Famous Gloria Steinem Quotes About Feminism

You're probably asking yourself right now, who's Gloria Steinem? I'm about to unravel nearly everything, and anything, you need to know about this phenomenal woman. As for someone who's a writer, lecturer, political activist, and feminist organizer, you can already tell that she's done a lot so far in her life. She travels across the globe to hold lectures and is a spokeswoman on the topics of gender equality, feminism, and values of women. She's there to inform everyone about gender roles, inequality, child abuse, violence, and other issues that we face daily in life. Gloria already sounds like an amazing woman, right? Wait, but there's more to her.

In 1972, she co-founded Ms. Magazine and was one of the editors for 15 years. Gloria still continues to be a consulting editor for Ms., and was even part of the magazine's move to be published by the Feminist Majority Foundation. In 1968, she was one of others who found New York magazine, and wrote as a political columnist. Gloria was a freelance writer, she was published in Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, and women's magazines across other countries. To add the cherry on top, Gloria produced a documentary on child abuse for HBO called Gloria: In Her Own Words, and was subject profiles on Lifetime and Showtime.

Gloria has written multiple books in her life that all range from feminism, equality, and other world issues that should be heard. Her books are, "My Life on the Road," "Revolution from Within: A Book of Self-Esteem," "Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions," "Moving Beyond Words," and "Marilyn: Norma Jean." Her writing has also appeared in multiple sections in textbooks and anthologies -- also becoming an editor for Houghton Mifflin's "The Reader's Companion to U.S. Women's History."

You can check out more on Gloria on her official website. But for now, let's look through some of the famous Gloria Steinem quotes that are praised and taken to consideration by thousands of woman and individuals across the planet.

Gender Equality

"A gender-equal society would be one where the word 'gender' does not exist: where everyone can be themselves."

"The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn."

"All those chemicals that create empathy only work when you are in a room together."

Feminism

"Any woman who chooses to behave like a full human being should be warned that the armies of the status quo will treat her as something of a dirty joke. That's their natural and first weapon. She will need her sisterhood."

"Feminism has never been about getting a job for one woman. It's about making life more fair for women everywhere. It's not about a piece of the existing pie; there are too many of us for that. It's about baking a new pie."

"A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle."

"A liberated woman is one who has sex before marriage and a job after."

"Most women are one man away from welfare."

"Childbirth is more admirable than conquest, more amazing than self-defense, and as courageous as either one."

"Unless we include a job as part of every citizen's right to autonomy and personal fulfillment, women will continue to be vulnerable to someone else's idea of what need is."

"I think if women are visible in the media, truly visible, in an empowered role, it empowers us to be more visible in any area of our lives."

"I hate to generalize, but in general, both men and women suffer from ageism. Men much less because men gain power as they get older. Women lose power as they get older. Men are seen as gaining experience and being distinguished. Sons look forward to replacing their fathers."

"If women are supposed to be less rational and more emotional at the beginning of our menstrual cycle when the female hormone is at its lowest level, then why isn't it logical to say that, in those few days, women behave the most like the way men behave all month long?"

"Rich cultures, patriarchal cultures, value thin women, like ours; poor ones value fat women. But all patriarchal cultures value weak women. So for women to become physically strong is very profound."

"Female inferiority is internalised by us. Women need a lot more confidence."

Value of Women

"Being misunderstood by people whose opinions you value is absolutely the most painful."

"Obviously there is no such thing as race, and in many ways, sex is a continuum, not a binary. So it doesn't make sense to label people in that way."

"The Miss America Pageant reinforces a belief that women are merely how they look and how they please."

"If you ask men about their body image, they will tell you they look better than they do. And if you ask a woman, she'll tell you she looks worse."

"Some of us are becoming the men we wanted to marry."

"The problem for all women is we're identified by how we look instead of by our heads and our hearts."

"We can tell our values by looking at our checkbook stubs."