Archive for the ‘Charity’ Category
Very last minute as the telethon is airing now (and I’ve seen Reese twice already) but Reese is answering phones at tonight’s Hope for Haiti charity telethon. You can watch the special right now on CNN, Mtv, and many other networks so check your local listings. We will post any photos and/or screencaptures as soon as they become available.
“This is an issue that has been in the dark for too long. There remains what can seem like an impenetrable wall of silence, around violence. And we must all play a role in breaking that silence.”
The funny thing,” Reese Witherspoon says, “is it happens all the time.” A day after Gordon Brown thanked “Renée Witherspoon” in Parliament for her work for victims of domestic violence, Witherspoon is wondering why she and her friend, fellow actress Renée Zellweger are often confused with each other. “Maybe it’s an R-W, R-Z thing,” she says. “I phoned Renée, and she already knew. She said three people yesterday had said to her, ‘Hi Reese, how are you?’”
There should be stranger elements to this tale than the mystery of the Z-W congruence. Such as, why is a 33-year-old actress from the US, most famous for a film in which she plays a ditzy blonde lawyer, being thanked at Prime Minister’s Questions? Why was she later given access to meet Sarah Brown? And why, purely by virtue of signing a contract in 2007 to advertise cosmetics, is she fronting a British campaign for the end of a postcode lottery in domestic violence services?
Reese Witherspoon has visited the House of Commons to raise awareness of domestic violence as part of joint campaign by Avon and the charity Refuge.
The actress, who is the global ambassador for the cosmetics company, spoke on behalf of the crusade, calling for more government funding for victim support services in the UK.
”There remains what can seem like an impenetrable wall of silence around violence and we must all play a role in breaking this silence,” she said.
A YouGov poll commissioned by Avon found that 92 per cent of people think they do not know anyone who is or has been a victim of domestic violence, when in fact one in four women suffer at the hands of a partner in their lifetime.
Ms Witherspoon said the problem was “pandemic” around the world and added that she was motivated to support the campaign by a friend who had gone through such an experience as a young woman.
In March, she launched a worldwide campaign on behalf of the cosmetics company aimed at ending violence against women.
Even Reese Witherspoon finds it difficult to globe-trot at her leisure.
“It’s hard to travel when you have two small children,” she says. But her work as Avon’s global ambassador has taken her around the world in the fight against domestic violence and breast cancer and for emergency-relief fundraising.
A two-day summit on women’s issues brought Witherspoon to the nation’s capital on Tuesday, where she unveiled Avon’s latest fundraising initiative: the empowerment necklace. The small silver chain is an offshoot of last year’s empowerment bracelet, which helped raise $4 million for the Avon Women’s Empowerment Fund.
Reese Witherspoon, global ambassador and honorary chairperson of the Avon Foundation for Women, announced at a press conference before the Global Forum a new Avon fundraising product: the Women’s Empowerment Necklace.
Launched as a companion piece to the 2008 Women’s Empowerment Bracelet, the Necklace is accessibly priced at just $5.00. It will be sold through Avon‘s Sales Representatives and on www.avon.com. All net proceeds of the Necklace will support domestic violence programs, building upon the $4 million already raised by the Bracelet in one year. In the US every Women’s Empowerment product sold will include a free Domestic Violence Resource Guide to increase awareness of this epidemic of violence and encourage everyone to speak out so it stops.
In the gallery you can view pictures of Reese at the conference. She looked very pretty and classy in a dark dress and wearing her own empowerment necklace. Thanks to Mariana for lending many photo donations of this event!
GALLERY LINKS:
- Public Events: Avon Launches Global Mobilization Effort Against Domestic Violence
Reese and Avon have launched the Women’s Empowerment Necklace. It’s meant to serve as a companion piece to the 2008 Women’s Empowerment Bracelet, and the necklace is priced at just $5.00.
“I am proud to introduce the Avon Empowerment Necklace. Thanks to you, 2008 sales of the Empowerment Bracelet raised over $1 million for the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women and generated more than $2.5 million in additional funds for local programs in the US and globally to help victims and their families. Purchase the necklace now and let’s help stop the violence – together. Thanks for your support.” – Reese Witherspoon
100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Avon Empowerment Fund to end domestic violence against women. It may be purchased on www.avon.com.
“Nearly a billion women worldwide are affected by violence. The Empowerment Necklace is an easy way for all women to take action and demonstrate solidarity to reduce the worldwide epidemic of violence against women. As Honorary Chair of the Avon Foundation, as a woman, and as a mother, I am proud to support this effort.” – Reese Witherspoon
GALLERY LINKS:
- Avon: Women’s Empowerment Necklace
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