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Ryan Nagle, Ilya Sobolevskiy, Max Iniguez Gardner, Rogers Rhet-108 Seciton A 11 October 2004
Gloria Steinem: Gloria Steinem is best-known for her work as a feminist during the 1970s. Her career started in 1969 after attending an abortion rally (Sisterhood 365). In 1971, she co-founded the National Women‟s Political Caucus, most widely known as the NWPC as well as initiated a unique magazine publication called Ms. Magazine. The founding of her magazine was arguably her most important contribution to the liberal feminist movement. By the mid 70s Ms. Magazine had a subscriber base of half a million people. As a result of these widespread achievements, Steinem became a figurehead of the women‟s rights movement during the early 1970s. Not only did she contribute within the feminist movement, but she also reached out to the public through her various lectures and appearances and talk show guest (Encyclopedia of Feminism 312). A very significant part of her contribution to the women‟s movement was her cofoundation of the National Women‟s Political Caucus. The NWPC was an organization that promoted several goals crucial to the feminist movement. The institution was very liberal and in a sense, idealistic in its list of goals. Formally stated objectives of the foundation included the elimination of violence on all levels of human interaction, from local events to international conflicts. The sanctity and respect for human life constituted the feminists‟ political and ideological platform. Another issue that the NWPC tackled was the question of reproductive and sexual laws concerning women. It was the stance of the NWPC and the feminist movement that
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all legal restrictions concerning a woman‟s reproductive or sexual rights and/or activities be eliminated. Were this goal to be achieved, said the feminists, it would be a significant step in promoting true equality of men and women in all aspects of American society. Another related goal was the wish of women to be included on the same footing as men when it comes to every level of the decision-making process regarding social, political, and economic issues. Once again, the inclusion of women in the process is to be complete on all levels of society, from the smallest local issue to the most significant international topic. Among its other goals, the National Women‟s Political Caucus worked to reduce, and if possible, eliminate hunger and poverty that is so prevalent in society. Associated with this humanitarian goal is the NWPC‟s drive to provide affordable housing and healthcare to all individuals, male or female. In order to make an impact on society and culture, the NWPC assembled a twenty-one member committee to coordinate and execute a full-scale convention by 1972. Also, the National Women‟s Political Caucus supported political candidates, male and female, that the organization felt articulated the organization‟s belief in the elimination of “racism, sexism, violence, and poverty” (Facts on File 531). Aside from giving momentum to the National Women‟s Political Caucus, Steinem‟s other major accomplishment was the creation of Ms Magazine (Sisterhood 365). Ms. Magazine was unique in several ways. One was that it was the first publication ever that was not in the hands of distant stockholders, but owned and operated by the magazine staff. (Encyclopedia of Feminism 409) Steinem herself commented on the magazine‟s dazzling success, “There was a need for a magazine that would reflect changes in the lifestyle of American women.” (A Personal Report from “Ms.” 407) and, “The Magazine catered to modern women‟s tastes and preferences in the right way” (A Personal Report from “Ms.” 408). The
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magazine was also unique because it spoke to the overly silent, and in the feminist‟s views, oppressed majority of American women. The force with which the feminist movement spread and impacted women throughout the nation is articulated by Steinem: “The women‟s liberation movement hit women like a revelation, as if we had left a dark room and stepped out into the sun” (Sisterhood 366). The simple name of the magazine is symbolic of the liberation movement‟s message. “Ms.” is the title used to address a woman without specifying whether she is married or single. This is indicative of the irrelevance that the women‟s liberation movement places on a woman‟s marriage status in relation to her capacity to function as an intelligent and contributive woman of society (A Personal Report from “Ms.” 407). This one-two punch of the NWPC and Ms Magazine did create a dent in the status quo in traditional Western gender roles. By the end of the 70s, Steinem and the feminist movement achieved the following: access to safe and legal abortions, equal educational opportunities, and the recognition of gender-based stereotypes in the media. Other goals turned out to be “more elusive.” These include the passing of an Equal Rights Amendment which would bar discrimination based on gender. There was partial progress in equal economic opportunity during the 70s in America. However, despite the fact that more women were in the workforce and earning more money compared to what has been the case before the women‟s liberation movement, there was still a discrepancy between women‟s pay and men‟s pay for the same job. On average, a man got paid $1, while a woman got paid 64 cents for equivalent work (Sisterhood 366). The Research Process: The research methods implemented for this assignment were simple and straightforward. Some preliminary research was done over the internet (i.e. Google Search) in an attempt to
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familiarize the group with who Gloria Steinem is and what to expect from the research as the group moved forward in the process. Also, searches were conducted within the UIUC library database(s) through several of the engines available, but were found difficult to use and therefore avoided. The largest portion of the research (and all of what was included in the paper itself) was done in the Undergraduate Library after a kind introduction to the system by our Professor. Sadly, only one member made it to the original meeting/tour (Ilya). Afterwards however, Ilya explained the tour of the library to Ryan and in turn Ryan did so for Max. A difficult obstacle to overcome was the conflict of the members‟ schedules, which made it a challenge for the group to meet as a whole. The way the paper was put together essentially went like this: Ilya was the first to reach the library and get some research done. Ryan and Max, having the most compatible schedules, were able to meet, review Ilya‟s information, and enlarge the pool of information through further research. The information began to take the form of an essay when Ryan and Ilya met, organizing the research into sentences, paragraphs, and sections (in a purely rudimentary fashion, for the sake of organization). After group review (via email), Ilya started the development of the analysis portion of the assignment and distributed a copy for revision to the other group members. Essentially, a series of revisions by the group via email produced the final product.
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Works Cited Steinem, Gloria, “Sisterhood”. American Decades: Primary Sources 1970-1979 Steinem, Gloria, “A Personal Report from „Ms.‟”. American Decades: Primary Sources 19701979 “Steinem Gloria, 1934 - ”. Encyclopedia of Feminism “Women Form Political Caucus”. Facts on File (051 Fact)