How two AUC alumni launched a movement for safer universities: “We never imagined this would reach the King”
Co-founder Gabriella Thompson (left) during an Our Bodies Our Voice workshop.
On the cusp of the #MeToo movement gaining global traction, Claudia Dictus and Gabriella Thompson (Class of ’18) – then students at AUC – began organizing awareness campaigns and workshops on sexual violence for their peers. What started as a grassroots initiative on campus has since grown into Stichting Our Bodies Our Voice, a foundation working at a national scale, dedicated to making every university in the Netherlands safer. In this joint interview the co-founders reflect on their journey and share what it takes to create lasting change in today’s institutional landscape. “Hope is the strongest political tool we have.”
When asked about whether their experiences at AUC shaped their current engagement with Our Bodies Our Voice, both Claudia Dictus and Gabriella Thompson credit the media classes they took for giving them the critical lens that helped shape their foundation. Gabriella recalls a pivotal course, Perspectives on Games, which went far beyond its title. “The course delved into gender roles and how society portrays women in virtual spaces. It really opened up more than just critique – it introduced me to a theoretical framework in a way that allowed me to reflect on both theory and personal experience.”
Film courses further supported this framework, prompting questions about representation, consent, and the subtle ways media shapes perception. But theory alone wasn’t enough. “These discussions were important, but I felt like something was missing – like we weren’t addressing the full extent of how wrong some of these issues were. That frustration turned into action.”
Claudia echoes a similar sentiment, especially by sitting at the intersection between media and public health. “The analytical tools and transdisciplinary perspective I developed at AUC stayed with me. I found myself wanting to explore where media, health, and lived experiences meet. That’s still where I position my work now – at Our Bodies Our Voice, but also in my PhD. I’m currently at the Child and Adolescent Public Health research department of Amsterdam UMC, where I look at the big picture of how we can support healthy communities and protect future generations.”
From teal cupcakes to structural change
The origins of Our Bodies Our Voice trace back to their campus initiative called ASAP, which started in 2016.
Gabriella: “During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we handed out teal cupcakes [ed. the official colour of anti-sexual violence advocacy] and asked students to write uplifting messages to survivors. We received so many messages. Some were beautiful. Others were filled with confusion, asking what sexual violence even is. But that was the point.”
“When we first started out, this wasn’t a conversation that was being had at all,” Claudia confirms. “By now we know that there are much higher statistics of sexual violence amongst students. From ages 18 to 25, that’s when most cases of sexual violence occur.”
From there, Our Bodies Our Voice took shape. When the #MeToo movement gained traction, the initiative became a foundation in 2019, and they partnered formally with the University of Amsterdam through the Central Diversity Office.
“We realized the problem wasn’t limited to one campus,” Gabriella explains. “University students across the country face similar risks, and the institutional structures aren’t built to address them properly.”
“From ages 18 to 25, that’s when most cases of sexual violence occur”
Making consent a national conversation
Their workshops – now implemented at multiple Dutch universities across the country – target everyone from first-year students to PhDs and teaching staff.
“With students, it’s about awareness and empowerment. For faculty, it’s about accountability and responsibility,” says Gabriella. “There’s vulnerability in both roles, but different needs. Universities are ecosystems of power dynamics that need to be named before they can be changed.”
Their work recently culminated in a conversation with King Willem-Alexander and Commissioner Mariëtte Hamer about tackling sexual violence in higher education, an unexpected highlight.
“We never imagined this would reach the King. What was most beautiful to me about that moment was that it really feels like having momentum, to the point that national figures are taking notice and are making space for these conversations,” Claudia shares. “Inviting everyone at the table for this conversation, which we notice in our roles as well, is a balancing act. But when everyone is able to talk to each other about such a difficult and uncomfortable subject, that’s when the change happens.”
A call for centralized, intersectional policy
While Our Bodies Our Voice has influenced national policy discussions on anti-sexual violence and celebrates these successes, the team still sees deep systemic gaps.
Gabriella: “There needs to be a single, centralized reporting and support system at universities. Right now, there’s no standard. Some social safety officers have zero power, others are drowning in responsibilities.”
“The language around consent and sexual violence has evolved so much in the past decade”
Claudia adds: “It’s a typical case of Dutch fragmentation. A lot of people and organizations are currently working on these issues all over the country – from municipalities and universities to student associations. But central coordination is lacking. A more united front would immensely increase these efforts.”
Additionally, both underscore the need for social responsibility and accountability. “If you decide that you don’t care how you affect people,” Gabriella says, “then you can lose the privilege to be in a diverse space with vulnerable people who want to work, study, and learn with you.”
Reflecting on the future of their foundation, Gabriella wishes that one day Our Bodies Our Voice won’t need to exist. “The hope is for every university to have its own robust, accessible, intersectional system – so that a separate foundation like ours wouldn’t be necessary.”
Until then, they continue building, advocating, and training new generations. The current political climate, where progress is matched with backlash, does not make that task easier. “Hate speech is becoming more normalized. Online violence is real. It’s frightening,” Gabriella admits. “But at the same time, the language around consent and sexual violence has evolved so much in the past decade.”
“Even when politics regress, people on the ground keep doing the work. That consistency matters”
Claudia recalls a concept from one of her media courses at AUC, the ‘Overton Window’. “It defines what’s acceptable to say in public discourse. That window has now shifted – for better and worse. But even when politics regress, people on the ground keep doing the work. That consistency matters.”
For those students and alumni wanting to launch similar initiatives, both founders stress the importance of finding the right people and learning from other non-profits that are already in business. And: “Do not give into the temptation to get jaded, for it is easy. Hope is the strongest political tool we have,” Claudia concludes. “Refuse to be lost and overwhelmed. You need others for that as well. And so we invite people to keep working with us.”
Want to learn more or get involved?
Visit Our Bodies Our Voice to find out about their workshops, training programmes, and how you can contribute to safer university campuses in the Netherlands.