Olivia Julianna, the Young Activist Fighting for Abortion Rights

At a conservative youth summit in July, US Representative Matt Gaetz, a Republican from Florida, body-shamed abortion-rights activists, saying, “They are like 5 foot 2, 350 pounds, and they’re like, ‘Give me my abortions, or I’ll get up and march and protest.’ ” In response, Olivia Julianna tweeted, “I’m actually 5'11. 6'4 in heels. I wear them so the small men like you are reminded of your place.” The post went viral, acting as a rallying cry for abortion-rights supporters in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June. Julianna capitalized on the attention by starting a fundraising campaign through Gen-Z for Change, a nonprofit formerly known as TikTok for Biden. The donations were split among 50 abortion funds in states with bans.

Julianna has described herself as a “queer, plus-size, disabled Latina.” A fourth-generation Texan, she also uses social media to advocate for other causes affecting young people, such as fighting climate change. She’s campaigned online against Texas Governor Greg Abbott—she promoted Beto O’Rourke’s candidacy on TikTok with the hashtag #bestiebeto—and the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton. Her followers on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter have reached about 1 million combined, and publications including Teen Vogue have written about her efforts to take on bullying politicians with savvy trolling techniques. In the wake of the dust-up with Gaetz, she offered to send him flowers for every $100,000 she raised. He doesn’t seem to have replied.