View this email in your browser.   

October 26, 2020

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will vote to confirm Amy Coney Barrett, menopause is a $600 billion opportunity, and we talk with Gloria Steinem. Go get your Monday.

– All about Gloria. Covering the 2017 Women’s March was an overwhelming experience. Standing in the press area near the Washington, D.C. stage, it was thrilling to hear the speakers calling for equality—and not just for women, but for people of color, the LGBTQ community, immigrants, the list goes on. How, I wondered, had such essential ideas become so divisive? And what was the role of a journalist in covering the fight for equal rights?

As Gloria Steinem addressed the crowd, I thought about her own journey from journalist to activist and realized there was no one better positioned to answer these particular existential questions. I snuck through the press-VIP divide and approached Steinem to ask her what she thought journalists should be doing right now. She reminded me that “there’s nothing more important than facts today”—and, as you can see, four years have passed, and I’m still doing the job.

So it was especially meaningful for me to connect with Steinem again for a conversation in large part focused on that same perspective. The activist and author is one of several feminist leaders featured in a new PBS documentary, Not Done, chronicling the past half-decade of activism, Women’s Marches included. 

Steinem also lends the documentary historical context—and in our conversation last week she did the same for both the movements seen in the film and some of our current political questions, from Amy Coney Barrett’s seemingly imminent confirmation to the Supreme Court to the fast-approaching U.S. presidential election.

Steinem, you may not be surprised to hear, believes that Coney Barrett “does not represent the majority opinion of Americans and certainly not women.” She says that Americans must be prepared to “disobey the court” if it makes decisions that are not just.

And on the closely-watched issue of reproductive rights, Steinem believes that even if Coney Barrett helps the court to overturn Roe v. Wade, it won’t mean a full return to the lack of abortion access of the mid-20th century (Steinem has written about her own experience accessing abortion care during that time). “We have become accustomed to practicing medical norms. There were always doctors who would disobey the law,” she says. “I think now there are going to be many more.”

The activist also provides historical context in another important way. “I’ve never seen this much activism in my life,” the 86-year-old says onscreen in the PBS documentary.

Read and watch more of our conversation for Steinem’s perspective on the interconnectedness of activist movements past and present here.

Emma Hinchliffe
[email protected]
@_emmahinchliffe

A note from Fortune's editor-in-chief

Subscribe to FORTUNE’s new podcast, Reinvent, and hear stories of people, companies, and communities working to find new ways of thriving in our uncertain future.

Our latest episode features an exclusive interview with Lyft co-founder and president, John Zimmer. Listen now.

Clifton Leaf

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

Content From PwC
What’s keeping companies from doing better?
Sixty-eight percent of leaders believe their business serves the greater good, but only 15% of the wider public agrees. We need to act to help close the gap. We recently surveyed US business leaders, employees and the public to understand what fosters and inhibits trust. These findings shaped actionable steps to help companies fight for social justice and take action, now. 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

ON MY RADAR

Is there a future for women in the national pastime? Baseball player Malaika Underwood hopes so  NBC Sports

The white issue: Has Anna Wintour's diversity push come too late?  New York Times

Kristen Welker asked the candidates about The Talk. That moment proved the value of newsroom diversity Washington Post

The spectacular rise and fall of Carolyn Rafaelian, the former Alex and Ani bangle billionaire  Forbes

 

PARTING WORDS

"Well, this is Iceland."

-Iceland's Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir as she recovered quickly from an earthquake during an interview

Thanks for reading.

If you liked this email, pay it forward. Share it with someone you know.

Did someone share this with you? Sign up here. For previous editions, click here.

To view all of Fortune's newsletters on the latest in business, go here.