No model comes to mind with greater credibility and force of conviction on the subject of positive sexuality and women’s reproductive health than Anja Rubik. To underscore her deep commitment to this core value of a democratic society, Anja covers the December 2020 issue of Vogue Poland. And she’s not wearing designer dresses.

However desperate the fight for women to control their own bodies may be in America, it’s worse in Poland.

American women are terrified by the forces of the Vatican, Donald Trump and his white nationalist allies worldwide, and evangelicals like rapper named Kanye West, recruited to the anti-abortion movement directly by God, who spoke to him in the shower.

Anja Rubik is correct when she cites new Polish laws against women and families that are much worse than what we are experiencing here in America. Educated women worldwide know that controlling women’s bodies is ground zero in the growth of white nationalism and fascism worldwide.

Anja Rubik is very courageous to speak to publicly and use her body to make this political statement in the December 2020 pages of Vogue Poland. Having been in police protection myself for a year, after speaking out on abortion rights, I know that Anja is taking a much bigger risk than the one that put me in the crosshairs of a crazed man determined to kill me for my support of Planned Parenthood.

Rubik’s op-ed has been republished on British Vogue, American Vogue and Vogue India. I will check them all, and it would be wonderful if all Vogue’s have published Anja’s op-ed titled “We Are Only Free When Everyone Is Equal”: Anja Rubik On The Abortion Crisis In Poland.” AOC shares Anja’s call to action:

In 2020, our Poland is a divided country, and as a Polish woman, I have grave fears. Church and state have merged, giving birth to conflict and contradiction. A woman’s right to choose is under siege, the LGBTQIA+ community is treated like second-class citizens, and sex education is being phased out.

Poland has the strictest abortion legislation in the EU. Abortion is illegal with three exceptions [in cases of rape, incest or where there’s a threat to the mother’s life], and these exceptions are being slowly erased. This will affect not just our women, but our entire community. On 22 October, the Constitutional Court outlawed abortion in the case of severe and irreversible foetal impairment. This basically means that the state will force women to carry their pregnancies to term and give birth to children with severe deformities who may die, in extreme pain, just minutes after. The state is starting to interfere with our most personal decisions that impact our life, our destiny, our health and safety.

A woman’s right to choose is the litmus test for a healthy and progressive society. This moment in time will affect the Polish community for decades to come. Our women – our mothers, wives and daughters of the future – are relying on us to put them first.

Meanwhile, the LGBTQIA+ community in Poland lives in fear. We are a sum of parts, and to allow a faction to be marginalised or discriminated against is abhorrent and cowardly. So much of this behaviour is fear-based and ignorant. A Polish church that picks and chooses its dogma to manipulate an outcome is a direct contradiction of where Pope Francis is leading the Catholic faith in 2020 and beyond. To those who are LGBTQIA+ phobic, I would ask you to confront your fears and be better. Poland is better than this. We are better than this.

I started a sex-education foundation in Poland in 2017 [called SexedPL]. It wasn’t as much a passion project, as it was a practical solution. For thousands of years, sex has been part of our lives, beyond algebra and physics. We are here, every single one of us, at a cellular level, because of sex. How is it possible to imagine a healthy community where we don’t teach our children about their bodies, their personal boundaries, consent and safe sex? Sex is inherently personal, comes with deep insecurities and dangers, and to simply ignore or reject it is irresponsible and a step backwards for Poland. In 2020, the Polish government is doing its best to censor and ultimately ban sex education. The adults of tomorrow face an isolated and uncertain future without the very best community care and structured education. Our government’s attack on sex education is an attack on our children.

There are moments and days where I feel deflated and terrified. Let me be clear: I feel I’m no more significant than the next Polish citizen. My family and community are riddled with anxiety and uncertainty. I watch the protests on the streets, provoked by the abortion ruling, with a mixture of pride and terror as I wonder how our Poland has become this place. After all we have faced over the past 100 years – the adversity, the heroes, the lessons learned – we find ourselves here. I try to stay positive and do everything in my power to support the men and women rebelling against oppression and fighting for our freedom, and the recognition of human rights. During low moments, I share phone calls and conversations with my friends and restore my confidence that we can make the change by being brave and speaking out.

We have learned many things during our lifetime, but a fundamental that underpins us is that ‘our Poland’ has the ability to thrive and adapt during crises. There is goodness in every single one of us. We need to remain calm, listen, focus and never undermine our own integrity. We are only free when everyone is equal.

Anja Rubik: “We Are Only Free When Everyone Is Equal”: Anja Rubik On The Abortion Rights Crisis In Poland British Vogue

Related: Why Polish women are furious at the government VOX Dec. 9, 2020

In Poland, Protests Over Abortion Ban Could Revolutionize Politics New York Times Dec. 7, 2020

Why Are There Protests in Poland? New York Times Nov. 26, 2020

AOC is also sharing an important article on controlling women’s bodies, over a decade old but even more important today than when it was written. Prof. Stephen Conn, who wanted the article published on Anne of Carversville, surely believes that this threat of White nationalism is on the rise all over America — just as he predicted. Controlling women’s bodies is ground zero in the rise of nationalism and the end of liberal democracies. This is not only a Polish problem.

Thanks again to Anja Rubik, whose actions on behalf of abortion rights, women’s rights, LGBTQIA+ rights and equality in general — especially in the arena of sexuality — are bold and courageous. ~ Anne