I mailed out more than 100 Boycott October buttons this year, and received dozens of e-mails from breast cancer survivors and women living with breast cancer who hate pink ribbons. Many of their comments are posted to my blog. See We Hate PINK!
So far, only ONE (1) WOMAN who has had breast cancer has written to tell me that she likes pink ribbon merchandise.
The other people who like this shlock are the marketers who sell it, and a number of people who have (or had) a friend or relative with breast cancer. They seem to feel that they are doing something to help by buying pink merchandise, and they don't want to hear the facts that would pop their bubble.
Next year's Boycott October button has already been designed, by Sara, an artist, blogger, and friend of mine. Sara writes, "Anyone ever tell you [that] you wear your cancer like a badge? Well, why not actually do that? We have the technology!"
The graphic is a breast cancer cell, in black and white, and the text says, "Doesn't look much like a ribbon, does it?"
I'll have these ready to go in plenty of time for next October, so get your requests in early! In October 2008, I will be in Japan, about as far from the pink ribbon madness as I can get.
For our Cancer Bloggers Reunion here in Seattle in late July, Sara suggested making these for all the different kinds of cancer that will be represented at the reunion. So if you have lung cancer, you get a badge with a lung cancer cell, or a prostate cancer cell if that's the disease you have, and so on.
We could even get images of our very own personal cancer cells, and use those to make the buttons or pins. "This would bring home that much harder the point of not losing the individual in the greater politico-medico-marketing architecture," Sara writes.
We could also make T-shirts with our cancer cells on the front (and no drug company logos or sponsorships of any kind to clutter up the shirts, thank you very much).
The How LOW Will Komen GO? Contest
The contest was a big hit, with entries flooding in, each one worse that the last.
A couple of women sent in entries after October 31, even though they knew they had missed the deadline for this year's contest. One of these was for pink ribbon Christmas tree ornaments.
This might just be a winner--can you imagine, an entire 6-foot noble fir decked in pink ribbon baubles? That would certainly help me have a happy holiday--a huge reminder of my cancer right there in the middle of the living room.
Maybe I could find pink twinkle lights? And Breast Cancer Barbie could substitute for the angel on the top.
Save those entries for next year, ladies. The contest will be an annual event until Komen changes its fund-raising tactics. Which it shows no sign of doing.)
Worthless Junk
Several women wrote in to tell me about the piles of deeply discounted pink junk they spotted at various retailers once November 1 rolled around. Amorette even sent a photo, which I will post if I can find it in my overflowing e-mailbox. It's even more depressing to see this stuff dumped on the reject table than it is to see it on store shelves in the first place.
Next October, I'll be posting a list of "retailers to avoid" if you want to be able to do your shopping without running a gauntlet of pink merchandise to get to the checkout. The list will include: Bed, Bath & Beyond, QFC (and other Kroger grocery stores), and Lowes. Stores that ask all shoppers at the register if they would like to donate "to the cure" will get a special AVOID symbol.
Black and Blue Awareness
One reader, Karla, wrote to tell me that, in addition to being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, October is also Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Who knew?
Karla has a brilliant idea, which I am going to adopt for October 2008:
What if someone decided that the "official colors" of domestic violence awareness were black and blue--get it, black and blue? (I understand it really is purple ... Unless you are in Toronto, where it is white.)
And what if someone decided that wearing black-and-blue ribbons, and marketing a melange of products in black and blue, with a small percentage of the profits going toward women's shelters, was the ideal way to drum up support?
What if there were catchy slogans?:
"Let's Punch Domestic Violence in the Gut."
"Let's All Work to Kick Domestic Violence."
What if Hanes held a "Wear Your Wife-Beater to Work" event in which employees were encouraged to wear T-shirts to work in return for a $5 donation to a women's shelter? Would everyone think that was funny and cute?
Same with the teddy bears and the dolls. Your Prostate Cancer Ken is brilliant for that reason--he has a teddy bear, the one thing men would never be given as a sop for a cancer diagnosis, but that people seem all too eager to throw at women who get breast cancer.
And believe it or not, one of my dear sisters gave another, the Barbie collector in the family, Breast Cancer Barbie. In MY honor (without asking me). Yeah, Breast Cancer Barbie is pretty, I'll allow that.
Because she doesn't have cancer. I wonder how pretty Domestic Violence Barbie would be, in her pretty poufy glittery black-and-blue ball gown and ribbon, with the rings around her eyes or bruises on her ribs to match?
As I said, I think this is a brilliant idea. For next October, I'm going to take every pink ribbon product I come across and remake it in black and blue, for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Come on, Avon, jump on this bandwagon!
Read more: Boycott October
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And, just when you thought it was safe to come out of the water: Pink Friday!
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@ Jeanne Sather 2007.
