During lockdown, instances of domestic violence rose considerably—which makes Yves Saint Laurent Beauty’s new global program even more timely and important. The ‘Abuse is Not Love’ awareness campaign will be rolled out across the world to help combat intimate partner violence. YSL Beauty ambassadors Zoe Kravitz and Dua Lipa are also passionate about the cause, and will support the campaign via content in the coming year.
As part of the campaign, the beauty brand has committed to funding academic research, training its employees, and educating some two million people on how to decipher what intimate partner violence (IPV) looks like, through partnerships with non-profits. The rollout comes in the lead-up to the UN’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women—November 25.
Alarmingly, research conducted ahead of the Abuse is Not Love campaign uncovered that approximately one in three women will experience IPV in their lifetime, and only a small proportion of survivors will obtain justice. IPV is one of the most common forms of violence against women and includes physical, sexual, financial, and emotional abuse, as well as controlling behaviors by an intimate partner—and it affects individuals from all socioeconomic, religious, and
cultural groups.
IPV comes with key warning signs, which the campaign is keen to highlight.
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In the U.S., Yves Saint Laurent Beauty developed the campaign in partnership with the non-profit organization, It’s On Us, which was founded in 2014 as an initiative of the Obama administration. YSL Beauty is supporting the organization in its three-pillar program of preventative actions:
1. Peer-to-peer IPV prevention and education on campuses
The project will support two peer-led educational programs that empower students (18-24) to understand, identify, and prevent intimate partner violence on college campuses, helping them look out for signs and symptoms and how to safely intervene as active bystanders. Through the 250+ campuses, online rollout of this program, and its inclusion within the It’s On Us National Student Leadership Summit, the program will educate 60,000 students per year.
2. Internal Training of the Yves Saint Laurent Beauty teams
Workshops and training seminars are organized for YSL Beauty corporate and front-line teams to understand and identify abusive relationships. These workshops give them the tools and resources, not only for themselves, but to be agents of change in their communities.
3. Contribution to Thought Leadership through research
The brand aims to have a long-term impact on the Intimate Partner Violence issue through contributions to research studies on youth and prevention. The published findings on barriers to prevention of IPV are an aim to open-source full industry collaboration against this crime.
For more information about the campaign, visit HERE.
