During my whole childhood and adolescence, my mother used to tell me that I should become a teacher or a lawyer, and this was because I was always helping, inspiring and defending others. At one point, my mom told me that with my ethics, behaviour, strength, and ongoing desire to help others, I should be in Brussels, in the EU Parliament, changing laws for the better.
Well, I am not there yet, but you know, never say never.
Meanwhile, I am currently establishing an association, along with 3 other amazing women, called FEM (Feminine Empowerment Movement) to empower women in rural areas and transform these communities because their voices matter too.
And I am writing about other associations and organisations I deeply admire for their work. With that in mind, I am thrilled to invite my community to read about My Voice, My Choice, as I conducted an interview with one of its members, Tina Tomšič.
“Leadership begins with the courage to believe in a better future and the commitment to make it happen." I absolutely love this quote, and I truly believe that organisations like My Voice, My Choice play a crucial role not only in empowering women but also in creating a better future and existence for all human beings. As Tina told me in the lines below, "We spoke about power, inequality, and bodily autonomy in a wider context. We did not look away from authoritarianism, repression, or genocide, because we believe feminism loses its meaning the moment it becomes selective."
And, as a Romanian woman, please allow me to be proud that Nicolae Ștefănuță, Vice-President of the Parliament, also Romanian, was one of the biggest supporters of the My Voice, My Choice initiatives.
I normally start my interviews with the person's story or brand/business/association, but in this case, please share your victory in the European Parliament regarding safe abortion.
What happened in the European Parliament on December 17th was truly significant. A European Citizens’ Initiative that started outside institutions, driven by people, signatures, and grassroots organizing, received clear political support from the European Parliament. The Parliament adopted a resolution supporting My Voice, My Choice and calling on the European Commission to act. The vote matters because it confirms two things at once: that unequal access to abortion care in Europe is a real, structural problem, and that citizens have the right to demand European solutions when national systems fail them.
The vote on Wednesday in the European Parliament confirms there is broad support for women's rights across the political spectrum. Members of S&D, Renew, the Left, the Greens, and a large share of the European People’s Party voted in favour of the initiative. Only the far-right groups voted with a majority against the fundamental rights of women.
And of course, this was a huge win for more than 1.1 million people who signed the initiative, and for the thousands who volunteered at stands, rain or shine, this was proof that collective action can move even the most complex European institutions.
Looking ahead to the European Commission’s response (expected in early 2026), how will the movement prepare for different possible outcomes?
The European Commission is the key institutional actor in the European Citizens’ Initiative process. It is now required to formally examine the initiative and respond by March 2, 2026. Our preparation is focused on one thing: ensuring that the Commission’s response is operational, not symbolic. The European Parliament has already made its position clear. The citizens have made their position clear. What we expect next is a concrete proposal that reflects both.
That could mean the establishment of a voluntary European financial mechanism, in line with EU law, that supports Member States willing and able to provide safe abortion care to people who cannot access it at home. If the Commission chooses a different route, it must clearly explain why and propose alternative measures with real impact. The movement does not pause because a vote passed. This is where the work becomes even more focused.
Tell me, please, who is behind the My Voice, My Choice organisation. How did the initiative begin, and what inspired the team to launch the campaign at the EU level? Your work is super inspiring; it's like a "go big or go home" kind of mindset.
My Voice, My Choice, is a citizen-led initiative coordinated by a Slovenian organisation called the 8th of March Institute. The initiative grew out of a simple but urgent observation: abortion may be legal on paper in many European countries, but access is profoundly unequal. For many women, access depends on money, geography, information, and luck.
Instead of accepting that inequality as inevitable, we asked a different question: what can Europe do when national systems fail? That question became a concrete proposal and, eventually, a European Citizens’ Initiative. As we went deeper into the campaign, it became clear just how urgent this fight is. Well over 20 million women in Europe still do not have access to safe and accessible abortion care. In Poland, women have died because hospitals prioritised the foetal heartbeat over the life and health of the woman. In Malta, abortion has long been criminalised, with a risk of prison sentences.
Across many countries, access depends on status, money, and connections. If you cannot afford to travel, take time off work, or navigate complex systems, help often does not come. That reality is unacceptable. Our goal was to reduce the number of unsafe abortions and to challenge the deep inequalities that still shape women’s lives across Europe today.
The idea began to take shape when our director, Nika Kovač, was an Obama Scholar and lived in New York during the year Roe v. Wade was overturned. Witnessing how easily basic human rights can be rolled back, and feeling the despair that followed, made it clear that we had to do everything in our power to ensure Europe does not follow the same path as the United States.
How would you define feminism, and how does your team educate through action?
Feminism is the belief that women are full human beings whose lives, health, work, and decisions matter equally. Our work educates through action. We do not lecture people about feminism. We show others what it looks like when people organise, protect each other, insist on dignity, and demand accountability.
Whether we talk about abortion access, unpaid care work, medical bias, or genocide, the message is the same: equality must be real, not theoretical.
You’ve gathered over 1.12 million verified signatures (pls let me know if this number is incorrect). How did you mobilise support across so many European countries? I signed the form online, and I felt proud to be part of this initiative and to see other Romanian women actively participating in it as well.
Yes, the number is correct: 1,124,513 verified signatures, to be precise. We reached it because the campaign was built through cooperation across Europe. From the beginning, My Voice, My Choice worked with more than 300 organisations, creating a shared structure that allowed the initiative to function across borders. We built a huge movement with thousands of volunteers who collected the signatures on the streets of cities all across Europe.
We also had early political support from people inside EU institutions who understood that the project was a citizens’ initiative and treated it accordingly. Nicolae Ștefănuță, Vice-President of the Parliament, was one of them.
The initiative named a concrete problem that exists across Europe and proposed a realistic, legally sound way to address it. People signed the initiative because the issue was already present in their lives and because the campaign treated them as political actors, not as an audience.
What role do volunteers play in the campaign, both online and offline? How can others join your organisation?
From the very beginning, thousands of people across Europe gave their time, skills, and energy to make this initiative real. They collected signatures on the street, translated materials in dozens of languages, explained the initiative to friends, neighbours, and strangers, countered misinformation online, and kept the campaign alive.
Link to donate
More than 200 watch parties took place across Europe on the day of the plenary vote in the European Parliament. In living rooms, offices, cafés, and community spaces, people gathered to follow the vote together. That mattered. It sent a clear message to Members of the European Parliament that the vote was not a distant, abstract procedure, but something people were watching, caring about, and holding them accountable for. That collective presence made the initiative visible in a way no press release ever could. It reminded decision-makers that their vote would not go unnoticed.
People can still get involved if they stay active, share accurate information, and are ready to mobilise. This movement works because people do not step back once a signature is given. They stay.
Europe is often described as culturally divided on abortion. What has this campaign revealed about solidarity and shared values across the EU?
It is true that Europe has different legal systems, histories, and cultural contexts when it comes to abortion. But what this campaign has made very clear is that, beneath those differences, there is a shared understanding of something fundamental: women should not be forced to suffer, risk their health, or die because they cannot access basic healthcare.
Throughout the campaign, support came not only from countries with liberal abortion laws but also from places where access is restricted. People signed the initiative in Poland, Malta, Croatia, Italy, Romania, and many other countries where abortion is legally limited or practically difficult to access. That matters. It shows that even where laws are restrictive, public opinion is often far more humane than the political frameworks suggest.
This initiative did not ask Europe to agree on identical laws. It asked whether we can agree on solidarity. The idea is that Europe should not ignore situations where national systems fail to protect women. The strong backing the initiative received, including from across political groups in the European Parliament, shows that abortion is not only a divisive issue. When framed as a question of health, dignity, and equality, it becomes a unifying one.
The notion of solidarity is at the heart of the European project. We already accept it when it comes to healthcare cooperation, disaster response, or regional development. My Voice, My Choice simply applies that same logic to reproductive healthcare. It acknowledges that rights on paper mean very little if access depends on where you live, how much money you have, or whether you can afford to travel.
What this campaign demonstrated is that many people across Europe, regardless of cultural background, agree on one core point: no one wants women to be pushed into unsafe situations, delayed care, or preventable harm. That shared conviction is stronger than the political noise around it, and it is precisely what made this initiative possible.
Have you had any unexpected partnerships or supporters along the way?
Yes, and the surprise wasn’t “one famous name” or one country. It was a mix. From the start, My Voice, My Choice didn’t grow as a single organisation’s campaign. It grew as a coalition. It travelled through networks that already existed: feminist groups, community organisers, unions, NGOs, informal collectives, and people who know how to show up for each other. And once it started moving, the support came from everywhere. People signed and volunteered across generations, across professions, and across lifestyles.
You’d see students and older women. You’d see healthcare professionals who deal with the consequences of blocked access and also people whose activism looks completely different: artists, drag queens... That was one of the strongest signals of the whole campaign: this was never a niche “activist bubble”. It was people from very different worlds saying the same thing: that abortion is healthcare and access cannot depend on luck, money, or borders.
Then, when the fight moved from signatures into institutions, we found support there too. That part was genuinely unlikely, because European institutions are built for procedure, not urgency. And yet, by the end, the vote showed something important: support didn’t come from one political corner. It came across political groups. Not everyone agreed on everything, but enough of them agreed on the basic point that unequal access to abortion care in Europe is real and that the EU can’t keep treating it as “someone else’s problem”.
So yes, we had unexpected supporters. Not because we discovered a perfect ally, but because the campaign kept proving the same thing: when you talk about abortion as real life, real health, and real safety, more people recognise themselves in the issue than politicians usually admit.
How do Instagram and social media in general help My Voice, My Choice achieve its goals?
Social media was essential for making the initiative visible, but it was never the whole movement. Platforms like Instagram, where we currently reach over 855,000 followers and connect with hundreds of millions of accounts each month, were the initial source of awareness for many people about My Voice, My Choice. That matters. It allowed us to bypass traditional gatekeepers, respond quickly to misinformation, and speak directly to people across borders.
But we would not have succeeded by holding digital space alone. A movement does not exist only on screens. What made the difference was what happened beyond them: people standing at signature tables, organising events, having difficult conversations face to face, and convincing friends, family members, and colleagues.
Without that work on the ground, there would be no signatures, no pressure, and no credibility inside institutions. Social media opened the door, but mobilisation is what got us through it.
One reason the campaign has travelled so far is also due to the way we used these platforms. We did not treat abortion as an isolated issue or soften our message to make it more comfortable. We spoke about power, inequality, and bodily autonomy in a wider context. We did not look away from authoritarianism, repression, or genocide, because we believe feminism loses its meaning the moment it becomes selective. That clarity resonated with people.
At the same time, social media is not a neutral space. We have experienced repeated shadowbanning and coordinated reporting of our content by anti-abortion groups trying to limit our reach. We have also seen platforms restrict or remove accounts sharing abortion information and queer content more broadly, which makes it clear how fragile digital visibility can be. That is another reason why building real-world networks mattered so much to us. Algorithms can change overnight. Communities do not.
How do you stay positive and energised in the face of setbacks or political opposition?
We do not romanticise opposition. We take breaks. We lean on each other. And we remember why this effort matters. Opposition is often loud, but it is rarely larger than it appears. The scale of support reminds us that we are not a fringe movement. We are responding to a real, widespread need. And there are so many of us who care!
What are your plans for 2026, and how can we, the community, support My Voice, My Choice initiatives?
By 2 March 2026, the European Commission must formally respond to the My Voice, My Choice initiative and say what concrete steps it will take. That moment matters, because it will show whether the will of more than a million people is taken seriously or pushed aside.
For our community, support in 2026 means staying engaged after the vote. Keeping attention on the Commission, speaking to decision-makers, challenging misinformation, etc. Everything we have achieved so far happened because people stayed present and applied pressure, step by step. This is not the end of the fight. It is the phase where persistence matters most. Today’s political support only becomes meaningful if it leads to action, and that will depend on how loudly and consistently people demand it.
I am currently establishing an association, along with other amazing women, called FEM (Feminine Empowerment Movement), to empower women in rural areas and transform these communities because their voices matter too. What advice would your team give to our association or any organisation aiming to create positive changes for girls, women, and society as a whole?
Start where you are and with the people around you. Real change does not begin with visibility but with trust. Small communities matter more than they seem, especially in places that are often overlooked. Be persistent. You will face resistance, sometimes from places you did not expect, and it can be exhausting. Try not to take it personally. Pushback often means you are touching something that matters. At the same time, be open to unexpected support. It can come from unlikely directions.
You don’t have to do this alone. Build a community that knows how to care for each other, because solidarity is not just a slogan; it is what keeps movements going when things get hard. Progress is rarely linear, but if you stay connected, consistent, and present, it adds up.
