Whenever I see Charlize Theron on the Red Carpet, I am thrown back to old Hollywood. She takes chances with her gown designs sometimes, but she always seems regal and confident in her choices. But, she is not just a great actress (she won an Oscar for Monster), but also a philanthropist.
Theron supports women’s rights. She attended the opening day ceremony of City of Joy, a community in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo. The community provides women who have been victims of violence with group therapy, sex education (especially about HIV/AIDS and family planning), self-defense classes, and information about economics while also including social activities such as theater and dance.
In 2006, Theron was recognized by GLAAD with their Vanguard Award for helping increase “visibility and understanding in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. She attended a march in 2009 in support of marriage equality.
A supporter of PETA, Theron has appeared in one of the organization’s anti-fur ads. The ad, which features her and her dog Tucker, reads “If you wouldn’t wear your dog, please don’t wear any fur.”
But, one of her finest humanitarian efforts may be that of the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP). Theron formed the CTAOP along with the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF). CTAOP aims to protect African children from HIV/AIDS. Its first project worked with Oprah’s Angel Network to create a health and computer mobile clinic that visited schools in the KawZulu-Natal province. Students got HIV testing, counseling, and prevention training.
The second project was a collaboration with ONEXONE to created the Home Field Advantage (HFA). This project creates soccer fields that have clean water wells to provide a safe gathering for the community.
CTAOP also worked with TOMS Shoes to create unisex shoes of vegan material for 10,000 children in Africa.