Steinem film to screen at Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center

Women's History Month Film Festival continues Wednesday, March 23 at 6:30 pm at the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center with The Glorias, a film based on feminist icon Gloria Steinem's 2016 book, My Life on the Road. The Glorias is a 2020 biographical film directed and produced by Julie Taymor. Admission is free, with donations accepted. A post-film discussion is included.

In The Glorias, Steinem is represented by four actresses who portray her life at different ages. As Steinem, Julianne Moore stars, with Alicia Vikander at ages 20 to 40, Lulu Wilson as a teen, and Ryan Kiera Armstrong as a child. The cast includes former Laguna Beach resident Bette Midler as Bella Abzug, Janelle Monáe as Dorothy Pitman Hughes, and Timothy Hutton as Leo Steinem. Los Angeles Times reviewer Katie Wash wrote, "Using every tool at her disposal, Taymor crafts an epic tapestry of a remarkable life, paying tribute to the glorious Gloria Steinem."

Local journalist Andrea Adelson will be joined via Zoom for a post-film discussion by Katherine Spillar, executive editor of Ms. Magazine and executive director of Feminist Majority Foundation.

Spillar recently wrote in Ms., "In a few short months, we face the likelihood the Supreme Court will overturn Roe. Already, 2021 was the worst year for abortion rights in half a century. In Texas, abortion has already been virtually outlawed for almost five months. And now, the Supreme Court has issued yet another decision that will ensure SB 8 will remain the law in Texas for months to come.

"The silver lining of this fraught era for reproductive rights seems to be that a large swath of Americans who oppose overturning Roe v. Wade will be motivated to vote in the midterm elections this fall. Polls show that abortion is increasingly becoming a decisive factor for voters—particularly young women voters."

Adelson, who edited a local weekly for more than a decade and has written for the LA Daily News and The New York Times, voiced her concern. "Though the film illustrates the remarkable gains in equality women have made, today it seems like the gains in reproductive rights are slipping, maybe not in California, but elsewhere. I want the audience to know where the fight is now and to learn how they can help. That’s why I asked Kathy Spillar to join the discussion. She may not have the name recognition as Gloria Steinem, but she’s carrying on her mission.”

The Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center’s mission is to harness the power of the arts for the benefit of the community. The center is located just off Coast Highway at 235 Forest Avenue, upstairs above the Promenade in Laguna Beach, Southern California’s premier art colony. lbculturalartscenter.org