Interview Exclusive: Ashley Judd

Celebs Gone Good caught up with actress and activist Ashley Judd just in time for the release of her new book, All That Is Bitter & Sweet: A Memoir. CGG wanted to know more about the celeb who dedicates much of her time fighting for human rights and HIV/AIDS education. Here's what Ashley had to share:

How do you know you are making a difference in the world?

Every time I hold a vulnerable person and feel their grip melt into me, I know I am making a difference. Every time someone who has been exploited tears up because I have listened, validated, and witnessed their story, I know God is at work in my life. Every time I have the guts to be vulnerable in settings like the General Assembly of the UN, and transmit to change makers the sacred narratives with which I have been entrusted, I know I am doing what my humanity demands I do.

Can you describe a particular moment?

Recently, I went directly from forcibly displaced persons camps and gender violence clinics to President Kagame of Rwanda's office for a three hour meeting with him. We discussed the connection between conflict mineral mining, former genocidaires who continue to terrorize populations, and Congolese-Rwandais relations and I was stunned by the efficiency of my Higher Power. Just hours earlier, I made and eternal vow to survivors: “I will tell your story.” And God was like, "Okay, great. Let's do that right now." It made my head spin and my heart pound.

You were a Global Ambassador for YouthAIDS. What strikes you about young people and HIV, as they are the most at risk for infection?

Young people value and emulate their role models in pop culture, at the local level (such as a local football star) and the national level. They will change their behavior and adopt safer sexual practices when cool figures to whom they look up to speak the language of empowerment, dignity, and respect. In South Africa, I was publicly tested for HIV with the entire cast of a popular TV soap opera. It was a courageous act for the actors because the conversation about HIV, in spite of the fact we are 30 years into the emergency and 31 million people are HIV positive, can still be very stigmatized, secretive, and is rife with harmful myths. In the 15 worst HIV affected countries, HIV incidence amongst youth declined 25%, largely due to behavior change communication and peer education.

You've revealed that during childhood you were a victim of sexual abuse. Did surviving/overcoming that experience motivate you to help others?

Every 45 seconds, a girl or woman is a victim of gender violence in our country. I believe that my own experiences have helped me develop an empathy and identification, plus a sense of urgency, that shapes my particular approach to advocacy.

You have held leadership positions in organizations that support women's rights. What is one thing a young person, male or female, can do in everyday life to promote the rights of women?

Take an unflinching look at your own attitudes. Evaluate the ways you participate in social constructions of gender that hyper-sexualize, diminish, and objectify girls and women and reinforce norms that narrowly defines 'what it means to be a man.' I'll never forget going online to look at The University of Kentucky Wildcats basketball news and inadvertently seeing a post in which some men were making sexually explicit remarks about my body. My first thought was, "Whew, they like me!" For a moment, I was flattered to have looked "hot”, but then I caught myself and realized how objectifying and inappropriate the comments were not only to me, but to any other women that might have read these posts.

Last year you received a Master in Public Administration degree at Harvard. Congratulations! What motivated you to continue your education? How did other students treat you?

I nurtured the dream of graduate school since I graduated from UK. I fell head over heels in love with the curriculum of the Kennedy School of Government, and I enjoyed wonderful rapport with my classmates. I realized I was no longer the most earnest, determined dreamer in the room! I was also, for once, not the most easily offended person in the room, which was hilarious.

What was it like testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations committee on the urgent need to prevent the spread of HIV to girls and women?

It was fun. It was one of my first important U.S. governmental forums, and it was the emergence of my process that works without fail: I wake up and read spiritual texts that express my values. I get on my knees and pray. I do seated meditation. I write in my journal, if that feels right, and call a mentor to be reminded of things like, "What comes from the head, goes over the head. What comes from the heart, goes straight to the heart." I invoke the presence and memories of beautiful, vulnerable people whose stories I have vowed to tell, and remember that it is abusive to point out a problem without highlighting a solution.

You've played a part in many aspects of the documentary film-making process. What makes a documentary have social impact?

Narrative. Making the lives of those who are invisible to us visible, carrying their stories to us in ways that trigger our empathy and identification.

You recently published an article about the connection between the minerals in popular electronics and the sexual violence that occurs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. What are some products our users could avoid buying in order to help stop this problem?

Please go to raisehopeforcongo.org and educate yourselves about the Enough! Project to End Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity. Insist that electronics companies certify that the minerals in the products we love and rely upon on are determined "conflict free," free from any association with violence and misery. This process, called "tracing, auditing, and certifying," is currently underway, but needs to be exercised more vigilantly. While we continue to pressure for conflict-free certification, support PSI.org and Women for Women International as they provide direct relief and empowerment to girls and women living with human rights atrocities related to North American consumption patterns.

Why is it important to you that organizations like DoSomething.org encourages and empowers teens to take action?

Youth have so much power and energy! The actions of young people are literally directing and shaping our communities, country, and planet. The leading anti-sex and labor slavery organization in the U.S., Polaris Project, was co-founded by college students! Now, the Department of Justice and FBI rely on and partner with Polaris.

Visit DoSomething.org to find more ways to take action in your community, and check out Ashley Judd's website to keep up with all of her activism.