This blog was written by mentee Mekkiayah Jacobs who was selected by Girls Write Now to attend Gloria: A Life and was deeply inspired by the experience.
When I was invited to join Girls Write Now at the performance of the play, Gloria: A Life, I was very surprised because I never win anything. As the weeks passed I was anticipating the show. Getting off the 4 train at Union Square it was literally right next to the train. Walking into the theater, it was completely different from a traditional one — in fact, this theater had pillows all around to make us feel more welcomed. I know I sure felt that way.
As the show started, I was wondering what the play would be like. A few minutes later, I understood that the play was about a woman’s journey —Girls Write Now honoree Gloria Steinem’s life— and her fight for the rights of women everywhere. As a young black girl and a mentee at Girls Write Now, it’s hard not to be a feminist. While watching the show, I found that during certain parts, I wanted to cry. The show showed me why I truly became a feminist in the first place.
Gloria went through so many trials before realizing that she was a feminist and that she wanted to fight for women’s rights. She had to understand how to be strong enough to deal with the naysayers, those who say, “you can’t do this and you can’t do that.”
Gloria created a group of women to support each other. It wasn’t just white women; it was women of all races, ethnicities, and nationalities. They did so much for us at the time like creating the magazine Ms. It was hard for these women; they received backlash from not just men, but from women, too. Some people couldn’t understand why women needed rights and why things couldn’t be the same. But this didn’t stop these women; they kept on going.
Watching this show was so liberating. I recommend that everyone goes to see it. I really enjoyed it and am very grateful that Girls Write Now gave me the opportunity to see Gloria: A Life.