In her own words…

01 What do you most miss about campus?
I miss being able to walk down State Street and testify on legislative bills at the Capitol between classes. And I miss open mic night at the Angelic Brewing Company. (I heard it closed!)
02 What was your favorite class?
African Storytelling
03 Who is your hero? Who or what inspires you?
My grandmother, Lorraine, is my hero. I travel across the country, and no matter where I am, I call her every day. Everything inspires me — the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, clouds, the smile of a stranger.
04 What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
05 What’s your favorite quote?
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
— Margaret Mead (This quote is on my business cards, and I use it in my speeches!)
06 What’s next for you and your company / business / profession / service? What do you see happening or hope will happen in the next five years?
PAVE is not just an organization; it is a movement. PAVE continues to expand its reach and scope across the globe and raise donations to fund our vital projects. Also, we’re leveraging pop culture by continuing to foster our relationship with MTV. Right now, we are working closely with Sarah Rice of MTV’s Real World. We are also working closely with the arts community in Los Angeles, D.C., Chicago and New York. I think using art is an important piece for social justice movements.
07 What music do you listen to?
I love music! I write music, play guitar, sing and enjoy an eclectic mix. I love all types of music (though I’m not a country fan), and it all depends on the mood. Like today, I am writing this from the road in Washington, D.C. There’s a cold autumn rain, and it’s a Miles Davis Kind of Blue album day.
08 What occupies your free time?
I’m working on my first book: Bound & Beyond
09 What was your first job?
I always babysat for neighborhood kids. (I’m the oldest of three girls, so I had a lot of experience.) But my first real job was working in a warehouse doing physical labor when I was 14 or 15 — I was the only woman in the warehouse, and I put the guys to shame! I’ve never been afraid of hard work!
10 What’s your guilty pleasure?
Reading about fashion in tabloids

At seventeen, Angela Rose faced a crisis that would have broken many people. She was kidnapped near her home, bound and sexually assaulted. But instead of letting that experience destroy her life, she used it to find her calling — working to aid the victims of sexual assault.

“After I was kidnapped, my grandmother, Lorraine, was the first to call me,” Rose says. “She told me that I was strong enough for this, that I could make a difference.”

Inspired by her grandmother, Rose set herself on a path to becoming politically active. As a student at UW-Madison, she sought out student organizations that work to combat rape, and though she found a variety of services, she didn’t find the group she was looking for. “There was a lot of great one-to-one counseling for victims, but nothing that did grassroots organizing or that tried to engage men in the effort to stop sexual assault,” she says. And so, in 2000, she formed her own group: Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment, or PAVE.

In the decade since PAVE first began, it’s grown far beyond Madison and now has chapters in fifty-five cities and three countries. The growth of her organization has surprised even Rose. “It was powerful to me,” she says, “even at seventeen, to see a community take this issue to heart.”

As the head of PAVE, Rose now spends up to half her time on the road, working with groups around the nation to try to prevent sexual violence. Recent efforts include launching several arts-based initiatives, including an exhibit at New York City’s Aytia Matia artists’ collective, and writing her autobiography, Bound and Beyond, which she hopes to have published this year.

For more information about PAVE, see the organization’s Web site at www.shatteringthesilence.org.