YSL Beauty's initiative to help end domestic violence

YSL Beauty stands together with women with the Abuse is Not Love initiative. The project aims to raise awareness about domestic violence by supporting some non-profit organizations around the world, such as Women's Aid in the UK, En Avant Toute(s) in France and It's On Us in the USA. 

Supporting societal shifts have always been central to the way YSL Beauty acts as a brand. Especially when it comes to the independence of women. Intimate Partner Violence hinders the safety, wellbeing and independence of women, explained Stephan Bezy, international general manager at YSL Beauty. It felt very natural to work on an issue that stood in opposition to our core values and beliefs. 

Dua Lipa and Zoë Kravitz, brand ambassador of the House, also expressed their support for the new initiative: 

600 million women in the world are living in a country where Intimate Partner Violence is not considered a crime, said Said Dua Lipa. This is an issue that deserves attention and it is time to take action. 

The pandemic and anti-contagious policies resulted in a worsening of the problem for many women already victims of domestic violence. The data on abuse reports are alarming: according to the UN, at least 15 million more cases of domestic violence are expected this year. The numbers are provided by Unfpa, the United Nations Population Fund, which assumes a 20 per cent increase in cases of violence for the first 3 months of lockdown in all 193 UN member states. The situation in Italy is also so serious that it is estimated that from March to June 2020 the number of requests for help for themselves or others, arrived at the hotline 1522 for violence and stalking have doubled compared to the same period in 2019 (+119%). 

YSL Beauty is committed, therefore, to changing the mentality behind the abuse through some on-campus learning programs in over 250 American universities, educating more than 60,000 students in its first year of study on domestic violence and how to support victims. Also in the UK, YSL will teach school counsellors how to address sexism and gender-based violence by organizing workshops and developing new educational tools to deal with the problem.