J 2373: Mourning the death of Gloria Steinem, journalist, social activist, and Feminist icon

 Senate Resolution No. 2373 BY: Senator WEBB MOURNING the death of Gloria Steinem, journalist, social activist, and Feminist icon WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to citizens of the State of New York whose lifework and civic endeavors served to enhance the quality of life in their communities and the great State of New York; and WHEREAS, Gloria Steinem died on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, in her home in New York City, New York at the age of 92; and WHEREAS, Born in Toledo, Ohio, on March 25, 1934, Gloria Steinem's mother, Ruth, suffered from mental health issues and her parents eventually split up when she was 10, leaving her largely to care for her mother for the next seven years; and WHEREAS, After she finished high school, Gloria Steinem moved to the Washington D.C. area to live with her older sister and then attended Smith College in Massachusetts where, after graduation, she became a freelance writer, profiling people from Paul Newman to Pat Nixon; and WHEREAS, Gloria Steinem's zest for social journalism and activism led her to delve into the inequities of American society when, in 1963, she went undercover in New York's Playboy Club for her subsequent article "I Was a Playboy Bunny" which garnered national attention to the indignities of those working as hostesses while offering sympathetic portraits of the women; and WHEREAS, Gloria Steinem was a supporter of the 1968 presidential bid of South Dakota Sen. George McGovern, an early foe of the Vietnam War and whom Steinem found to be an "unpretentious, honest man"; and WHEREAS, In 1971, Gloria Steinem co-founded the National Women's Political Caucus, a group that brought together a powerhouse collection of leaders including New York Representatives Bella Abzug and Shirley Chisholm, "Feminine Mystique" author Betty Friedan and longtime activists Fannie Lou Hamer, Myrlie Evers, LaDonna Harris and Dorothy Height; and WHEREAS, Also in 1971, Gloria Steinem co-founded Ms. Magazine which became wildly popular and gave a national voice to Women's Rights movements and Feminism as a whole; and WHEREAS, The magazine made history by publishing a list of 53 prominent women who had undergone abortions, "Our purpose is not to alienate or to ask for sympathy, but to repeal archaic and inhumane laws," the accompanying text stated; months later, abortion was legalized nationally in the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade ruling; and WHEREAS, Throughout the decades of her work, Gloria Steinem championed social causes like the Equal Rights Amendment, even testifying to the Senate in 1970, in support of ratifying the amendment; and WHEREAS, As well as being a peace activist, Gloria Steinem continually worked on economic issues such as unequal pay for women, and sought to bridge racial divides, often speaking on tour with Black activists such as Dorothy Pitman Hughes and Florynce Kennedy; and WHEREAS, Over the years, Gloria Steinem helped found a number of organizations, including the Women's Action Alliance, Voters for Choice (later the Planned Parenthood Action Fund), the Women's Media Center and the Ms. Foundation for Women; through the latter, Steinem played a role in the birth of Take Our Daughters to Work Day, which was conceived as a New York City event to increase the self-esteem of girls; and WHEREAS, Gloria Steinem's influence and work have thrust her into the national zeitgeist many times over her decades of activism and she has been referenced and portrayed in a number of productions; Kirstie Alley starred as her in 1985, in "A Bunny's Tale," a TV movie based on Steinem's Playboy Club experience and in 2020, there was "The Glorias," a movie in which she was played by different actresses in different stages of her life, and "Mrs. America," which dramatized the battle over the Equal Rights Amendment where Rose Byrne portrayed her, with Cate Blanchett as Schlafly and Margo Martindale as Abzug; and WHEREAS, HBO produced a 2011 documentary about Gloria Steinem titled "Gloria: In Her Own Words," and she was also prominently featured in "Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print," a 2025 HBO documentary; and WHEREAS, In the near century of her life, Gloria Steinem penned a multitude of articles and books, including her 1983 book, "Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions," dedicated to challenging the social constructs of the world she was born into; and WHEREAS, Citing the influence she had on his social perspective, President Barack Obama awarded Gloria Steinem the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013; and WHEREAS, Armed with a humanistic spirit and imbued with a sense of compassion, Gloria Steinem leaves behind a legacy and a body of work which will long endure the passage of time and will continue to influence and inspire future generations to question and challenge inequity; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to mourn the death of Gloria Steinem, social journalist, activist, and Feminist icon; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to the family of Gloria Steinem.