An 81-year-old woman seems to understand the realm of gender more than most of the people in the world. She is a leading feminist in the U.S., a place that needs to become safer for women. Not only does the U.S. need to be safer, but the entirety of the world does.
Gloria Steinem has not held back from doing what she wants in her lifetime. For many years, she has been an iconic feminist for women of all ages to look up to. In fact, since the 1960s, Steinem has been an advocate for women’s rights in the feminist movement.
She stated in a recent NPR interview that two of the most important issues women face today are violence against women and the fight for reproductive rights. She also went on to say that the most dangerous place for a woman is in her own home.
It is hard to believe that a woman’s home is not a place desirable for safety since it is often said that people should stay inside their homes to be safe. Domestic violence is something talked about occasionally, but is everyone always listening?
“The most important issues are those to the women who are listening,” said Steinem. This elaborates on the fact that if women are paying attention to the advocates they need, the women will be heard.
As someone who is part of a group of people being persecuted, it is easy for me to understand and empathize with Steinem’s views. Ultimately, we share the same values for wanting all people to be equal.
There is nothing that limits someone who is actively fighting for something progressive, such as human rights.
With Steinem being 81 and I 18, there is an immense age range of activists and people who can change in between. If a person wants to change, they can, regardless of age.
With that being said, there is usually a reason for change. Being a gay man prompted me to want to fight for my rights, and it opened my eyes to other possibilities around me. This one aspect of myself made it easier for me to see the need for equality.
I think a similar thing happened for Steinem. Being a women, she wanted to fight for her own rights and realized along the way that everyone deserves their innate rights. Even at her age, she is still fighting for them.
Steinem even went so far as to say that at the age of 60, she felt as if she was again free from gender roles. She no longer felt the need to be girly or do things categorized for girls. This freedom gave her the ability to do what she wanted. She no longer thought of her gender as a restrictive force.
“For Steinem, doing what she wants means continuing to speak out about the political, social and economic barriers to women’s rights,” said NPR. She seems to be keen on keeping her feminist legacy alive well beyond her time.
