Purple Purse: A Campaign Against Domestic Violence

I'm never surprised by who is touched by domestic violence. No matter who I talk to or where I go, the taint of domestic violence has touched that person or that family in some way. In my family, my mother's cousin was murdered by her husband after suffering at his hands. She left behind three young children, essentially orphans, though they thankfully had a wonderful aunt who took them in and raised them as her own. Domestic violence is insidious, as it starts so small before taking over lives, making people think they deserve it or that there is nothing better out there or that this is normal.

The purple purse campaign in conjunction with the YWCA and the Allstate Foundation aims to change today's reality with regards to domestic violence. One hundred forty-five women are affected by domestic violence every hour. Though one in four women are affected by domestic violence, fewer than one-third of Americans have ever discussed it. The goal of the Purple Purse project's goal is to get us to start talking about it. Because we need to if we're ever going to stop it.



The Purple Purse launches officially on October 10 - this coming Monday October 10. Why a purple purse? It's a symbol of a woman’s economic empowerment. There is a Purple Purse website, as well. Once it launches Monday, it may look like a shopping site, but scroll down for information and resources about domestic violence.

Are you in the Chicago area? You can help out and learn more. The YWCA Metropolitan Chicago and The Allstate Foundation are hosting a Tweet Up on Thursday October 13 from 2:30-3:30pm at the Swissôtel Chicago in the Montreux Room (2nd floor of the Event Centre at 323 East Wacker Drive). For every person who attends, The Allstate Foundation will donate $100 to support YWCA Metropolitan Chicago's empowerment programs for women and girls up to a total of $10,000! Learn more about the Purple Purse Tweet Up and RSVP - and please tell your friends. At the event, the secret of the purple purse will be revealed. Can you make it?

Even if you aren't in the Chicago area, show your support by carrying a purple purse during the month of October. Snap a picture of you or your friends carrying a purple purse to fill a gallery of photos showing the trend. Send the photo to purplepurse (a) gmail (d) com. Apparently I really, really need to get a purple Paris from Epiphanie now, right?

Can you write a post about the Purple Purse? Will you tweet about it using the #PurplePurse hashtag? You can also embed the Purple Purse widget on your site. Starting Monday, it will update with content and information on a daily basis. Feel free to use the below code on your site if you're interested.

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://cdn.widgetserver.com/syndication/platform/InsertWidget/id/e981dba2-ea7d-4f37-8070-e5ef2525cdfd"></script><noscript> <img border="0" src="http://img.widgetbox.com/screenshot/9/b8bf92e7-0697-4153-aced-98c56a6fae53.png" width="300px" height="250px"/>< /noscript>  

There is also another Purple Purse tweet up in Birmingham on Thursday October 13 at 5:30pm EST. Can you join that one either in person or online?

Please. Spread the word. Talk about domestic violence. Share your story if you have one. Listen to the story someone else has to share. Get a dialogue going in the hopes that we can somehow in some way bring down that horrifying number of one hundred forty-five women every hour.

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In the interest of full disclosure, I am working with the YWCA and The Allstate Foundation to promote their Purple Purse campaign, but I have not been compensated as part of this campaign in any way. As always, all opinions expressed are my own.