Gloria Steinem, Feminist Icon, Dies at 92

Gloria Steinem, the pioneering American journalist and feminist activist who became one of the most influential leaders of the US women's liberation movement, has died aged 92.

Steinem died peacefully at her home in New York City on Wednesday, surrounded by people who loved her, according to her foundation.

For more than five decades, she campaigned for women's equality, reproductive rights and social justice. She co-founded the Women's Action Alliance and helped launch Ms. magazine in 1972, creating an influential platform for women's issues.

Steinem began her career as a journalist in New York, gaining national attention with an investigation into working conditions at Playboy clubs. She later became a columnist for New York Magazine and a leading voice in the women's rights movement.

She strongly supported reproductive rights, equal pay and same-sex marriage, while also opposing the death penalty and female genital mutilation.

Steinem had an illegal abortion in London when she was 22 and later celebrated the US Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v Wade ruling. She lived to see the decision overturned nearly five decades later.

Born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1934, Steinem had a difficult childhood. After university, she spent two years in India, where her work with village women involved in non-violent protests helped shape her commitment to grassroots activism.

She famously avoided marriage for most of her life before marrying David Bale in 2000. He died three years later. When asked why she had changed her position on marriage, Steinem replied: "I didn't change. Marriage changed."

In 2013, President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour in the United States.

Steinem remained active in her later years, continuing to write and host gatherings at her New York home. Her foundation said she worked for equality until the end of her life.

Tributes followed news of her death, with writers, feminists and public figures praising her influence.

Meghan Markle described Steinem as a friend and mentor who had helped shape the world for women. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called her one of the architects of women's equality.

Clinton said Steinem was an optimist whose activism was rooted in the belief that positive change was a moral choice.

Steinem leaves behind a lasting legacy in journalism, feminism and the fight for equality.