A Steinem Celebration: 90 Years of Gloria

Steinem Sisters Collection's 10th Anniversary

Celebrate Gloria Steinem's 90th birthday and the Steinem Sisters Collection's 10th anniversary. Join us for a discussion on libraries as feminist spaces and refreshments!

A native of Toledo, Gloria Steinem is a writer, lecturer, political activist, and feminist organizer. She has spent decades traveling in the United States and other countries as an organizer and lecturer and is a frequent media spokeswoman on issues of equality. She is particularly interested in the shared origins of sex and race caste systems, gender roles and child abuse as roots of violence, non-violent conflict resolution, the cultures of indigenous peoples, and organizing across boundaries for peace and justice.  

In honor of Gloria's 80th birthday in 2014 People Called Women, a local feminist bookstore, created the Steinem Sisters Collective, a lending library for feminist publications.  When the bookstore sold in 2017, the original Collective donated the collection to the Toledo Lucas County Public Library as the Steinem Sisters Collection.  The Collection champions the historical, cultural and political contribution of women. The collection strives to provide a welcoming space for women of all walks of life to share their truths. The types of materials we collect are “feminist materials” – which are materials that uphold women’s rights and interests in defining and promoting political, economic, personal and social equality of the sexes. In the ten years since its original inception, the Collection has grown to over 900 titles.   The Collection hosts a monthly book club and quarterly programs at the Main Library.

To commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the Steinem Sisters Collection and Gloria Steinem's 90th birthday, the Collection will host a celebration at the Main Library with refreshments, featuring Dr. Deborah Schwartz, Dr. Tiffany Whitman, Sierra Ortiz, Sheena Barnes, and Erika White.  The theme of the evening is Libraries as Feminist Spaces.

Dr. Deborah Schwartz has been a feminist political activist for more than 25 years. Debbie helped start the Steinem Sisters Collection at People Called Women bookstore and served on the collection’s advisory board for three years after it was donated to the Toledo Lucas County Public Library. Currently, Debbie is president of the Democratic Feminist Alliance and leader of the grass roots organization, the Northwest Ohio Feminist Alliance (NOFA) Indivisible. She is an avid reader, professor emeritus of English at Lourdes University, mother and grandmother.

Dr. Tiffany Whitman serves as the City of Toledo Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Dr. Whitman strives to make Toledo a safe, livable, welcoming community by fostering inclusive and fair work environments, strengthening community and corporate relations, and increasing opportunities for equitable economic development.

Prior to this role, Dr. Whitman served as an At-Large Councilmember on Toledo City Council (2020-2024). As a Councilmember, she sponsored legislation to address youth programming, public safety accountability, gender-based discrimination, inclusive business opportunities and a public health approach to gun violence. Dr. Whitman’s work in local government emerged from her 15-years in higher education administration and instruction. She continues to develop her academic interests, currently focusing on completing her education in Archival Studies.

Dr. Whitman resides in West Toledo with her husband of 17 years, Kurtiss, son, Jeremiah, and twin daughters, Layla and Malia.

Sierra Ortiz, born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, is the granddaughter of migrant workers and the daughter of a prolific Latinx leader. She resides on the land belonging to the Erie, Kickapoo, Iroquois, Odawa, and Seneca Native Tribes and serves as the Associate Director at the grassroots organization, Women of Toledo. In this position, she embraces her passions for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging to educate, engage, and empower diverse groups of women and youth through transformational advocacy forums, mentorship programs, and services, as well as global economic and workforce development.

In high school, she gained experience in civic engagement by attending social justice marches, rallies, and protests for Farm Laborers and Migrant Workers, as well as women’s issues including healthcare, reproductive rights, and bodily autonomy, including the Women’s March on Washington in 2016. While studying at The University of Toledo, Ortiz gained experience as a mental health advocate while interning for crisis at a local behavioral health agency and as a Mental Health First Aid Facilitator for Lucas County residents, and local law enforcement and went on to become certified to facilitate Youth Mental Health First Aid.

After college, she spent weekends with the Ursuline Sisters going out to government housing districts to deliver sanitary products, condoms, and health and wellness kits to sex workers. Through this experience, she began a childcare program during Friday night dinners hosted by the Ursuline Sisters for sex workers in the area. Ortiz took on the Administrative Assistant and Program Manager position at Adelante, the Latino Resource and Community Center where she reinstated English classes with the help of volunteers as well as Citizenship classes in partnership with En Camino, led by Sisters of Notre Dame, focusing on immigrant and migrant outreach and services. Continuing to serve the Latinx and Hispanic community, Sierra went on to gain experience as the Financial Coordinator at Sofia Quintero Art and Cultural Center.

A founding member of Toledo Rotary’s young professional philanthropic branch, Rotaract, Sierra is the recipient of the Inaugural Rotaract Impact Award. She serves on the board for the University of Toledo’s Eberly Center for Women, as well as Welcome TLC’s engagement and outreach committee co-chair, and is involved with the Latino Alliance of Northwest Ohio. Sierra continues to bring her passion for DEAI to all the work she does in community service.

Sheena Barnes (personal pronouns She/Her, They/Them) is a Flint, Michigan native. She has resided in Toledo, OH for 15 years with her three children. Ms. Barnes background is in trauma informed care and as a community engagement specialist she focused on the correlation of trauma to reactive negative behaviors in youth. Sheena has experience with public policy and youth crisis intervention advocacy and resource management.

Ms. Barnes quickly became involved in the community in Toledo, in 2019 they served as the Executive Director of Equality Toledo, after stepping down in 2021 Ms. Barnes launched their DEI business Just ACTS LLC a consulting business that assists agencies and organizations with creating affirming work environments for their staff and customers with the focus on the intersectionalities within the LGBTQ plus community.

In 2020 they were elected to the Toledo Public Schools Board of Education making history as the first woman of color that identifies as LGBTQ plus to have won a seat in Northwest Ohio. Ms. Barnes was also archived in The Library of Congress for their historic electoral race and contributions to LGBTQ history. Ms. Barnes serve as the liaison for the Toledo Chapter Students Demand Action, a youth-led national organization that advocate for common sense gun laws and work to ending gun violence, currently they also sit on the boards for Family and Child Abuse Prevention Center, Scouts of America also know as Boy Scouts of America for Erie Shores Council, The National Black Justice Coalition, Local Progress- Black Caucus and The Buckeye Flame and is a core member of Honesty for Ohio Education.

Erika White is a telecommunication specialist, business owner, and community volunteer. Erika serves as the President of Communications Workers of America Local 4319. She also serves on the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board and is the Vice President of GNWO AFL-CIO.  Erika is a fitness enthusiast, motivator, freelance writer, and public speaker. Erika currently serves as the Chair for Healthy Lucas County, where she works with a coalition of community organizations to improve the health of all residents of Lucas County, Ohio. After her own journey to develop a healthier lifestyle for her and her family, Erika created the Fitzone brand as a way of motivating members of her community to achieve their highest potential. Erika is the mom of two children and lives in the community of Springfield Township with her husband of 30 years, James, who is a Toledo firefighter.

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