Posted on 10/03/2009 2:33:01 PM PDT by nickcarraway
This month, like every October, a sea of pink ribbons washes over products from sneakers to snacks. While the effort raises research dollars, it leaves some breast cancer survivors feeling that companies are profiting from their pain.
When KimZielinski was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 at the age of 33, well-meaning friends inundated her with products bearing a little pink ribbon. Each product’s maker promised a cut of the sales price to a breast cancer charity, and these friends felt they were supporting the cause and, by association, Zielinski. A petite brunette who’s now 35, she was enormously grateful for the millions of dollars that these pink-ribbon products direct each year to charities that fund breast cancer research and education.
But it wasn’t long before she got a little sick of the pink. “I felt kind of hateful,” says the insurance company sales manager who lives in Charlestown. “I was like, ‘What makes you think I like pink now?’
“I think that the pink ribbon, as a symbol, tends to pretty up what is a pretty crappy disease. But a pink ribbon is easier to look at than the disease itself.”
Many breast cancer survivors like Zielinski find themselves conflicted over this little powerful ribbon. Some survivors feel companies are exploiting breast cancer, marketing themselves as philanthropic outfits that care about women when what they mostly care about is the pink ribbon’s enormous ability to boost profits. Some just feel overwhelmed by the constant pink reminder, especially in October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, of a disease that has forever altered their lives.
Since she was diagnosed 2½ years ago, Anna Schleelein, a 26-year-old attorney in Newton, spends Octobers in a self-imposed pop-culture blackout. She tries to avoid TV, magazines, and, especially, shopping, to steer clear of all those pink-ribbon products.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
MLB has a week every year where every home run nets mega bucks for prostate research.
To me, that is adequate proof that Komen is more of a feminist "sisterhood" than anything else. If they have a excess funds (how does that happen with a non-profit, anyway?), let 'em donate to other areas of cancer research where funding is needed. At least that'd make sense.
I guess helping the fight against testicular cancer *is* a bit much to ask..
I remember Laura Bush on the occasion of her trip to the middle east re breast cancer praising komen.....I must trust that she was unaware of their diversion of funds to planned parenthood abortion mills......
Once we were checking out at the grocery store one October, and the cashier asked if she wanted to contribute to the fight against breast cancer. My wife said "no, I've already contributed a breast".
So few women die of breast cancer these days—far more than men do of prostate cancer. Both have high survival rates. How come we don’t see women wearing a color (blue?) to “support” prostate cancer?
What is the point of "awareness"? Everyone is aware of these diseases, and the pittance of cash raised by Komen and other charities as like a grain of sand in the multi-billion dollar cancer research budgets of Big Pharma. These people are accomplishing nothing except making themselves feel important. It is just silly egotism.
I hate to admit, I have always been envious of the attention that breast cancer receives; well any cancer, for that matter. As a person with a much less well-known disease, myasthenia gravis, I would love to have some research dollars go towards finding a cure. Granted, my disease is not fatal, usually, but it would be nice to get some research interest. I guess I’m selfish...
I am with you - I believe there is some behavioral nexus, and we really ought to admit to it and deal with that.
I agree. I especially think it’s stupid that these companies that get involved in these causes (buy our product and we’ll donate $$ to this cause)—it’s just stupid. Just donate the money, already.
I am so glad to know I am not the only woman sick and tired of and angry about this over-marketing obsession with pushing pink products using breast cancer as a guilt motivator among consumers.
Heart disease is the number one cause of death of American women and all this over-marketing of breast cancer drains away research dollars for heart disease that could save far more women’s lives.
Google this:
susan g komen donations to planned parenthood
Lots of links. We don’t buy anything with the pink ribbon on it.
I like the color pink, but I don’t want to see big painted pink ribbons on my Cheerios box!
Enough with all the colored ribbons and bracelets — red for AIDS, pink for breast cancer, yellow for other cancers, and on and on and on — yecchhh!!!
I refuse to ‘wear’ or buy anything with these ‘ribbons’ attached to various illnesses or conditions. This does not mean I won’t make charitable contributions; but I have no interest in telling the world what a great humanitarian I am.
I agree with your wife about the HRT/cancer connection. Lately, more physicians are agreeing with that.
Just one example: My mother had three sisters — of the total of four, only one ever developed breast cancer. And she was the ONLY one of the four who had undergone hormone replacement therapy during menopause.
That's not really true. My Mom was diagnosed in 1978. My sister-in-law was diagnosed a couple of years ago... So much has changed.
But I agree about letting us do this privately. I don't know if they do this by you, but at our GROCERY STORE, a Safeway store, they ask you when you check out if you want to give to whatever charity they're pushing that day. It's intrusive, and it's meant to embarrass you into giving money, What's worse, is when you give, they make an announcement and all hoot and holler. It's so annoying and I've actually made a complaint, as bad as it makes me look.
Me too.
I have had bladder cancer, not a very glamorous subject. But I don't think that any merchandiser would use a yellow ribbon for bladder cancer to push his products. Or brown ribbons for colon cancer.
And if they did, I wouldn't buy.
I have been on HRT for 50 yrs. straight and.... knocking on wood.
I think people are predisposed for most illnesses. Taking HRT
may be just a coincidence and they have to have excuses
when they have no explanations.
You would think by now there would be a cure but then again cancer is a big money making business.
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