03 / 10
Gloria Steinem dies at 92
Steinem helped define US second-wave feminism through journalism, organising and Ms. magazine.
What happened
Gloria Steinem, the US journalist, author and activist who became a leading figure in the women’s movement, died Wednesday at her New York City home. Her foundation announced the death. She co-founded Ms. magazine and spent decades campaigning for equality, reproductive rights and other feminist causes.
Numbers
- 92Age at her death — Died Wednesday in New York
- 1963Year of Playboy investigation — Undercover reporting brought attention
- 1973Roe v Wade decision — She supported abortion rights
Questions
- What made Ms. magazine different?
- It was among the first publications centred on women’s issues beyond housekeeping and beauty, and Steinem helped found it.
- How did journalism shape her activism?
- Her undercover reporting on conditions in Playboy clubs brought her attention as a journalist before she became an organiser and advocate.
- Which causes did she support?
- She campaigned for reproductive rights, equal pay, same-sex marriage, opposition to the death penalty, and ending female genital mutilation.
- What national honour did she receive?
- President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work in the women’s liberation movement.
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The catch
The accounts confirm her death at home but provide no cause of death.