Gloria Allred facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gloria Allred
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Allred at a press conference in May 2024
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Gloria Rachel Bloom
July 3, 1941 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Employer | Allred, Maroko & Goldberg |
| Political party | Democratic |
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Peyton Huddleston Bray Jr.
(m. 1960; div. 1962)William Allred
(m. 1968; div. 1987) |
| Children | Lisa Bloom |
Gloria Rachel Allred (born July 3, 1941) is an American lawyer. She is known for taking on important cases, especially those helping women and girls. She has been recognized for her work in the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Gloria Rachel Bloom was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 1941. She grew up in a Jewish family. Her father, Morris, was a salesman, and her mother, Stella, took care of their home.
After finishing high school, Gloria went to the University of Pennsylvania. There, she met her first husband, Peyton Huddleston Bray Jr. They had one child, Lisa Bloom, in 1961. Lisa also grew up to become a lawyer. Gloria and Peyton later divorced.
Gloria moved back home with her parents and continued her studies. In 1963, she earned a bachelor's degree in English with honors. She wrote her special project on black writers, even though her professor disagreed.
Before becoming a teacher, she worked in several jobs. She then taught at Benjamin Franklin High School. She started working on a master's degree at New York University. During this time, she became very interested in the movement for equal rights for all people.
After earning her master's degree, she became a teacher. In 1966, she moved to Los Angeles, California, and lived in Watts. She worked for the Los Angeles Teachers Association and taught at Jordan High School and Fremont High School.
In 1968, she married William Allred. She then went to law school at Southwestern University School of Law and later transferred to Loyola University School of Law. Gloria Allred graduated and became a licensed lawyer in California in 1975. She divorced William in 1987 but kept his last name, Allred.
Career Highlights
Gloria Allred is known for being very good at using press conferences to share her clients' stories. She often takes on important cases and uses television appearances to help her clients. She has helped many people who had legal problems with famous people.
Starting Her Law Firm
In January 1976, Gloria Allred started her law firm, Allred, Maroko, & Goldberg. She started it with two other lawyers she met in law school, Michael Maroko and Nathan Goldberg.
In 1979, Allred helped seven children and their parents. They sued a drugstore chain called Sav-On. The lawsuit was to stop the store from having separate sections for boys' and girls' toys.
In 1987, Allred took on the Friars Club of Beverly Hills. This was a private club that only allowed men to be members. Allred used her skills to get media attention for the case. Eventually, the Friars Club allowed Allred and five other women to use the club's health facilities.
Important Cases in the 1990s
In 1983, Allred represented two women, Deborah Johnson and Zandra Rolón. They sued a Los Angeles restaurant called Papa Choux. The restaurant had refused to serve them in a special booth for "romantic couples." The court first said no to their case. But a higher court later said the restaurant's actions were against the law. Instead of serving same-sex couples, the restaurant decided to remove the special booths.
In 1995, Allred represented 11-year-old Katrina Yeaw. Katrina sued the Boy Scouts of America. The lawsuit wanted to know if the organization had the right to not allow girls to join.
That same year, Allred represented the family of Nicole Brown Simpson during the O. J. Simpson murder trial.
In August 1997, she represented model Kelly Fisher. Kelly sued Dodi Fayed because he allegedly ended their engagement. This happened when he started a very public relationship with Diana, Princess of Wales. The lawsuit was stopped after Diana and Fayed died in Paris that August.
Allred also represented actress Hunter Tylo in 1997. Hunter was fired from the TV show Melrose Place because she was pregnant. A jury decided that Hunter should receive $4.8 million. This case was important because it helped establish the rights of actors to continue working if they become pregnant.
Cases in the 2000s
In 2002, Allred represented the family of Gwen Araujo. Gwen was a transgender teenager who was sadly killed when others found out she had been assigned male at birth.
In 2004, Allred represented Amber Frey. Amber was a witness in the criminal case against Scott Peterson for the murder of his wife Laci Peterson.
On February 24, 2004, Allred and her law firm filed the first lawsuit in California. This lawsuit challenged the denial of marriage licenses for same-sex couples. They argued it was against the state's rules. She took this case for free for Robin Tyler and Diane Olson, and for Rev. Troy Perry and his spouse Phillip Ray De Blieck. The case went to the California Supreme Court. On May 15, 2008, she won a decision that said same-sex couples had the right to marry in California.
She also represented three former employees of Circuit City. They were part of a larger group of people suing the company. This lawsuit was about age discrimination. Circuit City had fired 3,400 workers across the country in April 2007.
On July 30, 2008, Allred filed a complaint against Downey Savings and Loan Association. This was about how they handled cashing checks. Marc Retmier, a 19-year-old US Navy Hospitalman, was killed while serving in Afghanistan in June 2008. Downey Savings would not immediately cash his family's military checks for his funeral. His family had to find money elsewhere to pay for his funeral services.
In May 2009, Allred filed a lawsuit about Nadya Suleman. Allred argued that Suleman was not properly considering the best interests of her octuplets (eight babies born at once). Allred asked for a court-appointed guardian to help.
Cases in the 2010s
Allred was involved in the 2010 California governor's race. She became the lawyer for Nicky Diaz. Nicky was a former domestic worker for Republican candidate Meg Whitman. Allred said that Whitman had employed Diaz for years, knowing that Diaz was an undocumented immigrant.
On October 18, 2011, Allred won court approval to represent nine former cocktail waitresses. They were fired from their jobs at Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey. They were fired because they "did not look good enough" in new uniforms. Resorts had tried to stop Allred from being part of the lawsuit. They argued that her "flamboyant and headline-grabbing antics" would not help the case.
On October 4, 2013, Allred was hired by the wife of Edwin Mieses. He was a motorcyclist who was badly hurt during an incident on a highway. Allred told the press that Mieses was an "innocent victim" who was trying to "calm the situation."
Entertainment Work
Allred co-hosted a radio talk show in Los Angeles for 14 years. She also appeared as a panelist on the TV game show To Tell the Truth in 1990.
She has been shown as a character in animated TV shows like Family Guy, The Simpsons, and South Park. She also appeared as herself in the 2001 movie Rat Race.
In 2011, Allred started her own courtroom TV show called We the People with Gloria Allred. In April 2013, Allred appeared on the reality show RuPaul's Drag Race. She interviewed and advised the final three contestants. In 2016, Allred appeared as herself on the TV show Graves.
Political Involvement
Gloria Allred founded an organization called the Women’s Equal Rights Legal Defense and Education Fund (WERDLEF) in 1978. She is currently its president.
She has also been a member of the advisory board of Women's Day-USA. This is a charity in California that works to promote the recognition of March 8 as International Women's Day in the United States.
Personal Life
Gloria Allred married her first husband, Peyton Huddleston Bray, Jr., in 1960. They divorced in 1962. She married her second husband, William Allred, in 1968 and they divorced in 1987. Her only child, Lisa Bloom, was born in 1961.
She is Jewish, but she does not consider herself to be very religious.
Images for kids
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A robot for kids.
See also
In Spanish: Gloria Allred para niños
