to her to advance the cause of equality for women.
Steinem’s Journey
Born in Toledo, Ohio on March 25, 1934, Steinem had a difficult childhood and did not attend school full-time until the age of 12. After university, she spent two years in India on a research scholarship, helping village women organise nonviolent protests. An experience that shaped her lifelong commitment to grassroots activism.
She moved to New York in the early 1960s to work as a freelance writer. Her breakthrough came through an exposé of working conditions for Playboy Bunnies. She became a columnist for New York Magazine before founding Ms.
Undeniably, her personal life reflected her convictions. She famously rejected marriage as an institution for most of her life, eventually marrying David Bale in 2000. He died three years later. She herself had obtained an illegal abortion in London at 22, and celebrated the landmark Roe v Wade ruling in 1973 before living to witness its reversal nearly five decades later.
In 2013, President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour in the United States.
Tributes Pour In
The tributes that followed her death spoke to the depth of her influence. Hillary Clinton called her “one of the architects of the entire structure of women’s equality.” Meghan Markle, who described Steinem as a friend and mentor, said she “privately, was even better than you would imagine.” Further sharing memories of Steinem spending Thanksgiving with her family, counselling her during difficult times, and loving her children. Markle wears a bracelet Steinem gave her that reads: “We are linked, not ranked.”
Her foundation said her greatest gift was the ability to make others feel seen and heard.
“Her words, actions and example gave people permission to be their truest selves.”
A forthcoming book, An Unexpected Life, will be among the last things she leaves the world. Her Talking Circles, a tradition of welcoming guests into her home for conversation and community, will continue without her.
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