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As I’m sure you may well remember, Zelda Lily did a post on the Facebook ‘awareness’ craze involving women posting their bra colours in their Facebook statuses without context. Some of you were notably displeased with the impromptu campaign, suggesting the campaign was tacky, and undercutting the seriousness of breast cancer by turning it into a game where men get to visualise the bra colours of the women on their friends list with a degree of accuracy.
Well, the game is back! And this time with even LESS relevance! Now you can raise awareness by covertly informing people of where you place your lady bag. That’s right. Because when you think of handbags, you think of breasts — breasts which might …
… be held in a purse, or placed somewhere in your house.
Or not.
“The bra I kind of got — it’s connected to boobs — but I don’t understand the purse,” said MJ DeCoteau, executive director of Rethink Breast Cancer, an organization supplying information and support to young women with breast cancer.
A small part of me wants to de-friend everyone on my Facebook list who is posting the current location of their purse. I mean, give me a break. I see many viral Facebook statuses which attempt to raise awareness that I don’t agree with. For example, using guilt to raise awareness -“99% of people won’t repost this in their status,”– I’m sorry — is not an effective means of getting people to actually care about a cause. People shouldn’t participate in a campaign because they are afraid of how they would look otherwise — there should be some sort of connection to a cause, and that does not form due to guilt. Plastering products/websites with logos and cause associated colours doesn’t work either — buying a box of cereal with a pink ribbon on it, or turning Facebook pink for a day does not get people to research breast cancer, perform regular breast checks, or donate significant amounts of money to help breast cancer research. Although I appreciate corporations participating in campaigns to raise awareness about cancer and other such various issues, it is important to me that the cause be in the spotlight, and not in the background (for example, The Guy at Home in his Underwear Campaign). Cute, playful, but clearly about cancer, and raising money for cancer research. The brand is not at the forefront, and although the idea is somewhat cheeky — pun totally intended — one cannot look at that website without being confronted with information about testicular cancer and how to donate to the cause.
A spokesman for Breast Cancer Care is quoted in EmaxHealth:
“While viral campaigns have great potential for increasing consciousness around many issues, we’d like to see this go further.
“We would encourage people to direct their Facebook friends towards helpful support and information to create better breast awareness … or reminding their friends to check their breasts regularly when they explain what the campaign is about.”
The larger part of me which urges me not to click ‘de-friend’ on these innuendo-posting friends, knows that they probably mean well. Probably. But it is pretty hard to convince myself how well they can mean when I see so little relation between purse location and breast cancer. It just comes off as a cheap cry for attention — “Look at me, I do it on the toy box! Aren’t I naughty? Oh — also breast cancer is bad. Tee-hee!”
So I would really appreciate it if someone who has participated in this campaign could enlighten me, and explain their thought process as they decided to take part in this. I want to see the good intentions, instead of picturing friends sexing it out on their kid’s toy box, or worse, the breadbox on the countertop.
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Oh, is that what they’re going on about. I’ve seen that popping up, but couldn’t be bothered to look it up. This time, no-one I know was dumb enough to pass on the meme to me.
As I said about the colours – if you think it’s a fun little game to pass around and leave others (men) wondering, go for it!
If you think it’s doing anything at all about breast cancer, you really need a brain transplant.
I posted “I like it when people don’t use breast cancer awareness as an excuse to post silly things that have nothing to do with breast cancer awareness” as my status. I’m waiting for the de-friending (un-friending?) to begin. At least the bra colors had something to do with boobs!
Harriet, Thank You. Can I steal your response and put on my status? As you know, I am a breast cancer survivor (so far), and all of these campaigns disgust me.
Steal away. It’s much better than what I had originally thought of writing (which was much meaner)! I get irritated with these things, too, because, although I am not myself a breast cancer survivor (congratulations to you, by the way, on making it through such a terrible experience), my mother and both grandmothers have been through the disease. I feel like playing a flirty little game that makes people think about sex isn’t taking the reality of the disease seriously.
Is anyone not aware of breast cancer? Seriously, I think the word “awareness” has not lost all meaning. It should be Breast Cancer Reminder Month, not Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We all know what breast cancer is. We all know someone who has been effected by it. At this point it has been corporatized just like Christmas, and Halloween, and everything else that used to hold meaning for an excuse to make a buck. Here, let’s charge $5.00 more for the pink version of whatever the hell we sell and donate 30 cents to the Susan G. Komen Foundation! We’ll still be making an extra $4.70!
Oops “has not lost all meaning” should be “has lost all meaning” and “effected” should be “affected”. I need to proofread better.
God, I know! What woman who has access to facebook doesn’t know that you’re supposed to feel your boobies and get mammograms? Breast cancer awareness is bullshit. Raising money for the cure is not. Posting where you “like it” as your status isn’t helping anyone.
Thank you! I am glad to see I am not the only one who thinks this is ridiculous. It’s cutesy wootsy, not informative or at all helpful.
well, its got you people talking about it.
It got us talking about stupid campaigns. Not really breast cancer.
And really, even if it got us talking about breast cancer, what good does that do? Wow! We’re all aware of breast cancer! Just like we were before we were annoyed!
You want to do something about breast cancer (or any other issue), do something that makes a difference. ‘Awareness’ is a practical goal if your issue is really something that no-one’s ever heard of.
I don’t get why everyone’s got their knickers in a twist over this.
Sure, everyone’s aware of breast cancer. But you know what? It’s not always in the forefront of my mind. In fact, I don’t really think about it unless something like this (or a major fundraiser like Run for the Cure) comes about.
I know I sound heartless and uncaring. Just keep in mind that not all of us are survivors/know a survivor. There are some of us who are lucky enough to be untouched by breast cancer, and because of that we aren’t doing all that we could to support those who are.
Complaining because people are doing something, even if it’s not particularly productive is like bitching at men for growing mustaches in November. What does a mustache have to do with prostate cancer? Nothing, but it shows a sense of emotional solidarity.
By the way, just to spite all of you, I like it on…
THE HOOK IN THE FRONT HALL!
Watch out little one, Karma can be a bitch.
I see what you’re saying, Manda, and I definitely understand the whole “emotional solidarity” aspect. However, the problem is that the whole thing was organized to look like a sort of inside joke (while being, ostensibly, about public awareness). The people who are posting know what’s going on, but the people who didn’t get the message don’t. And I’ve seen – several times – someone asking what the heck the post is about, and the original poster won’t tell them (usually putting in a little winky face or something like that). So I feel that, in reality, this doesn’t raise awareness for those who aren’t already aware. Now there are news stories and such about it, so hopefully more people will find out what’s going on, but still…if this was truly intended for awareness, they could have done more to actually make people aware! A friend of mine, rather than posting where she likes it, posted a reminder for women to do regular breast self-examinations. That’s more productive and worthwhile, in my opinion.
Interestingly, I just logged on to my facebook and saw the following conversation: 1. Original post “I like it…” 2. (Male) Ewwww… 3. (Original poster) It’s for breast cancer awareness. 4. (Another female) Hey you’re not supposed to tell!
If everyone were more like the original poster, I might be more convinced that this exercise has something to do with breast cancer awareness.
I got the message from a couple of different people.
I’m not offended, but I was kind of puzzled at first.
Then, I saw it *everywhere*!
I gave up and scheduled my damn boob mashing appointment.
There has been a whole bunch of “Breast Cancer Awareness” campaigns going on and they do have value, if only to make you think.
Is that so bad?
No one on either side of my family has had breast cancer as far back as memory goes, which is my great great grandparents. Also one child in each generation (on my mothers side) hair turns black instead of white/gray when they age(no this had no point I just always thought it was interesting.)
But we still get checked and check ourselves obviously. This message doesn’t make me think anything close to “oh yeah, cancer, let me go get checked” instead it makes me think “you’re a jackass.”
The point is to make people want to find out. When there is an inside joke and no one will tell you, you get fed up and google: “I like it” “facebook” to see what the heck it means. Your interest was piqued. You will get immediate answers on a blog and likely there will be suggestions as to what you can do proactively. Don’t be so uppity. If you post something boring like “It is breast cancer awareness month, [insert fact] so you should go to [link] and donate! Remember to check yourself and go in for regular checkups” People tune it out. The fact that the site is talking about it just proves it works.
When people condemn things like this as insensitive or unhelpful I’d like to tell them exactly where I want to stick their handbag.
I think if you’d like some insight into those who see this viral trend as insensitive, you might want to read this:
http://www.cliffviewpilot.com/editorial/1711-literally-a-sick-joke-i-like-it-breast-cancer-awareness-meme-attracts-the-ignorant
Yeah his points about how men would never start something so childish or be so flippant as us women are really jive with me.
Because this one man feels this way, means nothing to me honestly. I know plenty of women who have had breast cancer who are “playing along” with this “game”. Trying to take claim over a disease because you know someone who had it or had it yourself is absolute bullshit. You can say how you feel, don’t try and say that all people who have had cancer hold the same opinions as you.
I actually felt like the article was somewhat valuable in pointing out why this may offend someone. The author was pretty abrasive, and it’s clear that he has a lot of anger about his mother’s death still, but I thought it was an interesting read. However, I didn’t pick up on the “men wouldn’t be this stupid” theme…probably wasn’t reading very thoroughly. I only just had some coffee…I blame that.
It was this that I didn’t like:
“Do these half-wits know how patronizing it is to sufferers — those being eaten by a ravenous cancer, as well as the helpless loved ones around them — to flit their lashes under the cover of something so painful? If they’re so smart, how come they don’t see the nonsense themselves? Why do they act like dilletantes instead of caring, empathetic human beings? ****Say what you will about men, but this definitely isn’t our style. We’ll either clam up or hit you between the eyes with the truth. If you think this little tease is going to hook us, think again.****”
It really irks me that breast cancer is “the sexy cancer” because it’s in your boobs. Oh yeah, boobs+potentially fatal disease = totally sexy. Although I feel like some good can come out of breast cancer’s pseudo-popularity; hopefully a cure for breast cancer will be found, and if a cure for breast cancer is found, hopefully it can be applied to other cancers as well.
Actually, the purse thing occurred within the Brazillian community on Orkut and Facebook a few months ago, followed by other kinds of waves about different objects. It was only a prank to make men ask what the hell women were talking about. I think someone just started saying it was to raise awareness about breast cancer and started a new wave among English-speaking women.
In my opinion, yes the constant “I like it …” is annoying however I dont get what the big deal is and why everyone is so upset about it. I “played the game” and while in a way it was completely pointless it reminded me that October was breast cancer awareness month, something I am fortunate enough to never have to think about in daily life. It also reminded me to check my breasts because I hadnt done so since LAST October. I see it more of a remembrance to those who have passed and are fighting breast cancer. Sure some may see it as a joke but not all feel that way, people only see the stupid status not what those very people may be doing in their own lives to help find a cure and just want to try and find a way to get more people involved, educated and motivated to atleast take a second to think about these things. Every little bit helps.
Why is everyone so upset about this? It’s harmless. It gets people curious. And it’s Facebook. What’s the big deal?
Hi
I got sent the meme, but it said nothing about Breast Cancer. I got it as a way of making men wonder what we were up to. I’ve copied below the message I received (and forwarded for the heck of it.)
“I got this and thought i would send it on.! do not reply to this message, your answer should be posted on your wall so everyone in your friends sees it in the feed. rock on my sisters!
OK ladies herne’s a game, like the bra color game which was a total success and we had men wondering for days what was with the colors and it made it to the News.
Well this game has to do with your handbag, where we put our handbag the moment we get home for example “I like it on the couch”, “I like it on the kitchen counter”, “I like it on the dresser” well u get the idea. Just put your answer as your Status with nothing more than that and cut n paste this message and forward to all your FB female friends to their inbox. The bra game made it to the news. Let’s see how powerful we women really are!!! REMEMBER – DO NOT PUT YOUR ANSWER AS A REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE AND DONT FORGET TO EMAIL THIS TO YOUR GIRLFRIENDS”
See, no mention of Cancer.
I have to say that I’m really torn by Pinktober. I lost my maternal grandmother to breast cancer when I was 10, but now my dad has intestinal cancer. Before he got sick, I used to be frustrated by October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month simply because it bothers me that it is forgotten by most people 11 months out of the year and then one month becomes sensory/emotional overload of everything pink. You can’t go anywhere without something pink in your face. Typical of our culture, we don’t want to do anything proactively, but once a year we’ll buy a chocolate bar with a pink wrapper and pat ourselves on the back. I do think that the companies who do the pink products with no increase in product price are doing a good thing.
But everything changed when my dad got sick and he couldn’t find websites about his kind of cancer, or an online support group for his kind of cancer, or a ribbon for his kind of cancer. He literally said to us, as part of his coping, “where’s my ribbon?” Where is the “every other kind of cancer” awareness? We know to “feel out boobies” and “save the tatas” but do we know what early warning signs of a blood cancer look like? Do we know what symptoms of intestinal cancer are? In terms of awareness it goes 1) breast cancer 2) testicular cancer (they top the list because apparently we are less human if we don’t have these sex-related body parts health) 3) leukemia in children and then 4) every other cancer.
I agree with all the posters who have said that raising “awareness” without doing anything else is ridiculous and I agree that this latest viral facebook thing was never meant to be about awareness and is likely not very effective at raising awareness. Will it offend some people? Yes, but then again, what doesn’t? Is it more offensive than helpful? I’m not sure. But I do think that it is time for us as women and as a society to care more about women’s health than to splash pink on everything in site for 31 days and be done with it.