Gina Martin

Gina Martin doesn’t have a political background. But in 2017, after a fellow concertgoer took a photo up her skirt without her consent and police told her it wasn’t a criminal act, she made it her mission to change the law. For over a year, Martin pushed the British Parliament to criminalize so-called upskirting, raising awareness on social media and writing op-eds. In January 2019, lawmakers passed a bill criminalizing the act in England and Wales. Martin has since written a book inspired by the experience, Be the Change: A Toolkit for the Activist in You, that she says she hopes will light a fire beneath readers: “I want people to believe they can push for change at any level.” —Madeline Roache