A Revolution From Within

BOOKMARK REVIEW By Debra Scala

"We must be the change we wish to see in the world." ~ Mahatma Ghandi

On Thursday, March 14th, I had the privilege to attend the Long Island Women Today Creating Our Destiny Symposium in which Gloria Steinem delivered the keynote luncheon speech. After her talk, Ms. Steinem invited questions from the crowd. During this interesting and informative question and answer session, someone mentioned her book, A Revolution from Within. Because it was Gloria's first book, this participant thought it would be a good idea to bring it to the attention of our younger generation. For that reason, out latest selection is A Revolution from Within.

The essence of this book is that the personal is the political. After searching for books about self-esteem, Ms. Steinem found that none were written for both sexes or included both the personal and political aspects that can nurture or ruin self-esteem. She realized that "we teach what we need to learn and write what we need to know." This book unravels her personal discovery about self-esteem.

In her book Ms. Steinem points out, "We are so many selves. It's not just the long-ago child within us who needs tenderness and inclusion, but the person we were last year, wanted to be yesterday, tried to become in one job or in one winter, in one love affair or in one house where even now, we can close our eyes and smell the rooms. What brings together these ever-shifting selves of infinite reactions and returnings is this: There is always one true inner voice. Trust it."

An activist and champion for women's rights and equality, in 1972 Ms. Steinem co-founded Ms. Magazine, which was the first publication for and by women that addressed women's issues in a serious way. Since then, she has founded several organizations, including the Ms. Foundation, the National Women's Political Caucus and the Coalition of Labor Union Women. In addition to the book reviewed here, she has also authored Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions and Moving Beyond Words/Age, Rage, Sex, Power, Money, Muscles: Breaking the Boundaries.

In another passage, she writes, "It seems that the older the teaching, the more it presents self wisdom and self-honor as a source of strength, rebellion, and a kind of meta-democracy - a oneness with all living things and with the universe itself. Returning to this concept of circularity and oneness that preceded patriarchy, racism, class systems, and other hierarchies that ration self-esteem - and that create obedience to external authority by weakening belief in our natural and internal wisdom - is truly a revolution from within."

Now, more than ever, women have choices because of the work of Gloria Steinem and the Feminist Movement. She acknowledges that young women are our future and there is still work to be done. She challenged her audience to do "one outrageous act," with the hope that the world would be a better place--one outrageous act at a time. Read this book and become inspired. If you stay in touch with who you are, you will know what you want. And, most importantly, you will be able to make the changes in yourself that you wish to see in the world.

Editors Note: Debra Scala is the Director of Marketing at the East Meadow law firm of Certilman, Balin, Adler & Hyman, LLP and she teaches "How to market and Promote Your Business" at Hofstra University's School of Continuing Education. Her email address is dscala@cbah.com.

Click here to purchase Gloria Steinem's Revolution from Within : A Book of Self-Esteem