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This Halloween, Dress Up As Your Favorite Jewish Feminist Icon

Jewish Women’s Archive has tips for your best Gloria Steinem and Bella Abzug

by
Stephanie Butnick
October 11, 2013
RICHARD ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images
US Rep. Patricia Schroeder(C) speaks at a vigil to protest welfare reform on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC 22 March 1995 as former representative Bella Abzug(L), a women's rights advocate, watches. RICHARD ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images
RICHARD ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images
US Rep. Patricia Schroeder(C) speaks at a vigil to protest welfare reform on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC 22 March 1995 as former representative Bella Abzug(L), a women's rights advocate, watches. RICHARD ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images

Ah, Halloween. The crisp fall air, freshly carved pumpkins, and leaves that crunch beneath your feet. The bottomless bags of candy corn and charming trick-or-treaters. And, sigh, the fishnets. But not this year, if the Jewish Women’s Archive has anything to do with it. They’ve put together a handy guide to dressing like your favorite Jewish feminist, from Gloria to Bella (not that one) to Madonna, and even Fruma Sarah’s ghost (BYO matchmaking advice).

Love Gloria Steinem? They say to rock “oversized aviator glasses, long, straight hair, and a raised fist.” Boho chic is still pretty trendy, so people on the subway might not even realize you’re in costume. For the perfect Bella Abzug, all you’ll need is “a successful career in Congress, a curly wig, long gloves, and a colorful wide-brimmed hat.” Or at least the last three.

Check out the rest here—and let us know your costume ideas in the comments.

Stephanie Butnick is chief strategy officer of Tablet Magazine, co-founder of Tablet Studios, and a host of the Unorthodox podcast.