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"facebook dialogPinterest\n\nLast week, Solange Knowles--alongside The Body Shop and MTV--kicked off the global launch of their new HIV/Aids safe sex campaign, Yes, Yes Yes to Safe Sex! With the shocking rate of over 3,000 new HIV infections daily among young adults aged 15-24, the Yes, Yes, Yes campaign aims to raise awareness, as well as benefit the Staying Alive Foundation (a charity empowering young people to protect themselves against the virus). To raise funds, The Body Shop launched a Tantalizing Lip Butter ($8) with $5 from each sale going to the Staying Alive Foundation. Go pick one up!\n\nSolange was on hand at the Soho launch (in the cutest turquoise Valentino pumps ever) as the official ambassador of the campaign. I got the chance to sit down with her and talk one on one with the talented and gorgeous songstress, about why she got involved.\n\nHow did you come to be involved with Staying Alive and Yes, Yes, Yes to safe sex?\n\n\"Staying Alive reached out to me to see if I wanted to be the ambassador. I really felt involved with the cause on different levels. I had an uncle who was extremely close to me pass away from HIV/AIDS when I was 9, so I felt really connected to the cause on a personal level. But also, the older I get the more I feel the need to serve. I asked myself 'Can I bring some truth to this? Can I make a difference with this? What can we do to fix this?' I've been really inspired by Obama, too. How his campaign started in living rooms, and just with him wanting to make a difference. And to see how powerful that can be, and what he's done it's really inspired me to want to serve.\"\n\nWhat are some of the challenges the campaign faces?\n\n\"Teens who feel like they can't talk to their parents or adults about sex. It's really important to be well informed, and there are so many resources out there. Some of those are good and informative, but others can be really misleading, like only talking to friends. I think it's important for teens to not feel uncomfortable talking about sex so that they can really be informed.\"\n\nWhy do you think young people today don't always choose to have safe sex?\n\n\"You know, as easy as it sounds to just wear a condom, in the moment it can sometimes be difficult, and uncomfortable to stop and talk about using protection. It's an uncomfortable subject that I hope by talking about it publicly, it will become less uncomfortable. I think it's also hard for young girls, who might worry about what the guy will think, or they might feel pressure from guys to not use condoms, but it's really important for girls to be strong, and stand their ground and speak up! Young people have a notion that it can't happen to them. But AIDS really has a face now, and it looks just like you and me. It can happen to anybody.\"\n\nHow has your outlook on these issues changed since you became a mother?\n\n\"I feel like when I became a mother, I had to accept a whole new realm of responsibility. You have a duty to bring your child up in the most loving and responsible way possible. You want to keep your child educated and start that foundation of wanting to serve. That's how I was raised, and I want my child to feel the same sense of duty.\"\n\nAnd just because I can't resist... You have a killer sense of style! Who are some of your favorite designers right now?\n\n\"I love what Phillip Lim has been doing, I think he's really great. I've been trying to scale back a little, and have just a few really standout key pieces. I used to be all about the standout shoes with the standout bag and the top and the whole thing, but now I'm looking more towards accessories that really pop (like these shoes!) and investing in pieces that are going to grow with me, instead of things I'm going to be completely over in a few months!\""^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/solange-knowles-launches-the-yes-yes-yes-campaign-for-safe-sex>