Gloria Steinem launches lipstick to help women inmates

GLORIA Steinem has a new beauty project in the works that aims to help women in prison.

The activist and journalist has teamed up with the social justice organisation The Lipstick Lobby to launch a new lip product called “In The Clear”.

The treatment, a vitamin E-infused bullet lip balm made using a cruelty-free formula, promises to nourish lips while adding a hint of gloss.

The entire proceeds from the sales of the limited-edition balms will be donated to the “unPrison Project”, a programme that teaches incarcerated women in the US valuable skills for life after prison.

“I chose the name ‘In The Clear’ because it speaks to the accessibility of this product – clear is universal and wearable for anyone and everyone who wants to make an impact,” Steinem told Hello Giggles in a statement. “It also speaks to the fact these women now have a full, free life ahead of them. We all have a right to feel ‘in the clear’ regardless of our past.”

The Lipstick Lobby has a strong history of using makeup to fund social initiatives – the organization has worked with Planned Parenthood and The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in the past.

As for Steinem, she is the latest star to join a growing movement of celebrity voices using the beauty industry as a platform for social causes, joining the likes of Mandy Moore, who recently joined forces with Garnier on a campaign to encourage beauty packaging recycling, and Lancôme ambassadors Julia Roberts, Penelope Cruz and Lupita Nyong’o, who helped the French beauty giant publicise its Write Her Future literacy programme back in the spring.

“In The Clear” is now available from thelipsticklobby.com.