Gloria Allred, feminist before the fad

My inspiration of the week is Gloria Allred. I had been aware of her existence for some time, through her portrayal in popular (American) media in the context of the high-profile discrimination cases she takes on. It was only after watching the new Netflix documentary on her, ‘Seeing Allred’, that I became aware of her complete trackrecord, and the unimaginable importance of all she has done for the rights of women, LGBTQ+ people and other minorities.

Allred was an advocate of women’s rights before it was fashionable. She sued a supermarket for dividing toys up into girls’ and boys’ sections, she petitioned for equal pay, she took on the famous Friars club for not allowing women in the steam room,.. We think of these as the hot issues of the day, but Gloria was fighting for them 40 years ago. Today it is almost impossible to fathom the kind of prejudice and opposition she had to overcome with every case she committed to. And all that without a hashtag or instaglory. Imagine that.

Gloria is fearless in her defence of victims of famous men and companies, and gained special notoriety as a defender of sexual assault victims of celebrities. Amongst her clients are the accusers of Bill Cosby, Donald Trump and Harvey Weinstein. Like all strong women she has been the target of ridicule and hatred. This has not tarnished her vigilence and energy. At age 75 she is still working tirelessly for social reform and justice. Seeing her in action is almost making me reconsider my decision after graduating from law school a few months ago to not become a lawyer. ;)

All this just to say; go watch the documentary, and be inspired!