Gloria Steinem

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

 - Gloria Steinem 

There have been many influential women in history that have helped to pave the way for Womens rights. One of these women is Gloria Steinem. Born in Toledo, Ohio in 1934 Steinem knew from a young age that she wanted to make a difference for women. Steinem's grandmother Pauline Perlmutter Steinem was actually the president of the Ohio Women Suffrage Association. Her mother was chronically depressed and had a mental breakdown when Gloria was just three years old. Gloria believed that it was the doctors treatment towards her mother that led to not being able to hold down a job. Her mothers mistreatment had a huge impact on Steinem becoming the powerful feminist she is today. 

Steinem attended Smith College where she graduated with a degree in government Summa Cum Lauda. As one can imagine, this was a very uncommon major for women to study at the time. After graduating college Steinem traveled to India to work for an Independent Research Service. While in India, she also participated in nonviolent protests against government policy. 

After working in India, Steinem moved to New York City to begin her career as a freelance writer and journalist. When she first began her career she actually wrote under a mans name because she knew that mens work was more likely to get published than females. This is where her fame to claim was born, after writing "I Was A Playboy Bunny". As one could predict, this article caught the attention of people all over America. In the article Steinem discusses going undercover as a waitress at Hugh Heffners Playboy Club. Her goal was to exploit the sexist, objectifying, and poor working conditions of the Playboy bunnies. Steinem found that her shoes physically grew half a size because of the high heels she was forced to wear, and she also lost 10 pounds within one week from the corset outfit. She also discovered how the bunnies all had to get a physical which included a Wassermann blood test and an internal physical. After publication of her article, Hugh Heffner actually got rid of the physicals as being a requirement to become a bunny.To this day, her article is considered one of the most detailed recall of the bunnies today. Though her article was greatly praised, Steinem had a difficult time finding work after publishing the article. Her same good looks and tight curves that had helped to get her into the Playboy Club were the same looks that were turning employers away from her. 

It was not until 1968 that Steinem would get another big break becoming one of the founding editors for New York magazine. Here, she began the column "The City Politic" where she addressed feminism after attending a meeting that was held by a women's movement group (The Redstockings) discussing abortion. 

In July of 1971 Steinem founded the National Womens Political Caucus alongside Betty Friedan, Shirley Chisholm, and Bella Abzug. The goal of this group was to assist in women who were seeking to gain elected and appointed positions of office in government. Just a year later, the first issue of Ms. magazine was published, also created by Steinem. The magazine was a platform to discuss current issues through a feminist perspective as well as celebrating the accomplishments of women throughout time. From the Ms. magazine came the Ms. Foundation For Women. Through the foundation Steinem raised millions of dollars to support underprivileged girls and women. The foundation created the first "Take Our Daughters To Work Day" to promote women in the workplace. In 1993 Steinem was inducted to the National Womens Hall of fame for all of her feminist efforts towards women. 

Steinem later created the Womens and Aids Foundation with the Ms. Foundation to support women living with AIDS/HIV. Years later keeping up with the generational changes, Steinem co-creates the Womens Media Center with Jane Fonda to help bring attention to women in media including film, magazines, social media platforms, television and online venues.  

Steinem was often criticized by other feminists because of her "glamorous looks". She did not fit the stereotype of being the tough tomboyish character that other feminists were perceived at the time. To me, that is something that I find very unique about her. Even after abundant criticism from the world and even other feminists who were supposed to be supporting her, she still continued to speak out for what she believed in. In 2013 Steinem was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Barack Obama, of which only 77 of 288 recipients have been women. Gloria Steinem embodies every aspect of femininity in a way that is often not thought about. She continues to fight for women's rights to this day, representing a true women warrior. 

Works Cited 

“Steinem, Gloria.” National Women's Hall of Fame, www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/gloria-steinem/.

Tunney, Kelly. “Obama Celebrates Women With Medal Of Freedom.” Bustle, Bustle, 25 Apr. 2018, www.bustle.com/articles/196645-how-many-women-have-won-the-presidential-medal-of-freedom-obama-celebrates-them-with-the-honor.

“Gloria Steinem.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 28 Apr. 2017, www.biography.com/people/gloria-steinem-9493491.

“Gloria Steinem Fast Facts.” CNN, Cable News Network, 20 Mar. 2018, www.cnn.com/2013/11/28/us/gloria-steinem-fast-facts/index.html.

“Ms. Magazine | Time Capsule: First Issues.” Ms. Magazine -- More than a Magazine a Movement, www.msmagazine.com/dec99/timecapsule7.asp.

Hillary Clinton

"We wouldn’t be here — black gowns at the Golden Globes, sexual assault victims invited to the State of the Union address, a nationwide, woman-led voter-registration drive, timed to the anniversary of the Women’s March — without Mrs. Clinton’s defeat."

Hillary Rodham Clinton is a woman who does not need an introduction, but most definitely deserves one. To name just a few lines on her resume, she has served as the First Lady of the United States, a U.S New York Senator, the 67th United States Secretary of State, and most recently; the first woman to receive the presidential nomination for a major political party. 

Since the start of her campaign, Hillary has been trying to "break the glass ceiling". A catchphrase that became synonymous with her campaign. Hillary Clinton has fought for the rights of women, children and yes, men too, since the beginning of her political career. She has played a part in Roe V. Wade, has been a pioneer for children's' education and advocacy, and has tirelessly spoken out against the sexism we as a country face. 

During her time as the First Lady of Arkansas, she was the first female board member of Wal-Mart from 1986 to 1992. She was a leader on the American Bar Association's Commission on Women in the Profession from 1987 to 1991.  In 1994, she played a pivotal role in the Violence Against Women Act. That provides financial and technical assistance to states to help them develop programs that stop domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. In 1995, she also helped create the Department of Justice's Office on violence against women. These are no small defeats for a woman you can find copious anti-feminism articles on. 

In more recent times, Hillary has created a dialogue on the sexism our country faces. She opened this conversation when she lost the 2016 presidential election. She has been continuously been told to " shut up and go home " and had not been taken seriously as a political force even when she won the Democratic nomination. After losing the 2016 election, she was encouraged to stay out of the spotlight, stop talking about what happened (a question many of us still have), but she chose not to. Hillary chose to speak out and still fight for the same equality she has been fighting for her entire life.

Although she lost the election, she still recognizes her monumental achievement as the first woman candidate of a major political party. She has been quoted saying “Other women will run for President,” Clinton writes, “and they will be women, and they will have women’s voices. Maybe that will be less unusual by then. Maybe my campaign will have helped make it that way, and other women will have an easier time. I hope so.” You have to wonder how someone so qualified and an abundance of political experience lost to a reality TV star who has been accused of sexual assault and harassing women. Hillary's loss sparked a conversation to call out sexism and to not stand for it any longer. She inspired thousands of woman and men to create a peaceful protest around the country 

You have to wonder what the narrative of our country would be like if Hillary won. Would we still be having these conversations about sexism and "me too"? Would people finally accept a woman as a serious political candidate and not a product of her husband's accomplishments? Yes, Hillary losing the election was devastating, but there is a silver lining. If Hillary had not lost the 2016 presidential election, we would not be angry. We would not know how much power we as a society have to fight back. We would not truly understand how outdated our ideals as a country are. We would not see how much hate we still have in our country towards anyone who is not a white man. Hillary Rodham  Clinton is a woman warrior. She has proven that to be a fact during her time on top of the political food chain and also on her darkest days. 

Works Cited

Amadeo, K. (n.d.). What Has Hillary Done? 14 Major Accomplishments. Retrieved from https://www.thebalance.com/hillary-clinton-s-accomplishments-4101811


Chozick, Amy. “Hillary Clinton Ignited a Feminist Movement. By Losing.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Jan. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/01/13/sunday-review/hillary-Clinton-feminist-movement.html.

North, Anna. “Hillary Clinton's What Happened and Its Place in Feminist History, Explained.” Vox, Vox, 13 Sept. 2017, www.vox.com/identities/2017/9/13/16288034/hillary-clinton-what-happened-feminism.

Angelina Grimké Weld

"If a law commands me to sin I will break it; if it calls me to suffer, I will let it take its course unresistingly."
www.nps.gov/wori/learn/historyculture/grimke-sisters.htm.

Angelina Grimké Weld was born in 1805 and was the youngest of fourteen children.  She grew up on a southern plantation in South Carolina. Her father John Facherraud Grimké was a slave owner his whole life and did not believe that his daughters needed an education. Her mother, Mary Smith, also came from an elite family from Charleston society. According to the National Parks service, her sister Sarah, at the age of 12, convinced their parents to let her be the Godmother of Angelina. Angelina's sister, Sarah, converted from Episcopal the religion to Quakerism in 1821, and because of their close relationship, Angelina followed in her sister's footsteps. She believed that God was calling her to advocate for the abolition of slavery and to encourage people to believe in equal rights.  The Quakers were against slavery and their conversion made them outcasts in the South. Angelina and her sister Sarah fought against the injustices of racism, slavery, and sexism. 

Not many women from the South supported antislavery. It was not until Angelina and Sarah moved to Philadelphia that they encountered abolitionists and joined the Female Anti-Slavery Society. This platform led Angelina to lecture about their first-hand experiences of growing up in a slave-owning household. During this time she sent a letter to William Lloyd Garrison, an abolitionist publisher, who posted her letter in his newspaper The Liberator. This is what jumpstarted her career as an abolitionist writer and speaker. Many people thought her writings and speaking out about slavery was unladylike. These comments led her to become interested in women's rights debates. At the time, women had their own societies because it was inappropriate for women to talk or teach in front of a crowd of men. Angelina became the first women to address the Massachusetts state Legislature in February 1828, bringing a petition signed by 20,000 women seeking to end slavery. The National Women's Hall of Fame states that in 1836, Angelina was the first woman to address a legislative body on women's rights and abolition. Her speech made the crowd so angry that they later burned the building to the ground. 

Angeline involvement in abolition and her voice for women helped create a path for others to follow. She stood up for the rights of women to have an education, for employment, to speak out in public and other rights that men had. The video by Eric Foner says "she helped launch the public demand for equality in America".

Through the Anti-Slavery Society, Angelina met her husband, Thomas Weld, who was a leading figure for Garrison's abolitionist group. They then married in 1838. As they got older they both retired from speaking due to health reasons. Angelina's life experiences gave her the knowledge to speak out about the issue of slavery and women's struggles. Her lectures and writings impacted the women's rights by connecting abolitionist to women's suffrage and equality.

Work Cited 

“Grimke Sisters.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 26 Feb. 2015, www.nps.gov/wori/learn/historyculture/grimke-sisters.htm. 

Debra Michals. “Angelina Grimké Weld.” National Women's History Museum, 2015, www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/angelina-grimke-weld.

        

“Angelina Grimke Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/authors/angelina_grimke.     

     

“Weld, Angelina Grimké.” National Women's Hall of Fame, www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/angelina-grimk-weld/.                         

Lady Gaga

Born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta known as Lady Gaga is a singer, song writer, actress, and activist. Gaga is known for her extravagant visual presentations and top hits. As her career became successful Lady Gaga spread her horizons and used her fan base and popularity to help with different foundations as well as creating some of her own.  

From the early age of four Gaga started playing the piano and discovered her passion for music. Her parents enrolled her in Creative Arts Camp. She continued her music path throughout high school doing open mics and later on enrolling into NYU's  Tisch School of the Arts. Gaga later dropped out to pursue her career as an singer and song writer. She later signed with Streamline Records and KonLive. She released her debut album a year later with top hits Poker Face and Just Dance.

Lady Gaga has used her platform as an artist to speak out on mental illness, sexual violence, and the LGBT community. Her foundation Born This Way was initiated in 2012 which focuses on empowering youth and bringing awareness of mental illness. Gaga speakings about her own experiences with sexual violence and her struggle with PTSD. She believes "you can't heal if you don't feel" which is why on her website she encourages people to speak out on their experiences and remove the stigma from mental illness.

As a bisexual women she also has made a impact with the LGBT community. She credits her gay fan base with her early success. Gaga spoke out in 2010 on her opposition of "don't ask, don't tell" at a rally in Portland. Her fight for equity in the LGBT community didn't stop there, she filmed a video to ask voters in Maine, Minnesota, Maryland, and Washington to vote for marriage equality.

Lady Gaga uses her platform to be a women warrior who fights for others' rights. She strives for equality in the LGBT community and ending stigma of mental illness and sexual violence. Many artist don't use their fame to their advantage like she has. Lady Gaga is a big advocate for human rights.

"Music is one of the most powerful things the world has to offer. No matter what race or religion or nationality or sexual orientation or gender that you are, it has the power to unite us." - Lady Gaga

                                                                           Sources

Lady Gaga. Wikipedia 8 Sept, 2018. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Gaga . Accessed 9 Sept, 2018

“Home.” Born This Way Foundation, bornthisway.foundation/. Accessed 9 Sept, 2018 

TheAdvocateMag. “12 Reasons Lady Gaga Deserves Applause.” ADVOCATE, Advocate.com, 20 Aug. 2013, www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/music/2013/08/20/12-reasons-lady-gaga-deserves-applause?pg=2#article-content. Accessed 9 Sept, 2018

Alison Bechdel- A Dyke to Watch Out For 

Pennsylvania native, Alison Bechdel, is certainly a dyke to watch out for. From living a childhood in the closet ( as you can read about in Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic) to becoming an important figure within the LGBT community, Bechdel has contributed time and time again to the feminist movement.

The incredibly talented cartoonist and graphic memoirist came into the light of activism in perhaps a more subtle manner than many. Bechdel's comic, Dykes to Watch Out For, ran from 1983 through 2008 and was one of the first representations of lesbians in popular culture.

Many of the themes found in Bechdel's comic strips involved current political and cultural issues occurring at the time the strip was published. To have representation of the LGBT community in what is now considered to be a cult classic comic strip, is tremendous in terms of advancement for gender rights. Bechdel was able to touch on important social issues while simultaneously displaying to her readers that members of the LGBT community experience the same life challenges as heterosexual people. 

Works Cited 

Bechdel, Alison. “Ordinary People .” Dykes to Watch Out For , 2006, dykestowatchoutfor.com/moving-right-along.

Bechdel, Alison. “Pride and Prejudice.” Dykes to Watch Out For , 2007, dykestowatchoutfor.com/dtwof-archive-episode-11.

Salahub, Jill. “Women's History Month: Alison Bechdel.” Colorado State University English, 2017, english.colostate.edu/news/womens-history-month-alison-bechdel/.


Image(s): 

https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/alison-bechdel?family=editorial&mediatype=photography&page=4&phrase=alison%20bechdel&sort=mostpopular 

Wagatwe Wanjuki:
College Campus Sexual Assault Activist

Wagatwe Wanjuki
Image Credit: MSNBC

She is: An activist. A feminist. Speaker. Writer. Digital Strategist. Anti-violence advocate. Survivor.
She is Wagatwe Wanjuki.

Being that her first name - which comes from Kenya - means "leader", it is only fitting that she fulfilled her calling and became one.

Wagatwe Wanjuki was once, like many others, just a normal college student. However, that all changed when she took the courageous step to come forward about the sexual assault she faced at Tuft's University in 2009. Rather than be met with understanding and concern for her well-being, she was expelled from the university. Her desire to speak up about the school's inaction led her to a life in debt and without a college degree in the program she was studying at the time - International Relations. Thus led to her creation of the viral Twitter hashtag, #JustSaySorry. The hashtag, composed of only three words, held a powerful message for both Wanjuki herself and thousands of other sexual assault survivors.

Wagatwe Wanjuki's original #JustSaySorry tweet.
Image Credit: Twitter

Created by Wanjuki, #JustSaySorry is the inaugural campaign of her co-founded, non-profit, anti-rape organization called Survivors Eradicating Rape Culture. The group's other co-founder is Kamilah Willingham. On the organization's website, its mission statement reads that its purpose "is to center the experiences and needs of the most marginalized survivors to change cultural norms and stop gender-based violence before it happens". The organization's works include #JustSaySorry and #SurvivorPrivilege. The second hashtag, also created by Wanjuki, was born from raw frustration after George Will's column in the Washington Post promoted offensive thoughts and ideas about sexual assault on college campuses.

Wagatwe Wanjuki, a survivor-turned-activist, is a powerful example of a modern-day "Warrior Woman". Not only has she courageously stepped up to fight her own personal battles, but she also continues to share her story with the world and fight for those whose voices were stifled and whose stories were buried. Unfortunately, cases of sexual assault on college campuses have become a normality. Individuals continue to expect it to happen, rather than stop it from happening in the first place. Rape culture is real and women, men, and children are all exposed to it on a daily basis. Wanjuki is fighting both to end rape culture and for the voices of womankind.

Wanjuki has been published in outlets including
Feministing, Buzzfeed, Cosmopolitan.com, The New York Times, and many more. She has also given a TEDx talk where she speaks about her own personal experiences with college campus sexual violence and her efforts to end such violence.

Wagatwe Wanjuki's message to the world.
Image Credit: The Establishment, Medium

"Trust and believe survivors. Supporting us is a radical act against rape culture."

- Wagatwe Wanjuki

Works Cited:

TEDxTalks. “The (Literal) Cost of Not Believing Survivors | Wagatwe Wanjuki | TEDxMiddlebury.” YouTube, YouTube, 16 Feb. 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6Gy2WsBJk4.

Todd, Bridget. “How Wagatwe Wanjuki Uses Social Media to Make College Safer.” MSNBC, NBC Universal News Group, 21 Mar. 2015, 4:37 PM, www.msnbc.com/msnbc/how-wagatwe-wanjuki-making-college-safer.

Wallace, Aubrey. “Wagatwe Wanjuki: Campus Sexual Assault Activist.” Ravishly | Media Company, 8 Aug. 2014, 4:34 AM, www.ravishly.com/ladies-we-love/wagatwe-wanjuki-campus-sexual-assault-activist.

Wanjuki, Wagatwe. “Dear Tufts Administrators Who Expelled Me After My Sexual Assaults.” Medium, The Establishment, 21 Apr. 2016, medium.com/the-establishment/dear-tufts-administrators-who-expelled-me-after-my-sexual-assaults-25d109c464f6.

Wanjuki, Wagatwe. “Home.” Wagatwe Wanjuki, wagatwe.com/.

Wanjuki, Wagatwe, and Kamilah Willingham. Survivors Eradicating Rape Culture, eradicaterape.org/.

Margaret Sanger: The Fight for Birth Control

Margaret Sanger 

The medical field has always been seen as more of a male profession up until recent years.  Even more so, women have been seen in the role of just being a nurse, who can do very little except assist the male doctors.  One of the biggest fights that women have had in the medical field pertain to the information and services provided about contraceptives and birth control.  Margaret Sanger, the key woman when discussing birth control, helped make this idea about contraceptives not just a discussion but a reality.  She started this movement to have information and services more readily available for women who are in need.  In a time when so many women were fighting just to have the right to vote many people forget that the battle for birth control was also heating up in a world where men had the final say.

 Sanger was born in 1879 when the Comstock Act was high in power across America.  The Comstock laws stated that there will be no circulation or trade of obscene literature and articles of immoral nature.  This served as the starting point for Sangers' fight for contraceptive rights around the world.  She was a nurse that would help women who had back-alley abortions done or tried to self-terminate themselves.  While she was providing women in need with medical attention she started to realize that assisting them would only go so far.  Sanger started writing a column called, "What Every Girl Should Know."  From writing this column, a warrant was sent out for Sangers arrest for violating the Comstock laws.  Instead of facing up to five years in jail, Sanger fled to England, where she started educating the women of England on contraceptives and eventually smuggled over diaphragms .  Sanger was arrested in 1916 for opening the first birth control clinic, and as The American Experience article mentioned this arrest would not deter further advances.  From her arrest there was an advance made towards providing birth control to women.  The court had decided that Sangers charges would still remain the same, but they would make an exception in the existing law and allow doctors to provide women with birth control for medical reasons only.

Sanger continued her fight against federal and state laws prohibiting birth control.  She also started thinking of a 'magic pill', which as we all can assume has now turned into the standard form of birth control that most women use.  Sanger started many different organizations relating to reproductive and women's health.  She started the American Birth Control League in 1921 and a few years later started the National Committee on Federal Legislation for Birth Control.  From her smaller organizations came the one that we all know of today which is Planned Parenthood.  Planned Parenthood is now one of the most known organizations to provide birth control and information about womans health.  They are also known for providing abortions and other services for women who are in need of options other than motherhood.  When discussing abortion Sanger was very amendment that this should be an option for all women because of personal reasons relating to her own mother.  Her mother died from tuberculosis and Sanger blames the 11 pregnancies and seven miscarriages for her young death.  A quote from Sanger presented in an article on Biography states, "every child should be a wanted child."  This pushed her desire to provide females with ample information and birth control resources.

Add caption

Through Sanger's work to advocate for birth control we can see these issues start to rise up again in our modern age.  Just recently the Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh referred to birth control, during his confirmation hearing, as abortion-inducing drugs.  This goes against everything that Margaret Sanger was striving for in the 20th century.  Personally, I feel as though Margaret Sanger should be seen as a great female warrior because of all the work that she did for women specifically.  Without birth control our world would be completely different and it takes away the right we have to control our own bodies.  By a Supreme Court nominee stating that the pill is some how linked to abortion is entirely ignorant.  I believe that Sangers work for health equality and advocacy for birth control rights was a large part of why we have the rights that we have today.  I think that she is inspiring to hear about and realize everything that she went through to change laws and overall change womans history.

"No woman can call herself free who does not own and control her body. No woman can call herself free until she can choose consciously whether she will or will not be a mother." -Margaret Sanger

Sources

Biography.com Editors. “Margaret Sanger.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 28 Apr. 2017.

Sanger, Margaret. What Every Girl Should Know. 1916, archive.lib.msu.edu/DMC/AmRad/whateverygirl1920.pdf.

PBS. “Margaret Sanger (1879-1966).” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/pill-margaret-sanger-1879-1966/.

Pictures

“Margaret Sanger.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 8 Sept. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Sanger.

“Margaret Sanger (1879-1966).” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/pill-margaret-sanger-1879-1966/.