Did you know an average of three women die every day in the U.S. as a result of domestic violence? As an advocate of stopping violence against women and someone who has second hand experiences with domestic violence, actress Rosario Dawson has teamed up with The Allstate Foundation to raise awareness with the Purple Purse campaign.
Did you know an average of three women die every day in the U.S. as a result of domestic violence? As an advocate of stopping violence against women and someone who has second hand experiences with domestic violence, actress Rosario Dawson has teamed up with The Allstate Foundation to raise awareness with the Purple Purse campaign.
Talk about it
If you’ve never talked about domestic violence, you are not alone. Nearly 60 percent of American’s agree it’s hard to talk about. But talking about it is a crucial step in raising awareness and helping victims of domestic abuse. This October, National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, The Allstate Foundation and Dawson aim to raise awareness for domestic violence with the Purple Purse, The Allstate Foundation’s symbol for this issue. For each purse passed and registered on PurplePurse.com, the Allstate Foundation is donating $10 to the YWCA.
In less than two weeks of the launch of the campaign, more than 18,000 physical and virtual purses have been passed, triggering the donation goal of $175,000 to the YWCA for programs aimed at helping survivors of domestic violence and other women in need. Due to the success of the campaign and the rate at which purses are being passed, sparking important life-changing conversations around domestic violence, The Allstate Foundation is pleased to announce the donation goal has been raised $250,000.
Learn more about domestic violence at SheKnows.com >>
Rosario Dawson’s experience with domestic violence
Helping the victims of domestic violence runs in the family for Dawson. Dawson’s mother worked at an organization in San Francisco called WOMAN, Inc., a community-based, multi-service agency, serving survivors of domestic violence. “I remember when I was 10 years old, a woman came into the center in the middle of the night; she had dealt with spousal abusive for many many years,” the actress recalls. “What finally gave [this woman] the strength to leave is when he turned on her children. When she left, she had nothing, no money, no suitcases, just the clothes on her back. So there she was with her children, reaching out to strangers for help. It showed me that having resources available means that you are giving someone in an abusive relationship the strength to get out.”
The Allstate Foundation’s Purple Purse gives women information and tips to start important conversations that can lead to victims of domestic violence to have the courage to leave an abuser. And that’s not all. “It gives advice on how to be financially stable so you can break free. The lack of economic stability is one of the top reasons that women, or men, stay in an abusive relationship is because they don’t have access to money to help them live on their own,” adds Dawson.
Share a purple purse
Hundreds of purple purses filled with domestic violence information were distributed throughout the U.S. The Allstate Foundation is donating $10 each time a purse is passed and checked in on PurplePurse.com. You can participate online now by visiting www.facebook.com/PurplePurse through Oct. 31 to share a virtual purple purse with inspirational messages to friends and family. Each time a virtual purse is shared or re-shared, The Allstate Foundation will donate $5 to YWCA USA.
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