Good Cause: The Red Pump Project

image source: redpumpproject.org

The Red Pump Project, found in March 2009 by Luvvie Ajayi and Karyn Watkins was born out of the twos desire: To get a conversation started on the issue of HIV/AIDS, and to ask others to do the same. With this the Luvvie and Karyn put out a call for bloggers to “Rock the Red Pump.” 

The project raises awareness about the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls. Their mission is to promote HIV prevention through education, and open dialogue about the issues that surround sexual and reproductive health. The red shoe is used as a symbol of empowerment to represent the strength and courage of women infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. The incorporation of fashion into the message of HIV prevention is the founders’ contribution as they hope to show that Awareness is Always in Style!

The campaigns initial concept was for bloggers to Rock the Red Pump on their blog to represent the strength and courage of women fighting HIV/AIDS or those affected by the disease both directly and indirectly. On March 10th, bloggers were asked to embed the Red Pump Widget within a blog post with a short snippet of its significance, or one had the option of including the widget on their blogs sidebar.

The initial goal of the campaign was to get 100 bloggers, but over 125 bloggers responded and “Rocked the Red Pump” on March 10, 2009. In 2010, the numbers doubled to over 250 blog sites. Since its inception the project has grown from a social media campaign to a national nonprofit working on the ground and online to ensure that women are empowered with knowledge about HIV/AIDS and the issues surrounding it.

TO LEARN MORE, VISIT: The Red Pump Project