As I walked with a dozen or so teen-age girls through the streets of New York City to the brownstone apartment of Gloria Steinem, I tried to explain what they couldn’t possibly understand: They were meeting with an icon for women around the world.
The group — a camp cohort for Tools & Tiaras, the incredible organization that teaches young women (particularly young women of color) about careers in the building trades — already had been schooled on the idea that society sometimes stacks the deck against them.
And “Jobs Don’t Have Genders” is both a mantra and a mission statement of Tools & Tiaras.
But how do you explain that they were meeting a woman at the forefront of the Equal Rights fight for women in the 1970s — and ever since — and the founder of Ms. Magazine?
How do you explain ‘Take Your Daughter to Work Day’ was her idea?
It turns out; I didn’t need to.
Gloria Steinem, 87 at the time, had no interest in talking about herself. She wanted to hear about them. She wanted to hear what they thought of having the opportunity to be a plumber, carpenter, bricklayer, welder … to be anything they wanted to be. She wanted to hear how they were playing soccer, softball — even flag football.
Steinem didn’t want to brag about the foundation she had laid for them; she wanted to inspire them to reach for more.
And she did it in a feisty manner that personified her personality and her grit more than her age.
“What makes you mad?” she asked them.
“What pisses you off?” she said — using those words.
That’s what you need to think about. That’s what you need to fight for. That’s what will help you make life better for the generation of women that follows you.
The meeting lasted more than an hour. It was one I’ll never forget. It was one built on a better future. One meant to ensure her hopes and dreams for women would outlast her.
I thought of that moment this morning, when word of Steinem’s passing made the news.
I wondered if her words a few years back really had any impact. Then, I realized they did.
My youngest daughter was part of the group. Just 15 at the time, Steinem’s words clearly had impact.
Two years ago, she had the courage to stand up at a planning board meeting in our town to express her feelings about a project many residents didn’t want.
Just last week, she reached out to officials at her university, not just complaining about cuts in bus service, but detailing how reduced nighttime service would impact women more than men.
And to think, my daughter is just one of thousands that Steinem spent just a few minutes with over her lifetime.
Yes, we’ve come a long way. But thanks to Steinem — and all those she influenced — we’re just getting started.
