Gloria Steinem, the American journalist, author and activist who became one of the most recognisable faces of the feminist movement, has died aged 92.
Steinem’s foundation announced her death on Thursday, saying she had died peacefully at her home in New York City surrounded by people close to her. No cause of death was given, according to AFP.
On Instagram, they said she was surrounded by some of the many who loved her when she passed peacefully away at home.
"Gloria's near-century on earth were years well-lived, and she cintinued working for equality until the very end."
Steinem spent decades campaigning for women’s rights and challenging discrimination, becoming one of the defining figures of the feminist movement in the United States.
She began her journalism career in the early 1960s, at a time when American women faced widespread legal and social restrictions. Her reporting brought her national attention, including an undercover investigation into the treatment of women working as Playboy Club waitresses in New York.
Her own experiences also shaped her activism. Steinem later said a 1969 meeting where women spoke openly about their experiences of abortion marked a turning point in her political consciousness.
She had undergone an abortion in London in 1957, when the procedure was illegal, and later wrote about the experience.
In the 1970s, Steinem became a leading organiser of the women's movement. She helped establish the National Women's Political Caucus, founded Ms. magazine and played a central role in organising the first National Women's Conference in Houston.
For decades, she travelled extensively, speaking at protests and conferences and campaigning on issues including reproductive rights, political representation and equality.
Steinem also became a prominent author, writing books including Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions, Revolution from Within and My Life on the Road.
Her influence extended across generations of activists and politicians. In 2013, then-US president Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honour.
On her page on Instagram they went on to say:
"Gloria’s greatest gift was her ability to listen to others, to make others feel seen and heard. Her words, actions, and example gave people permission to be their truest selves.
"Gloria lived true to her independent spirit, always with curiosity and a great sense of humor.
"She spent her recent years doing the two things she loved most: being in community with others and writing. She has welcomed hundreds of guests into her living room for Talking Circles, a tradition she insisted will continue long after she is no longer with us.
"As Gloria wrote in her forthcoming book, 𝘈𝘯 𝘜𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦, ' have now lived for more than fifty years in this brownstone, in rooms that have witnessed lives before mine, and will know others after I am gone'.
'This book, along with her commitment to her home becoming a center for social justice movements, are among the many gifts Gloria has given the world with the hope they have ripple effects for generations to come.
"Gloria often quoted the adage: 'The flap of a butterfly’s wing can change the weather hundreds of miles away'.
"Gloria loved the tradition of lighting signal fires on hills to light the way to the other side of the mountain. Lighting your own candle for Gloria makes you part of this global and celestial community circle.
Tributes followed news of her death, with prominent figures including Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi and tennis champion Billie Jean King highlighting Steinem's influence on women's rights.
Clinton described Steinem as a pioneer who opened doors for millions of women, while Pelosi praised her as a trailblazer who had inspired generations.
Steinem remained publicly engaged with women's rights and social issues into her later years.
Her death marks the passing of one of the most influential figures in modern feminism, whose work helped move women's equality from the margins of American politics into the centre of public debate.