Komen Accepts $$ from Jingle Jugs

Well, the question posed by our contest, How LOW Will Komen GO?, may have been answered.

Here's a photo showing some unidentified, but smiling, Komen reps accepting a check for $50,000 from the folks at Jingle Jugs, which markets life-sized boobs that dance and sing. It targets the Frat Boy market.

The special pink-ribbon set (there are no post-mastectomy, one-breasted versions) comes with a special tune about breast cancer. Can't wait to hear it.

Komen--What were you thinking? How about good taste? How about the feelings of women who have lost one or both breasts to cancer? Do you think we find this amusing, or even OK?

The answer is, NO. We feel exploited.

Debs' nomination:

How LOW Will Komen GO?: A New Front Runner?

Support this blog:

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

Comments

[jeanne]

Maybe we could raise money for prostate cancer by marketing a pale blue dildo. Wouldn't that be gender parity?

[debutaunt]

Oh man. I thought for sure it wasn't a Komen. That's awful.

Colon cancer motto - "Oatmeal, Nature's Broom"

Leukemia - "We're bald, we're bleeding, we're bruised, but it saves us $$ on shampoo"

Pancreatic Cancer - "We have a low survival rate, but who cares.. no one knows what a pancreas is anyway."

Prostate - "We have viagra. No worries"

I think we should start the light blue movement. Chemo Ken could be the first start.

[Amorette]

I checked youtube for the jinglejugs breast cancer song. No luck, but they're pretty smug over their "banned" commercials (banned for bad taste, if anything- I don't see anything more obscene than network tv). Here's a link:

http://www.youtube.com/user/jingletech

Torrid (Hot Topic's extention into the plus-size market) is marketing breast cancer pins that say "I HEART BOOBS" and "BIG AND SMALL, LET'S SAVE THEM ALL":

http://tinyurl.com/yp9eam

(I tinyURL'ed it because the store link was so long)

[jeanne]

Let's all remember, this isn't KOMEN's MONEY that we are talking about. The money comes from people, mostly women, who want to do something about breast cancer.

Granted, they want to make the easy donation, and not put a lot of time and thought into it, and Komen gives them that with pink English muffins and pink canned chicken breast, not to mention pink toilet paper and laundry soap.

BUT, I think these women would continue to make small donations that do more good if we give them a channel.

I'll be putting up some posts on "What to do instead" in the next week or so, as soon as I finish Prostate Cancer Ken and Benign Girl--those are my next projects.

Jeanne

[Amorette]

I actually saw a Chinese ripoff Barbie called "Benign Girl". That's really what the box said. I've been kicking myself ever since I left the flea market for not getting it.

[debutaunt]

I didn't really make myself clear, but it just felt kind of like a letdown that Komen would take that money. It just feels kind of tainted like mob money or something.

I was reading some articles about how they have to decide on whether or not to accept some donations - e.g. the strip club mogul who was the key sponsor at a big affair.

I've been attacked for whining about the boycott October and not being original & plagiarizing, so I'm going to leave it up to the pros!

I'll send links to you, but since my blog is pink (and gosh! I wish I could change it to light yellow or something)... apparently I was told to shut up!

[debutaunt]

P.S. I showed mom (who breastfed 7 kids) the JJs and she turned her head. She thinks it's repulsive.

She asked, "So if a known drug dealer sold coke and wanted to be the keynote sponsor of a Komen event would they do it?" (as a strip club mogul did)

[Crow]

I feel similarly about all "Save the Ta-Tas" breast cancer humor. It shouldn't take too much thinking to understand that this is not about "saving the ta-tas." These people need to know what a breast cancer combatant goes through. "Saving" my "ta-tas" was the last thing on my mind. Yes, I had them reconstructed, and that's cool. But I had to go a year looking like... well, they were cut off. Do these folks think it made me feel good to hear how horribly essential my "ta-tas" are to my value? Am I supposed to feel supported by people who react in complete horror at what I simply had to accept? A woman with breast cancer does NOT want to hear about your breast fetish, people.

[jeanne]

Crow--thank you for putting it so well I was struggling for the right words, but this is it: "A woman with breast cancer does NOT want to hear about your breast fetish, people." And also, are women without a breast or both breasts less "valuable"? I'm afraid to many men, the answer is yes.

Debutaunt--don't you DARE shut up. We need your voice.

[laurie]

This entry is going to be very hard to beat. I literally stared open-mouthed at this post for quite some time and had to re-read it.
As a one-breasted woman, who goes out into the world without a prosthesis, I find the Jingle Jugs message profoundly offensive.
And this reinforces for me why I hate fraternities.

[jeanne]

Laurie--I'm with you on the frats (and the rest of it too, of course). I live not too far from frat row at the UW, and the behavior of these "young men" is pretty unbelievable.

[Robin]

Actually, I think it's fine. I was diagnosed with BC at 17 and am now 34. What's the big deal? Get over it. They're just boobs. By saying we are offended by this a couple frat boy jokes, we're allowing ourselves to be defined by boobs - whether we have them, whether we don't, if they are respected or not. What a mistake. In the end, boobs are supposed to be fun.

[jeanne]

Robin--I edited your comment to delete the words "stupid" and "stupider." I don't allow name-calling on my blog, and I think you can make your points without telling someone else that they are stupid for expressing theirs.

[jasmine]

save the ta-tas is not just about saving boobs. They are not saying save the boobs and not the lives. It is a phrase created and intended to bring awareness to younger generations that breast cancer does exist in a way that is not threatning. They donate money to breast cancer research which is about saving lives not boobs. Lighten up a little they're not bagging on you they are trying to make sure there aren't more people like you that have to go through this deaded disease.

[jeanne]

Jasmine--I disagree.

I should also point out for other readers that Jasmine's Web site is http://www.savethetatas.com

Which I think she should have disclosed in her comment. Nice to know where people are coming from, yes?

[Helen]

In the end, boobs are supposed to be fun.

Boobs are a body part. Moreover, they are supposed to be for feeding babies. You seem to have uncritically bought the frat-boy line that boobs are somehow made for men.