This Sunday (Oct. 1) will see the third annual SlutWalk, a daylong affair hosted and organized by entertainer, model, entrepreneur and activist Amber Rose.
In advance of the event, which kicks off in downtown Los Angeles’ Pershing Square tomorrow morning, the movement’s fearless and ever-candid leader sits down exclusively with REVOLT TV’s Marisa Mendez to talk about the support she’s received, the criticism she’s faced and how her ongoing effort to empower women is not a game.
This year’s event, which will be officially hosted by Big Boy, features a mile-long awareness walk and accompanying pep rally, complete with sign-making, on-site HIV testing, sexual awareness booths, food vendors, a pink carpet, various celebrity appearances and live music performances from the likes of Jenzi, Margie Plus, Just Brittney and O.T. Genasis.
“You must walk, you have to walk,” Rose begins, diving into the details surrounding the third-annual affair. “You have to do the protest first and then you enjoy the festivities from like 12 to 5.”
“It takes me a year to put this on, this is not a game,” she continues, sharing her own personal tips regarding how to prepare for the SlutWalk. “You want to bring a little backpack, a cute little situation, you want to have baby wipes and stuff like that. It’s going to be a hot day. I suggest that you don’t wear a lot of make-up. You’re gonna be twerking, you gon’ be laughing. You’ll be dancing. You will be very inspired.”
She then exclaims how her nonprofit’s goal for the SlutWalk is to create a safe, inclusive space for all, specifically women, and inspire others to feel free to be themselves. These qualities are an integral part of her organization’s core mission to work towards gender equality and end rape culture, victim blaming, slut and body shaming, among other social injustice issues.
“We have a celebration for women the rest of the day where you can come and be in a safe place where you can wear whatever you want, say whatever you want,” Rose continues, sporting a shirt that reads “We Should All Be Feminists” across the front. “No one is judging you. We don’t really get that, maybe on Halloween. This is like Halloween on steroids…”
“With a message attached,” Mendez adds, to Rose’s agreement.
Rose then explains that they will have a sign-making station and will provide supplies for those marching to get involved with the protest.
“You basically write whatever sign pertains to your life and what you’ve been through,” she adds. “We have a whole drumline and everything, it’s just really an amazing event. You’ll be very surprised as to how huge it is.”
Mendez then recalls the event’s inaugural year in 2015, with Rose explaining the event has massively grown, thanks in part to her unwavering vision and the support of her friends.
“The first year was 2,500,” Rose reflects. “That’s 2,500 people with zero sponsors, nobody wanted me on their radio show, nobody wanted to do any press for me. I literally asked all my rich friends for money. I was like, guys, I know you think this is crazy, but I need your money so just trust me that I will work hard to make sure this is amazing. Nicki Minaj gave me a lot of money, Nick Cannon gave me a lot of money. Ne-Yo. Just so many random people I had in my phone.”
Mendez asks if Rose sent out a mass text asking for help, a notion that Rose promptly shut down, explaining she took a note from Diddy’s storied playbook and got on the phone to recruit donations and support.
“Diddy taught me well,” she adds, reaffirming Mendez’s comment that she took the Diddy method of handling business. “Diddy and Russell, I really look up to them as mentors.”
“The next year, 11,000 people,” Rose further elaborates, touching on the growth the movement has experienced with each edition. “I didn’t stop. I talk about SlutWalk constantly. I took a lot of punches for SlutWalk. I dealt with a lot of scrutiny and ridicule for SlutWalk, but I believed in it. I know it sounds corny, but if you believe it, you can achieve it. I wouldn’t let anybody bring me down or tell me I need to change the name, ‘cuz a lot of people told me that.”
In true form to her fiery personality and passionate work ethic, Rose stuck to her guns and pushed forward, with this year’s event poised to be the largest yet, something that was reaffirmed with Big Boy signing on to host.
“First of all, let’s just say, I’m a huge fan of his but he is a gigantically huge fan of mine,” Rose explains. “He loves the movement, he loves everything that I’m doing. I was like, let me just call Big Boy and maybe if he’ll do it. But that’s me. I call people. I don’t text people. I’ll call yo’ ass. And I made it happen.”
For more information on Amber Rose’s third annual SlutWalk and how to get involved, please visit here.
Check out a clip from Amber Rose’s exclusive sit-down with REVOLT above and be sure to keep it locked, with the full sit-down interview coming soon.
Interview by Marisa Mendez, with additional reporting by KC Orcutt