Hollywood star Reese Witherspoon took to the stage in Brazil in a bid to raise awareness of women affected by domestic violence.

The Legally Blonde star is touring the South American country as part of her duties as she is the global ambassador of Speak Out Against Domestic Violence campaign. The initiative was launched by the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the Avon cosmetics company in 2004.

Witherspoon is hoping her involvement will help stamp out the abuse of women - insisting she herself has been close to people who were the victims of domestic violence.

She told reporters in Sao Paulo on Thursday, "There isn't a woman in the world that doesn't have a friend or a partner who's actually experiencing some sort of violence against them, so I think although domestic violence hasn't happened to me personally, I certainly know women who are dealing with this struggle every day."

And the star stated she felt motivated to help with the cause as the issue affects so many types of people. She adds, "Domestic violence affects women who are famous, who are not famous, women who have money, women who have no money. This is an issue that crosses all boundaries and it certainly affects everyone."

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(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)