Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 4
Gloria Steinem Drew Sexism Backlash Over 2016 Bernie Sanders “Chase Men” Remark
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 4

Gloria Steinem Drew Sexism Backlash Over 2016 Bernie Sanders “Chase Men” Remark

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 4

Summary

  • A 2016 Bill Maher interview resurfaced after Gloria Steinem’s death, reviving criticism of her remark that young women backed Bernie Sanders because “the boys are with Bernie.”
  • The comment came when Maher asked why Sanders was drawing unusually strong support from young voters, including young women, during his primary fight against Hillary Clinton.
  • Steinem’s answer jarred because she was one of feminism’s most prominent figures, and critics saw it as reducing young women’s political choices to male attention.
  • The episode is revisited as a snapshot of the 2016 campaign, when many still expected Clinton to secure the Democratic nomination and underestimated the broader political shifts underway.

Insights

How does a pioneering activist's controversial remark reveal the inevitable generational clashes within long-standing social movements?
Will history remember this iconic leader for her groundbreaking journalism, or will controversial generational critiques complicate her monumental legacy?