Over the course of her time on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Stephanie March’s Assistant District Attorney Alexandra “Alex” Cabot became a fan-favorite character.
The ADA had a main role in the long-running series for seasons two through five, as well as 11. (She returned in a recurring role in seasons six, 10, 13 and 19.) In the season 11 finale, “Witness,” she tries a case that convinces her she needs to leave her job in New York City to help women and girls who are being sexually exploited in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“I remember it very clearly, and it was kind of stuck in my head at the time,” she told People. “So I have to believe that to some degree, everything happens for a reason. That’s part of the reason I was so interested in the Panzi Foundation.”
March serves on the board of the organization that helps survivors of sexual violence get the healing, justice, community and future they deserve in the DRC, according to its website.
“I felt like my passion really was to advocate for women and girls who are survivors of sexual violence, and how sexual violence deprives us of our body autonomy and often our legal rights and our right to work,” she explained.
The Origin actress also recalled when she first landed the gig of Cabot on the hit show in 2000, joking that it had “some sort of future-telling or time-traveling device in there — SVU the Oracle!”
“I’m not sure that when I got the job, I intended for this to happen, but once I had the job, I became pretty deliberate about it because the subject matter I found disturbing and compelling,” she said. “It was just not something I could put away when I came home at night from work.”
While March’s Cabot may not be in the show anymore, SVU became the longest-running live-action series in television history earlier this year with its 25th season, which premiered in January.
