You may know Amber Rose as a former stripper, an iconic designer and author, a beautiful model, an outspoken intelligent activist and entrepreneur, a talk show host, the ex girlfriend of Kanye West, Wiz Khalifa’s “baby momma”, Blac Chyna’s best friend, or a Dancing with the Stars contestant. Whatever you know her as, you have to agree that she is awesome. Her boldness is exemplified through her buzzed hair, her unapologetic self confidence, and her “pro hoe” agenda.
One of Amber Rose’s biggest accomplishments as a feminist is her creation of the Amber Rose SlutWalk. The SlutWalk’s mission is: “To deliver a flawlessly executed event geared toward raising awareness about sexual injustice and gender inequality. The Amber Rose SlutWalk aims to impact and uplift while shifting the paradigm of rape culture. The event provides a safe, all-inclusive space to entertain, educate and empower. It is about self-expression, unity, shedding stereotypes and supporting one another.” This year, the event is being held in Los Angeles on October 1st (get a ticket here). The term “SlutWalk” may be offsetting at first, but that is exactly the point. The bluntness and sheer shock factor are just two things that set this movement apart from other modern day feminism campaigns. Just take a look at some of the SlutWalk merchandise and you will see exactly how uninhibited the SlutWalk really is. This is unsettling for people who aren’t accustomed to unrestrained women empowerment and outspokenness on the topics of sex and promiscuity, which is kinda the point. The definition and society acceptability of the word “slut” is changing, and yeah – it makes ignorant slut shamers mad. We are reclaiming the word “slut”, which has been used against sexually liberated women throughout history, and with that – we are also reclaiming our confidence, our sexuality, and our femininity.
The SlutWalk isn’t just a simple shock factor though, it represents so much more for women, sex workers, feminists, members of the LGBTQA+ community, and even victims of sexual abuse. The SlutWalk perfectly embodies feminist ideals such as body positivity, support for sex workers, destigmatization of the lives of sex positive people, and aid for sexual assault survivors. Whether you like to post #bodyposi selfies on Twitter, have casual sex, or advocate for sexual assault awareness, you can find the Amber Rose SlutWalk to be a safe place.
The SlutWalk is actually formulated from the non-profit organization, the Amber Rose Foundation, whose mission reads: “All things ‘women empowerment’”. The Amber Rose Foundation aims to “promote discussion about women’s rights and equality issues. The foundation is specifically geared towards women empowerment and fighting against victim blaming.” That is: “no more sexual violence, no more victim blaming, no more derogatory labels, and no more gender inequality”.
You may be wondering exactly what kind of activities one does at the Amber Rose SlutWalk. There’s walking as a unified group (hence the “walk” in SlutWalk), contests and giveaways, art exhibitions, vendors (sex toys and boutique clothing go great together by the way), guest speakers, live performances (dance, vocal, and DJs), sign making, educational booths (free condoms anyone?), and free breast exams and HIV tests. There’s also tons of ways to get involved besides actually attending the SlutWalk. You can donate or participate in “Flood the Feed” on social media.
Also, the Amber Rose SlutWalk acknowledges the hardships that marginalized groups endure: “Further, we recognize that shaming, oppression, assault and violence have disproportionately impacted marginalized groups, including women of color, transgender people and sex workers, and thus we are actively working to center these groups in this event. We deeply value the voices of marginalized groups and have a strong desire to find common ground among all of our intersections.”
The Amber Rose SlutWalk is a cause that is near and dear to my heart. My original art piece was chosen out of hundreds of submissions to be a part of the 2016 Amber Rose SlutWalk. This was a huge accomplishment for me, as both an artist and a feminist. If you attend the SlutWalk keep an eye out for my painting! Pictured below is me holding my featured artwork.
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