12/6/23, 10:47 PM Amanda Nguyen and Rise

Amanda Nguyen and Rise

In 2014, Amanda Nguyen founded the Rise foundation, an organization made to protect the rights
of survivors of sexual assault, sexual harassment, and rape. Almost a decade later, Nguyen and
her foundation have made monumental changes all throughout the world. Not only have they
tackled issues with the sexual assault justice system within the U.S., they have also taken it
worldwide. Not only that, they have picked up new initiatives along the way, making an impact on
the world in several fronts instead of just the one. Even though they have achieved so much in just
10 years, they continue to fight for justice and for the civil rights we are all guarenteed.

The Beginning
1 May 2013 - 1 Nov 2013

In her final semester of her senior year at Harvard, Amanda Nguyen was raped. Even though she
survived the attack, she was then forced to endure the failing justice system against these things. She
saw this as a thing in need of change, and she determined that she would be the one to do it.
When Amanda Nguyen was raped, she went to the justice system for help, only to find a system "rigged against
survivors." The justice system she saw was flawed, letting those who committed these horrific crimes go unserved and
leave their victims to deal with the consequences. The system destroyed victims' rape kits, their most concrete piece
of evidence, and then in most cases, refused to convict the criminal due to "lack of evidence." Nguyen saw this and
many other flaws as issues in dire need of fixing.

The Founding of RISE

1 Nov 2014 - 30 Nov 2014

In November of 2014, Amanda Nguyen started RISE. The goal of the foundation: to protect the rights
of sexual assault and rape survivors. Nguyen took her horrific experience and used it to fuel change,
starting with this company founding.
“Amanda had realized she had a choice: accept the system or rewrite the law. So she rewrote the law & created Rise
to teach others how to do the same”(Rise). One year after she survived the rape at Harvard, Amanda took matters into
her own hands. She was tired of seeing and experiencing the injustice in the system that was meant to help them, and
since no one else was doing anything, she did it herself. By founding RISE, Amanda set a revolution into motion, and
she has not let it come to a stop since.

Survivor Bill of Rights

7 Oct 2016

On October 7 of 2016, Nguyen and RISE got the Survivor Bill of Rights passed unanimously through
Congress after a long process in the courts.
One of RISE's first movements towards universal rights and justice for sexual assault survivors was the Sexual
Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights, passed into federal law in 2016. The Survivors' Bill of rights outlines a variety of rights
that each survivor holds. Some of these include, the right to equality under the law, the right to a rape kit and
notification of it's status/whereabouts, right to survivors' advocacy, and the right to hold all rights whether or not the
crime was reported to the police. it has been shown that "In many states, convicted rapists have more rights than
sexual assault survivors"(Rise). The Survivors' Bill of Rights in the federal law was the first step towards correcting
this, but it then had to be passed in each state, ensuring that all survivors obtained their rights, no matter their
location.

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12/6/23, 10:47 PM Amanda Nguyen and Rise

Rise Justice Labs founded

1 Jan 2018 - 31 Dec 2018

Following a shooting at Parkland, several students and survivors went to Amanda for help passing
laws regarding gun violence, the result was Rise Justice Labs.
School shootings are yet another major issue that America faces, and also another issue that RISE works to fix.
Following a shooting in Parkland, students went to Amanda seeking help with passing laws on gun violence, and help
they got. RISE took these survivors' pleas and made them their own faction of RISE now known as Rise Justice Labs.
This offshoot of RISE deals with issues like gun violence, gun control, and many others. This expansion of RISE
shows how powerful they have become, and how much they care about solving issues in the world.

Survivor Town Hall at the UN

1 Jan 2019 - 31 Dec 2019

In 2019 Amanda Nguyen and RISE hosted the first Survivor Town Hall at the UN. Here, many
survivors from all around the globe collected for support and change.
With the Survivors' Bill of Rights passed and taking hold all across America, Amanda and RISE turned their attention
to the global stage. They went to the UN and set up and hosted the first ever Survivor Town Hall. Here, hundreds of
thousands of survivors collected for support and to share their stories. Survivor Town Hall continues to be held at the
UN, allowing survivors to share their stories, and for change to be made. With all of these survivors in one place, it
became obvious that this issue expanded far past the U.S. and should be dealt with as such.

Survivor Safe Haven

1 Jan 2020 - 31 Dec 2020

Following the mandated stay at home policies during the COVID-19 pandemic, RISE created Survivor
Safe Havens that would provide resources and information to survivors.
Survivor Safe Haven was a response to the increased cases of domestic violence and rape as consequence as the
COVID-19 shut down. Many victims were forced to stay within the same four walls as their abusers 24-hours a day for
weeks at a time, with nearly no rest from the violence or chance to escape. RISE saw this increase, and immediately
started working to combat it. And so, Survivor Safe Havens were created across the nation, giving survivors a place to
go for information and ways to escape and get justice.

#Stop Asian Hate

1 Feb 2021 - 28 Feb 2021

In 2021, Amanda called to #StopAsianHate in response to a long-lasting series of hate crimes and
discrimination against members of the AAPI community.
Following the COVID-19 outbreak, the amount of discrimination, violence, and hate against the AAPI community
increased exponentially. Amanda Nguyen stood up to this by calling people to #StopAsianHate. From there, the
movement spread like wildfire, bringing awareness to what the community was facing and what others could do to
stop it.

Survivor Fashion Show

1 Sep 2021 - 30 Sep 2021

September 2022 marked the first Survivor Fashion Show featured in New York Fashion Week. The
show featured both survivors and allies reclaiming their bodies and empowering others.

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New York Fashion Week is one of the most televised and popular fashion shows in the nation, and maybe even in the
world. By including the Survivor Fashion Show in this popular front, Nguyen and RISE showed the nation and the
world what survivors could do, and why they would never give up. The show signified these survivors reclaiming their
bodies and their lives, and empowered others to do the same.

"What were you wearing?" Exhibit

1 Dec 2021

In December 2021, RISE debuted the "What Were You Wearing?" exhibit where the outfits that
survivors were wearing when they were assaulted were displayed in the UN, calling for a global
change.
The "What Were You Wearing?" exhibit not only represented the hundreds of thousands of survivors with their outfits
that they were wearing when they were raped, it also debunked a prominent myth behind rape. When someone is
raped, many people blame it on the victim, asking them what they were wearing, if they were drinking etc. Through
this exhibit, RISE showed the world that people were raped and assaulted in any variety of outfit, and those outfits had
nothing to do with the blame.

UN Resolution
1 Sep 2022 - 30 Sep 2022

RISE ushered in the UN General Assembly Resolution of the Universal Survivor Bill of Rights. This
action works to secure justice for all rape and sexual assault survivors.
After years of demonstrations, movements, and fights, RISE finally got the Universal Survivors' Bill of Rights
recognized by the United Nations General Assembly. This was a huge step for Nguyen and RISE as the resolution
was one step closer to getting all survivors their rights, no matter their location. Bringing the bill of rights to the global
stage had paid off, but RISE continues to push forward seeking to enforce this Universal Bill of Rights and really see it
enacted all over the globe.

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