- My Black is Beautiful and Community Partners BLACK GIRLS ROCK! and UNCF Help Impact the Lives of Young Black Girls Through the Imagine a Future Initiative -

(BLACK PR WIRE)--CINCINNATI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) award-winning African-American consumer campaign My Black is Beautiful (MBIB) brought its message to the masses through film with the premiere of the Imagine a Future documentary in association with Tribeca Film Institute this past Sunday, April 21st in New York City. In partnership with UNCF and BLACK GIRLS ROCK!, MBIB hosted an intimate screening of the Imagine a Future documentary for prominent film industry influencers and distinguished guests, offering them a first look at the film that examines beauty and self-esteem issues that challenge black women and girls. Imagine a Future marks MBIB’s inaugural foray into the film space and serves as a tangible tool aimed at inciting a dialogue around beauty amongst African-American women and driving them to action.

The seven-year MBIB campaign was launched with the goal of fueling a national conversation about black beauty while encouraging women to become catalysts for change in their local communities. Since its inception, My Black is Beautiful has developed a successful and engaging online and offline community and has celebrated, empowered and connected generations of black women everywhere by championing their desire to express their best and most beautiful selves. In 2012 MBIB took its mission a step further by enlisting the support of community organizations BLACK GIRLS ROCK! and UNCF to launch an initiative aimed at positively impacting the lives of one million black girls over three years. The initiative, entitled “Imagine a Future,” documents the current state of black beauty, provides an in-depth look at the influences of young black girls, and equips the community with tools and solutions such as scholarships, leadership camps for teen girls, online consumer interactive tools, and the Imagine a Future documentary.

“As a natural evolution of the MBIB mission, we were happy to work with UNCF and BLACK GIRLS ROCK! to launch the “Imagine a Future” initiative last year and we are excited to take our work a step further by providing the community with a documentary that is both powerful and informative,” said Associate Marketing Director, NA Media and Multicultural Marketing, Lauren Hoenig. “Our hope is that this documentary will aid in altering the current perceptions, conversations and societal implications that come with negative self-image and low self-esteem of young black girls. Through the “Imagine a Future” initiative and partnership with organizations UNCF and BLACK GIRLS ROCK!, P&G continues to reinforce its long-standing commitment within the multicultural space and desire to facilitate a community wherein black women everywhere can change the conversation and help us create a beautiful future for young black girls.”

Directed and produced by Lisa Cortés, Academy-Award nominated for Precious, directed by Free Angela Davis and All Political Prisoners director, Shola Lynch, and executive produced by BLACK GIRLS ROCK! founder and NAACP Award winner Beverly Bond, Imagine a Future follows the story of Delaware teen Janet Goldsboro as she travels to South Africa to examine the historical and present beauty and self-esteem issues that challenge black women and girls. Infused with the perspectives of renowned media personalities such as Mikki Taylor, Gabourey Sidibe, Michaela Angela Davis, Tatyana Ali, Gabrielle Douglas and Melissa Harris-Perry, their stories compliment Janet’s journey of self-discovery by focusing on black beauty insecurities and examining the images of black women in the media.

“Janet’s story is one that is prevalent in our community, and many young black girls can relate to her beauty and self-image issues,” said Lisa Cortés, Director and Producer. “It was an amazing experience capturing her journey as she traveled to South Africa to explore depictions of black beauty throughout history. My hope is that through sharing the stories of the individuals in this film, we are able to impact the lives of black women and girls and help change their perceptions of black beauty.”

The Imagine a Future documentary will air on BET on July 5, 2013 at 10 PM ET/9 PM CT and on Centric on July 6th at 9 PM ET/8 PM CT. The film will also be available for online viewing on the My Black is Beautiful YouTube channel. Viewers are encouraged to learn more about the “Imagine a Future” initiative and join MBIB in changing the conversation by visiting myblackisbeautiful.com and facebook.com/MBIB. There, the community will be able to download an informative Imagine a Future discussion guide that will provide insightful information to fuel conversations and engagement and aid MBIB in achieving its goal of positively impacting the lives of one million black girls over the next two years. You can also change the conversation on Twitter, @MBIBMovement.

ABOUT PROCTER AND GAMBLE

P&G serves approximately 4.4 billion people around the world with its brands. The Company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Fairy®, Gain®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun®, Fusion®, Ace®, Febreze®, Ambi Pur®, SK-II®, and Vicks®. The P&G community includes operations in about 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com  for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

ABOUT UNCF

UNCF is the nation's largest and most effective minority education organization. To serve youth, the community and the nation, UNCF supports more than 60,000 students at over 900 colleges and universities across the country. UNCF supports education through scholarships and other programs, by supporting its 38 member colleges and universities, and by advocating for the importance of minority education. UNCF administers more than 400 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship, mentoring, summer enrichment, and curriculum and faculty development programs. UNCF institutions and other historically black colleges and universities are highly effective, awarding 21 percent of African American baccalaureate degrees. The UNCF logo features the torch of leadership in education and its widely recognized motto, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste."® Learn more at www.UNCF.org.  

ABOUT BLACK GIRLS ROCK!

Founded by celebrity DJ and Philanthropist, Beverly Bond, BLACK GIRLS ROCK!™ is dedicated to promoting positive images of women of color in mass media. BLACK GIRLS ROCK!™ Inc., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, that has been dedicated to the healthy development of young women and girls since 2006. BLACK GIRLS ROCK!™ Inc. seeks to build the self-esteem and self-worth of young women of color by changing their outlook on life, broadening their horizons and helping them to empower themselves. For additional information on BLACK GIRLS ROCK!™, visit www.blackgirlsrock.org.  

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Source: P&G

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