In the past couple of weeks, we’ve lost two trailblazing women in Dolly Parton and Gloria Steinem. Both women “embodied two towering versions of the same idea: that women should know themselves well enough to make their own choices about matters intimate and societal” (Barrow & Kellman, 2026). And although Dolly never explicitly identified herself as a feminist, Gloria recognized how Dolly stood for women’s rights all the way back in 1987, naming her Ms. Magazine’s Woman of the Year. Read Gloria Steinem’s article about Dolly Parton here. Both women were profound leaders, whose legacies cannot be understated.
Barbaro, M. (Host). (2026, September 4). The Intertwined Legacies of Gloria Steinem and Dolly Parton. [Audio podcast episode]. In The Daily. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/04/podcasts/the-daily/gloria-steinem-dolly-parton-legacies.html?smid=url-share
Barrow, B., & Kellman, L. (2026, September 5). For feminists, the deaths of Parton and Steinem days apart deliver a double dose of grief. PBS News. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/for-feminists-the-deaths-of-parton-and-steinem-days-apart-deliver-a-double-dose-of-grief