Gloria Steinem’s final message revealed in interview recorded before her death

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Gloria Steinem spent more than half a century as one of the most recognizable figures in the feminist movement, but she never saw herself as its face.

In her final interview, recorded in February 2025 with the understanding that it would only be released after her death, Steinem reflected on her life, activism and the work she believed still needed to be done.

Steinem died at 92 on Wednesday, September 2, 2026. Her conversation with ‘Famous Last Words’ executive producer Brad Falchuk is now streaming, giving viewers a final look at how she wanted to be remembered.

Gloria Steinem did not see herself as the face of feminism

During the interview, Steinem pushed back on the idea that she represented the entire feminist movement. “I hope I wasn’t the face of the feminist movement,” she said. “It’s not right. It’s a diverse movement.”

She believed her prominence had more to do with how long she remained involved than with being the movement’s defining figure.

“[My fame] has more to do with endurance … because I’ve just lasted longer, because I’ve stayed at it longer,” Steinem said.

Her conversation with Falchuk covered her family, writing career, founding of Ms magazine, love of reality television and decades of activism.

She also spoke about the importance of community and different voices within a movement. “You’re never by yourself [within a movement], so it’s not as difficult when you’re misunderstood out there,” she said.

Gloria Steinem reflected on what she would leave behind

Steinem also spoke openly about the work that remained unfinished and the future beyond her own lifetime.

“I don’t lose all hope in the future,” she said. “We have no shortage of things we need to do in order to be compassionate toward each other.”

When Falchuk asked how she felt about not being here anymore, Steinem said she did not know whether people could truly imagine their own nonexistence.

What mattered to her was what she could leave behind. “I just hope that I have — however accidentally — left behind some words, or actions, or stories, or something that is useful to the people,” she said.

Asked how she wanted people to remember her, Steinem offered a simple description: “There was this person who tried to make the world a little more equal, compassionate, joyful, funny than it was when I showed up.”

Gloria Steinem’s final message was about telling your own story

At the end of the interview, Falchuk left the stage so Steinem could speak directly to the camera. The moment became her final, unedited public message, recorded knowing it would not be seen until after her death.

“Hello, all you unique individuals out there,” Steinem began. She spoke about how media can allow people to see and influence each other’s lives and help “perpetuate what we hope is a global democracy.”

She then asked viewers to share their own experiences.

“Please feel free to respond in any way you can, and please tell your own story,” she said. “This is the most important thing we can do for each other — to know each other through stories.”

Steinem ended by wishing that whoever was watching would be able to do what they loved while remaining true to who they were.

Falchuk later described the interview as a rare chance to see Steinem away from the public image surrounding her career. “Even in her final moments, she was organizing us, challenging us to keep moving forward,” he said.

The interview was intentionally kept confidential during Steinem’s lifetime and released only after her death as part of ‘Famous Last Words.’