New Allstate Foundation Campaign Launched in Birmingham Sparks Conversation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) October 14, 2011 -- BIRMINGHAM, Ala., (Oct. 14, 2011) – Even though domestic violence affects one in four women in their lifetime, more than one-third of Americans have never discussed the issue with a friend or family member. And, three out of five believe that it is a difficult to discuss.

On Oct. 13, The Allstate Foundation, YWCA and top bloggers joined forces in Birmingham to break the silence and raise awareness about the issue through a TweetUp event held at the YWCA of Central Alabama in Birmingham. Based on The Allstate’s Foundation long-term commitment to helping empower women financially to end domestic violence, the event will help spread the story of the Purple Purse – the Foundation’s new national symbol for domestic violence.

“Physical abuse is the type of domestic violence most commonly discussed, but what many people don’t realize is that financial abuse, using finances as a tool of power and control, happens just as frequently,” said John Heid, spokesperson for The Allstate Foundation. “We are rallying people behind the Purple Purse because it stands for economic empowerment and represents the center of a woman’s financial domain. It’s also designed to make it easier to talk about the issue.”

To spread the message about the power of the Purple Purse, The Allstate Foundation recently launched www.PurplePurse.com. The website appears to be an online fashion magazine, but after scrolling down the page, the user will find a variety of information and resources specific to the issue of domestic violence and financial empowerment. The website serves as a tool to raise awareness and get people talking about this issue that is too often kept a secret. PurplePurse.com provides a safe and informative place for women to educate themselves and start working to end domestic violence.

“We’ve found that many women are scared to talk about the issue of domestic violence,” said Megann Cain, Director of Donor Relations and Communications for the YWCA Central Alabama. “Our partnership with The Allstate Foundation to launch PurplePurse.com provides women an unexpected opportunity to start a discussion about domestic violence so they can learn how to protect themselves and help others.”

More than one hundred community members attended the TweetUp last night to help launch the Purple Purse campaign.

To inspire more people to get involved, The Allstate Foundation will donate $100 for each attendee, up to $10,000 at each event. Last night, $10,000 was raised in Birmingham, which was among the nine cities across the country, including Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, El Paso, Texas, Los Angeles, New York City, Seattle, and Tucson, Ariz., to host events.

Individuals throughout Birmingham are encouraged to participate in the campaign and show their support by carrying a purple purse or bag throughout October, posting their favorite purple purse pics to PurplePurse.com and downloading the Purple Purse widget also available on the website. This widget is a dynamic resource that makes it easy to share Purple Purse content through websites and social media channels. It is designed to ensure that more people in need will be able to get information that can help.

Each year, The Allstate Foundation contributes more than $3 million in grants and programming to support financial empowerment for survivors and to help end domestic violence. Visit www.PurplePurse.com and www.ClickToEmpower.org to learn more.

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About The Allstate Foundation

Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL). Through partnerships with nonprofit organizations across the country, The Allstate Foundation brings the relationships, reputation and resources of Allstate to support innovative and lasting solutions that enhance people’s well-being and prosperity. With a focus on teen safe driving and building financial independence for domestic violence survivors, The Allstate Foundation also promotes safe and vital communities; tolerance, inclusion, and diversity; and economic empowerment. For more information, visit www.AllstateFoundation.org.

About YWCA
The YWCA USA is one of the oldest and largest women’s organizations in the nation with the mission of eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. In the U.S., the YWCA serves over 2 million women, girls and their families each year. Globally, the YWCA USA is a member of the World YWCA, which has affiliates in 122 countries that serve 25 million women and girls worldwide.

Survey Methodology

The Allstate Foundation partnered with ORC International to conduct the research on domestic violence awareness. ORC International conducted telephone surveys among a national probability sample of 1,002 adults between September 22-25, 2011. The sample was comprised of 501 men and 501 women 18 years of age and older, living in private households in the continental United States.

The sampling error associated with a sample size of 1,002 is plus/minus two to three percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

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