Behind YSL Beauty’s Abuse is Not Love campaign

YSL Beauty’s global campaign against partner violence Abuse is Not Love has partnered with Dr Michael Kaufman, the co-founder of the White Ribbon campaign – the largest effort in the world of men working to end violence against women) – and Dr Gary Barker, a thought leader in the feminist project for healthy masculinities and CEO of Equimundo (a global leader organisation designed to advance gender equality) to explore new approaches to engage men to end men’s violence against women. 

Together, the duo has produced a white paper that discusses men’s violence against their partners, and also addresses the men who keep silent when they know their friends/colleagues are engaging in this. 

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), intimate partner violence (IPV) is one of the most common forms of violence against women.  

Worldwide, almost one third (27%) of women aged 15 - 49 years who have been in a relationship report that they have been subjected to some form of physical and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner.   

YSL Beauty launched the campaign to raise awareness about the signs of abuse in relationships and common themes and experiences faced by victims, such as physical, emotional, financial, and sexual violence. 

As part of the research, Dr Kaufman and Dr Barker investigate the impact of inter partner violence on men as survivors, spectators and/or perpetrators.  

Topics addressed include:  

• Programmatic approaches that include a wide range of initiatives. 

• Challenging the sexism that can breed violence while recognising boys’ and men’s vulnerabilities and health issues.  

• Transformation of fatherhood: According to research, men taking on an equal share of parenting is essential not only for gender equality but is key for men to develop the caregiving and emotional skills to live lives free of violence. 

• An intersectional approach to addressing men’s violence against women 

Behind YSL's Abuse is Not Love campaign​

Global head of brand corporate engagement at YSL Beauty Juleah Love is the official spokesperson for the programme, which is anticipated to reach over 23 million people across 27 countries. 

Love has been invited to the White House, UK Parliament, as well as various embassies, conferences, and podcasts to engage more corporates in the brand’s fight against domestic abuse.  

We spoke to her to find out more about why YSL Beauty has embarked on this campaign… 

Cosmetics Design-Europe (CDE): Why did you decide to tackle this specific issue with the campaign? ​

Juleah Love (JL): At YSL Beauty we choose to fight against intimate partner violence (IPV), because it’s one of the most under-reported, underfunded, and most prevalent forms of violence against women.  Today, one out of three women will experience violence by a partner in her lifetime. 

In addition to our NGO-partners and large-scale education and prevention campaigns, engaging in thought leadership represents an important lever to move the needle. 

In this paper, we aim to publicise the role men can play in ending IPV, by speaking up, and by supporting changes in society, to trigger a positive transformation in communities as a whole. 

CDE: What are some of the key points/learnings of the white paper? ​ 

JL: As it is, men still disproportionately wield power and influence as lawmakers, police, and judges, as educators, religious authorities, doctors, and media figures. Furthermore, boys tend to look to men and men tend to look to other men as well, to define masculine norms. 

The key learnings of this paper therefore are that men can engage boys and other men to question their peers and see themselves as part of the solution. It is critical to mobilise the voices of men, including role models, to speak out, thus making it safe for all boys and men to be advocates against intimate partner violence. 

Engaging men, as allies, to end IPV both on an individual and organisational level can have a tremendous positive effect and can be a collective action alongside strong support for women’s organisations and support services for those experiencing abuse. 

CDE: How do you hope that this campaign can help your customers and wider society? ​

JL: We want to use our brand’s platform and influence to continue to raise awareness and start a much-needed conversation on this topic. By publishing our research and by activating our network to sensibilise around the issue, our hope is to further nourish important learnings that will contribute to fighting IPV in the long term. 

I would also love to thank Dr Kaufman and Dr Barker for the incredible work they did with us on this paper, as well as the work they do on the ground on fighting against violence against women, and of course our non-profit partners working diligently every day on the ground around the world.