Rose Byrne Stars as Gloria Steinem and Reminds Us Why the Minidress Is a Totem of Women’s Lib
Yesterday, Gloria Steinem crossed Fifth Avenue in a pair of sky-high platform heels and a very high hemline. To onlookers of a certain age, she might have been the real Ms. Steinem, a woman who began her feminist writing and activism career in the late ’60s and early ’70s, and who did so while dressed in provocative (for the time, at least) ensembles. But a closer look revealed it was in fact actress Rose Byrne, who is starring as a throwback Steinem in the forthcoming FX series Mrs. America. Byrne, who was joined by costar Jay Ellis, wore a psychedelic print minidress, black fur shrug, and platform heels. She had Steinem’s signature aviator glasses and coif of the day: long loose locks with a middle part and a bump of a bouffant at the crown. Mrs. America does not have an official airdate yet, but the limited TV series centers around the story of the Equal Rights Amendment, as told through icons of that era, including Steinem, Phyllis Schlafly (played by Cate Blanchett), Shirley Chisholm (played by Uzo Aduba), and Betty Friedan (played by Tracey Ullman).
Byrne’s costume design recalls a time when champions of the women’s liberation movement were praising miniskirts and minidresses as symbols of freedom: freedom for women to have control over their own bodies, freedom of sexual expression, and freedom to wear clothing that didn’t constrain or inhibit them. Steinem wore short hemlines often, whether she was lecturing or protesting. Though she was criticized for her attractive, fashionable appearance back in the ’60s and ’70s, with one Washington Post writer sarcastically calling her “the miniskirted pinup girl of the intelligentsia,” Steinem never let her detractors compromise her colorful sense of style. Byrne’s throwback moment as a proudly stylish Steinem is a fine reminder that short hemlines can indeed be empowering—and acts as a timely reminder of the women who used fashion as a tool to advance feminist liberation.
Originally Appeared on Vogue
