Since her publication ban was lifted in May 2021, Morrell has dedicated her free time to advocating for an amendment to section 486.4 of the Criminal Code. With her passion for justice and talent for policy development, she has been a vocal champion for the right of a victim-complainant of a sexual offence to choose if a publication ban is right for them. In October 2022, Morrell testified before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights as part of the study into government obligations to victims of crime. She was extensively quoted in the Committee’s December 2022 report that found an amendment to section 486.4 was needed. Her dedication to gender equality and feminism permeates both her personal projects and professional career.

When she is not calling and emailing Parliamentarians, Morrell finds joy skiing the Cascade mountains, camping in the forest, hosting dinner parties, propagating plants, and searching for starfish along the seawall.

Morrell currently works as a federal public servant and is based on the unceded territory of the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh peoples in what is known as Vancouver. She holds a bachelor's degree in International Relations and Political Science from the University of British Columbia (2017).

Kelly Favro has advocated for sexual assault survivor's rights since 2020 when she first learned there was a publication ban on her name preventing her sharing her sexual assault story and identifying herself as a victim-survivor.

In 2021, Kelly became the first person in British Columbia’s history to have a publication ban vacated on her name by self-representation in the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Since the removal of the ban, she has aided several women in navigating a complicated legal system, between helping them prepare for court appearances and the court process, helping them understand what the enforced publication ban means, and how to apply to lift the ban, should they choose.

Kelly has been a national and local vocal activist calling for change surrounding publication bans. She proudly joined a group of survivors at Parliament Hill in October 2022 to support testimony, evidence and reporting documents presented to the Justice Committee’s Obligations to Victims of Crime Report. The group's recommendations were successfully adopted into the final report in December 2022. Kelly resides in Victoria, British Columbia with her co-parent and their 2-year-old daughter, who she works tirelessly for in her efforts to ensure her daughter's future generation is safer than those before it.

Samantha, like many of the other people behind the My Voice, My Choice initiative, spent nearly two years working to lift the publication ban on her name, and was forced to endure outrageous harassment from her community while she was forced into an unwanted silence.

Since the publication ban was lifted on her name, she has dedicated her life to being the hand and shoulder that she desperately needed when she came forward. She understands first hand how lonely and isolating the coming forward process is, and since she has helped dozens of others in the process, acting as a mentor and guide for women who were previously too afraid to use their voices.

In addition to her activism, Samantha enjoys spending time with her daughter and creating a happy, safe home to grow up in. She has taken multiple courses on parenting, anxiety management, and mental health, even going so far as working with her teachers to improve courses and edit their content for future students. Her hobbies include mental health research and outreach, baking, board games, and she is also currently working towards publishing a children's book.

She remains committed to the fight for justice and equality, always with a focus on empowering women and promoting positive change.

Brandy Mullen is an educator, real estate investor, and newly published author of Believe Journal - a guided journal to help you reach your biggest goal. She also grew up in a time when children were “to be seen and not heard”, survived years of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), and 30 years after the abuse occurred she gave a statement to the police.



Coming forward, Brandy was well aware of the low statistics around convictions, and in her case especially, due to a lack of physical evidence. But despite this knowledge, in 2019 she came forward and set strong boundaries with the people close to her who continued to have a relationship with her abuser, as they were the right decisions for her mental health.



Like so many of the founding members of My Voice, My Choice, Brandy learned that an unwanted publication ban was placed on her name. Lifting the ban was time consuming and frustrating, but due to her persistence, in March 2022, the same day of the verdict, the ban on her name was removed.

And, like so many other people who have come forward, Brandy’s attacker is now a “former accused”, and was found not guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. After the verdict, feeling a profound sense of abandonment, she entered a deep depression. However, with her publication ban removed and a strong desire to help other CSA survivors/victims/warriors know they are not alone, she asked her friend to tell her story in the local paper. After the article went live, Kelly Farvo reached out to her, and in less than six months, they and others met in Ottawa. 

Brandy wants you to know that if you find yourself standing alone and setting boundaries with family and friends who appear to side with your abuser-you are not alone. In fact, it is more common than you may believe. She wants you to know that you are believed, sane, and 100% doing the right thing for you.

Aside from helping so many to heal, Brandy’s passions include travelling, reading, hiking with her dog, and anything water related (paddle boarding, kayaking, swimming).

Carrie is driven to fulfill her mission to ensure that Survivors may experience the full meaning of justice.

In 2020 Carrie made a very significant change in the law concerning municipal police complaints in Nova Scotia, extending the timeline from six months to twelve when it comes to making complaints against municipal police forces for misconduct.

In October 2021, Carrie had to retain her own lawyer to lift a publication ban she wasn’t even aware existed and did not consent to. The judge noted he would not have revoked the ban without the Crown’s consent, and in November 2021, the accused in Carrie’s criminal case was murdered and her case was dismissed. In early 2022, police and the prosecution revealed a new accused individual to try for sexual assault. Accordingly, Carrie’s ongoing Police Review Board hearing and civil lawsuit against the Halifax Regional Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have been further delayed.

Almost five years after Carrie’s sexual assault, she has yet to receive justice for the violence committed against her both by the accused, and by the police.

Inspired by her own journey, Carrie has created two organizations to address the lack of financial, therapeutic, health and legal support for survivors. In 2020, Carrie founded Survivors for Change and Empowerment, which is a network for survivors of sexualized violence providing legal advocacy, resources, education and workshops about the criminal justice system. In 2021, Carrie began Carrie Low Training and Consulting to offer trauma-informed training and consulting to professional justice institutions to ensure that survivors are treated appropriately. In January 2023, Carrie started a new program through Survivors for Change & Empowerment in collaboration with The Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia, providing legal advocacy for victims and survivors of sexualized violence who want to make a complaint against any municipal police or RCMP in Nova Scotia.

Née Pinkney, Maarika Freund is an artist who does her best to confront real-life issues in a way that is both relatable and digestible.

Like many of the others who are behind the My Voice, My Choice initiative, Maarika had to hire a lawyer and pay out-of-pocket to lift an unwanted publication ban that was put in place without her consent. It was an incredibly arduous process, and she wasn’t taken seriously by the Canadian Court system until she had hired a lawyer to assist her.

One thing that’s a bit different about the case Maarika participated in, however, is that she didn’t come out “the victor”, so to speak, and the now former accused was found not-guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This is an incredibly common outcome within the Canadian Court System, as it’s very difficult to convict someone of an indictable offence. Maarika feels no need to be embarrassed or ashamed, as the end result doesn’t invalidate her truth, her experience, or her story. To her, the outcome is a symptom of a larger root cause: that we live in a society built to support rape culture.

Since the ban has been lifted on her name, Maarika moved to Tel Aviv and launched a podcast called peaches, dedicated to everything she learned while dedicating her life to never being raped again. It’s her goal to make this “complicated” subject matter more accessible so that we can work towards healing. Maarika also infuses humour into her storytelling whenever and where-ever possible.

Since its launch in October 2021, peaches has received acclaim from The Jerusalem Post Magazine, noting it as one of the podcasts being produced out of Israel that’s worth keeping an ear out for. In September of 2023, the theatre adaptation of the peaches will debut at the Vancouver Fringe Festival.

Jade was born and raised on one of the tiny gulf islands off of Vancouver Island. She completed a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Victoria, which she credits for her critical thinking skills and tenacity.

Jade has been actively volunteering to improve access to and quality of sexual health care and education since 2016. She brought her governance and advocacy experience to My Voice, My Choice in early 2021 when she learned there was a publication ban on her name. She asked the court to remove her ban three times before her case was concluded and attended court three more times afterward before her ban was lifted.

Since lifting the ban, Jade has participated in a letter-writing campaign, has had multiple media appearances, and contributed to recommendations to the parliamentary committee.

The activism Jade participates in is largely made possible due to her incredibly supportive partner and her adorable dog named Ziggy. When she’s not engaged in her philanthropic efforts, Jade can be found gardening, cooking, baking, practicing Spanish with her 3-year-old nephew, or backpacking around Vancouver Island.

Elinor is a dedicated policy specialist and gender advocate working to make law and public policy more equitable. She is currently leading the development of Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) at Global Affairs Canada.

Originally from Vancouver, Elinor was part of the first Masters cohort in WPS at the London School of Economics. As a nationally recognized leader and community advocate, she uses her skills and time to build bridges and community around reimagining law and public policy.

Having experienced the barriers that young people face in her field, Elinor co-founded Our Generation for Inclusive Peace (OGIP), a research and advocacy platform for young people shaking up peace and security. Through OGIP, Elinor launched and runs a global network of young gender equity and peace advocates. She has held fellowships with Women in International Security and the Leadership lab, spoke at the United Nations Generation Equality Forum, and has publicly testified before the House of Commons Status of Women Committee on the importance of equitable representation in leadership.

Elinor previously worked for the Canadian Red Cross, and has served on the Board of Directors of Women in International Security - Canada, the Canadian International Council (Vancouver Branch), Leave Out Violence Society BC, and was a member of the International Humanitarian Law Steering Committee for the Canadian Red Cross in BC & Yukon.

For the last several years, Jessica has been quietly advocating with and for survivors while helping them navigate the complexities of the legal system. Her own experiences led her to pursue a career in law later in life, with the goal of making big, explosive changes to the criminal legal system, only to find that the system was built with the perpetrator’s rights in mind around every corner. She became acutely aware of the barriers and social and legal stigma as she undertook extensive research projects in both criminal and civil sexualized violence complaints. Jessica’s major research areas have focused on defamation laws in the #MeToo Era, and the incompatibility and imbalance of a victim-survivor’s rights to freedom of expression and the rights of the perpetrator. With a victim-survivor centric approach, Jessica has dedicated her advocacy focus on questioning these systems that perpetuate the silencing of those who are impacted by sexualized and intimate partner violence, while championing the voices of those who must be heard.

As a survivor of child sexual abuse and intimate partner violence, and a victim of sexual assault, Jessica has had the unique experience of reporting to police in to countries and as a complainant in an independent third-party investigation. Jessica is a true believer in consent-education and volunteers her time to host consent talks to groups of youths to better understand their own autonomy, boundaries, intervention and how to foster a consent culture in every aspect of life.

Jessica came to Canada as a teenager and is privileged to have called Vancouver Island home for the last two decades. She lives with her husband and two small (but very loud) dogs. Jessica is an active listener and observer by nature; one who prefers to study people and things to see how they operate. An introvert with a big personality, Jessica finds her healing in the mountains and trails of Vancouver Island or an early morning walk by the ocean in total silence with her thoughts - it helps to remind her that healing happens in the simplest of moments.

Jessica is certified in Trauma Informed Practice and holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) Degree from the University of Essex.