WeWalk: Behind the Scenes of Opening the Way

Opening the Way is a walking tour celebrating women's history in downtown Manhattan. It is a multifaceted new project developed by the award-winning nonprofit organization Women's eNews. The walk honors the achievements of women such as Margaret Sanger, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Ida B. Wells -- 21 women in all. This blog has been created to update fans of the walk on its exciting developments and expansion. Please join us in revitalizing history that has been ignored or forgotten!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Recording Powerful Women's Voices: Gloria Steinem

The audio component of Opening the Way's interactive online tour is coming quickly to an end as we wrap up recordings at our studio in uptown Manhattan. On Monday, Women's eNews is excited to take footage from second-wave feminist Gloria Steinem as the legendary Margaret Sanger.

Gloria Steinem came to prominence as an activist and organizer during the women's rights movement in the 1960s and 1970s. She has also contributed to a number of other social justice movements and causes, and to this day still speaks in America and around the world on issues of equality. Her website describes her as "particularly interested in the shared origins of sex and race caste systems, gender roles and child abuse as roots of violence, non-violent conflict resolution, the cultures of indigenous peoples, and organizing across boundaries for peace and justice."

Steinem is the author of several books, including Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions and Revolution from Within. She co-founded Ms. Magazine in 1972, and remained its editor for fifteen years. She co-founded the Women's Media Center in 2004, and also helped found the National Women's Political Caucus and Choice USA. She has been featured in or contributed to an extensive number of magazines, newspapers, textbooks, television shows, and documentaries.

Steinem has said that the answer to equality is not simply making women equal to men, but eliminating gender stereotypes and roles completely--and that therefore, male participation ought to be an integral part of feminism. In an interview with Marianne Schnall, she remarked: "Once men realize that the gender roles are a prison for them too, then they become really valuable allies. Because they're not just helping someone else, they're freeing themselves."

Gloria Steinem has already secured her place in history, and Women's eNews is infinitely grateful to her for contributing her time and efforts to a project that honors the women who came before her.

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