Olivia Julianna Turned Hate to Action by Raising Millions for Abortion Funds
Olivia Julianna loves Texas. She believes in Texas. She recognizes the formidable collective power that Texas activists possess. For the past two election cycles, Olivia traversed the campaign trail with Democratic candidates who promised to fight for all people and all communities across the state, such as 2022 gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke and lieutenant gubernatorial candidate, Mike Collier. Day in and day out, the 20-year-old tirelessly advocates for reproductive justice in one of the most anti-abortion states in the country. Olivia believes that Texas can change.
When Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz attempted to publicly humiliate Olivia, she turned his attack into action and raised over $2 million for 50 abortion funds in trigger law states. When she learned that anti-choice organization Texas Right to Life implemented a tip line to report those who “aid and abet” abortion, she called on her TikTok followers to send fake tips and inundate the site until it crashed. The controversial website was taken down and hasn’t been back up since.
As the Director of Politics and Government Affairs for Gen-Z for Change, she oversees the nonprofit’s political partnerships and organizes campaign events with candidates on the local and federal levels. In Texas, the 2022 midterms did not turn out the results that Olivia and so many other activists worked towards — but that didn’t discourage Olivia. Instead, it swelled her passion for change. “I look forward to flipping Texas blue. It's not a matter of if it will happen, it is a matter of when,” the activist told Seventeen. 2024 is just two years away, and Olivia knows what needs to be done.
What inspired you to fight for reproductive justice and mobilize for change in Texas?
Olivia Julianna: My activism journey started on TikTok. I started making political content in June of 2020, covering the presidential election. Then Texas passed Senate Bill 8, which banned abortions after six weeks. I started talking about what was going on here in Texas because I had a platform, and I wanted to spread the word and tell people how they can get involved.
From there, I worked with abortion advocacy groups in Texas and across the country. I spoke at the Women's March for reproductive justice in October of 2021, which was in opposition to Senate Bill 8. I continued to use my digital platform to talk about different abortion access issues. I fostered relationships with abortion funds. When Roe v. Wade was overturned, I worked with Gen-Z for Change to create the S.A.F.E.R. Initiative, our abortion advocacy initiative. Each letter stands for a different call to action: “Spam anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers and anti-abortion tiplines. Assist those who need to access abortions. Fund local abortion services. Educate people about their abortion laws and access. Register to vote.”
Looking ahead to 2024, my goal is to work with candidates running for every level of local office you can imagine, whether it be the school board, county clerk, mayor, or country judge. You will not flip a state from the top down. You have to flip a state from the bottom up. We need local candidates fighting to make change on a county and city level, and that's what I'll spend the next two years doing.
What are you most proud of achieving so far?
OJ: I think a lot of people would expect me to say raising all the money [for abortion care]. That's great, but honestly, a moment that made me most proud was when I poll-greeted on Election Day with Celia Israel, an Austin mayoral candidate. I get really anxious about interacting with people and talking to people in person. It's been hard for me to canvas or poll-greet. Leading up to November 8, I really had to face my fears.
Before Celia Israel ran for mayor, she was a State House Rep, one of the best State House Reps Texas has ever had. She got her start in politics working on the Ann Richards campaign (Ann Richards was the 46th governor of Texas, the last Democrat to win the election). One of her professors and mentors was Sarah Weddington, a lawyer responsible for Roe v. Wade. So I spent the morning of Election Day poll-greeting with Celia, hearing her advice and wisdom. Then I was at a party for her when the election results came out and she hugged me, and she said, ‘We’re going to get there. We’re going to give them hell.’ Being there with Celia is one of my proudest moments because I find such pride in representation and knowing that I'm there with genuine candidates.
I’m also proud of being in Austin with Zo Qadri, who ran for City Council District 9. In the entire state of Texas, his campaign team was the youngest. No one expected him to do as well in the primary as he did. He won more votes than any other candidate because he uplifted the voices of young organizers. Those two moments, in particular, were very prideful because I saw young people and people of color at the forefront of two elections that did so well.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced and what have you learned from it?
OJ: I have lost a lot of people doing the work that I do. It has negatively affected a lot of relationships I have in my life. I have family members who have essentially disowned me because I am an abortion rights activist. I have friends from childhood who told me point-blank, ‘We are not friends anymore.’ It's been really difficult to lose relationships. It was really hard for me to understand that when you’re speaking truth to power, and when you're fighting for what you believe in, some of the people who matter to you are not going to be there.
But you're going to find people who will be there alongside you, who will believe in the same things that you do. I have a chosen family who are some of the strongest, most compassionate, and kind people I know. I would not be the person I am without them, in particular, my best friend Elise Joshi, the acting Executive Director for Gen Z for Change, and my friend Isaiah Martin, a youth Democratic activist in Houston. I would not be able to do the work I do if I didn't know there were other young passionate people out there. It's going to be really, really f**king hard to do this work. It's not easy. But it is so incredibly rewarding when you see candidates you care about win, or you see people get access to the care they need because you were able to raise funds. It’s so rewarding to see other young people revel in that success.
How have you grown since your activism journey began?
OJ: I think I used to be a very selfish person. When I was younger, I had this sense of entitlement of, ‘Well I deserve all these great things.’ Even when I first joined TikTok, I think it went to my head because I built a following. But over the years, being on the ground, traveling around the country, talking to people, and seeing the work that needs to be done has forced me to grow. I understand that I am a part of a very, very big movement. There is not any movement in history that has been caused or pushed forward because of one person. Every piece of progress that's been made in this country has been because of collective action. To know that and to be a part of that has humbled me so much.
I try to remain true to who I am and remember where I came from. I grew up very low-income and in a single-parent household throughout high school. Up until last year, I didn't have a bank account. I didn't have a single dollar to my name. I'm not in that situation anymore, but there are people all across the country who are. I'm working to help them get out of that situation. It's not about me, it's about them. That's the bottom line at the end of the day.
What inspires you to keep advocating and fighting for change?
OJ: The truth is, I just love Texas so much. I love Texas. This state is so beautiful and diverse and we have such a rich culture and history that people forget about because of the current people we are in positions of power. Texas sent the first Southern Black woman to the House of Representatives, Barbara Jordan. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act. He was born and raised in Texas. Abortion rights came from Texas; Roe v. Wade happened because of two Texas women who went and argued in front of the Supreme Court. Remembering that history keeps me going.
Seeing the face of tragedy will cut you in a way that you will never be able to forget. I have met two parents, one who lost her daughter in the Sante Fe school shooting, and one who lost his son in the Uvalde shooting. Both of them are so selfless and so brave to put all of their pain out there and to keep fighting. To see how strong they are really keeps me going because I know it's not easy. But that's who Texans are. We have that strength and that fight and that is at the core of who I am and what I push for. Commissioner Rodney Ellis of Harris County, Texas, said, ‘Texas activists are forged by fire.’ There’s a unique spirit and fight that people who are born in Texas have.
Another big part of who I am is putting all of my identities forward. I am a young Texas woman. But I am also Latina. I'm openly queer. I'm diabetic. I'm disabled. I am a plus-size woman. Every single one of those aspects plays into the work that I do because I experience a barrage of harassment. It happens on a daily basis, and it happens not just from normal people, but from elected officials and politicians. Matt Gaetz is not the first prominent Republican to attack me. I've been attacked by the Chairman of the Republican Party here in Texas and Jonathan Stickland, a former House Rep who called my sexuality ‘unnatural’ and told me to leave the state. Those kinds of things happen all the time, which is why I'm so open about who I am. People who share the same identities need to understand that harassment is not tolerated. I'm not going to back down and go away because they want me to. I'm going to stand my ground because when I was a kid, I did not see people like me speaking out. If I can be that for just one person, then I'll have done my job. You should never be ashamed of who you are.
Parts of this interview have been edited and condensed for clarity.
Photo Credit: Sam Schmir. Design by Yoora Kim.
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