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All women, and men of color - we were owned like tables and chairs. We spent a hundred years getting a legal identity as human beings. That's a big thing.
Gloria Steinem
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote highlights the historic struggle for recognition and humanity faced by women and people of color.

Gloria Steinem's quote powerfully underscores the longstanding fight for recognition and dignity for women and people of color, comparing their historical oppression to inanimate objects to emphasize the dehumanization they faced. It reflects on the significant progress made in achieving legal recognition as human beings, which is a monumental milestone in the quest for equality and social justice.

Themes

EqualityHuman RightsOppressionRecognitionSocial Justice

In practice

Example use cases

This quote could be used during a speech on social justice to evoke the historical struggle for equality.

More from Gloria Steinem

I have me brave women who are exploring the outer edge of human possibility, with no history to guide them, and with a courage to make themselves vulnerable that I find moving beyond words.
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If women are supposed to be less rational and more emotional at the beginning of our menstrual cycle when the female hormone is at its lowest level, then why isn't it logical to say that, in those few days, women behave the most like the way men behave all month long?
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Age brings a freedom. When you're young, you're much more subject to the idea of what feminine is or how you should look or how you should behave.
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All those chemicals that create empathy only work when you are in a room together.
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Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.
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Obviously, there is much similarity among the challenges of transgender people and all women - from health care to harassment to discrimination in the workplace.
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