For September, our theme was #ForGirlsByGirls, which focused on female creatives and empowerment. For the first time in our brand's 13-year history, our magazine was photographed exclusively by women. To check out our September issue cover story, starring Tavi Gevinson and written and styled by Grace Coddington, go here. And as always, don't forget to pick up your own copy of the magazine, on newsstands August 16th. (But PS — you can subscribe here!)

When Gloria Steinem emerges from a crowd on New York City’s Fifth Avenue hauling a rolling suitcase, there’s no hint of the lingering cold her publicist warned of. The 82-year-old activist and feminist icon looks svelte in all black and a silver-studded belt she bought at an Albuquerque, New Mexico, airport. Pushing her signature honey-streaked hair to the side, she says, “My driver couldn’t find The Plaza hotel—I just got out of the cab and walked the last two blocks.”

Gloria, who came to fame in the early ’60s as an enterprising journalist, has blitzed the world for the past half century with her views on gender equality and women’s rights. She doesn’t have patience for Midtown traffic or the geographically challenged, and it’s clear that age hasn’t quelled her independent spirit. When I offer to take her luggage, she looks at me as if I’ve recommended she reserve a burial plot. “No, thank you,” she says with a laugh. “I’ve got it.”

Waiting upstairs in a suite to interview her is Amandla Stenberg, one of the new guards of feminism. Over the course of her 17 short years, Amandla has schooled the Internet on black hair, rejected the gender binary, and costarred in The Hunger Games. She graduated from high school this week—literally—and arrived earlier this morning on a red-eye from Los Angeles. As a makeup and hair team fusses, Amandla diligently reviews notes. “I had to psych myself up to do this,” she admits. “I’ve admired her a long time, but…I have some questions,” referencing the seemingly exclusionary brand of “white feminism” that defined Gloria’s era.

When they finally meet, Amandla is shy, but Gloria breaks the ice when she inquires where Amandla shot her part for Beyoncé’s visual album, Lemonade. (New Orleans.) As someone turns down the song “Formation,” everyone quiets except Amandla and Gloria, who are still feeling each other out a bit. “I’m going to New York University in the fall,” Amandla proudly tells her counterpart. “Where did you go?” “Smith,” Gloria replies, with a light smile. From there, they launch into a conversation so authentic and personal, it’s hard to believe the two started the day off as strangers.