Monday 6 February 2012

Breasts and pink ribbons

Check out PINK RIBBON INC on www.thegic.com to see why I have not been able to support the PINK RIBBON campaign for breast cancer despite its success as a campaign and its popularity. As a therapist who sees people in recovery from mastectomies,  reconstructions, lymphectomies etc,  I have always felt uneasy about the light and fluffy, pseudo positive, girlish, pink campaign. If you check out the link, you will see that the original commemorative ribbon was a flesh colour, until it was grabbed by a cosmetic company. Since then the colour has been used to sell products supposedly in aid of breast cancer: but exactly which aspect of breast cancer? While billions of dollars have been raised, no-one seems to have raised the question: Why the ever increasing number of women succumbing to this insidious disease?
So let's look at some the changes in women's lifestyles during this era of rampant breast disease:1 the decline in breast feeding (corporate campaigns have made women nervous about the value of their milk; image consciousness and the belief that breasts will look worse after wear have had an effect; lack of social support for breast feeding mothers- even f/b at one point banned images of mothers "nursing" their babes) etc. 2 the increase in radiation, microwave and other aerial pollutants, 3 the increase in chemicals in food production 4 the massive increase in commercially produced food, take-out and food chains posing as restaurants, 5 the increase in alcohol consumption in women, 6 the increase in women's working hours, 7 the use of household carcinogenic chemicals, 8  the increase in radiating screens in women's lives, 9 chemical hormones for women. And that's not all.
So when diagnosed women come and see me and tell me their friends have advised them to be positive, I often think to myself...there but by the grace of the goddess go I, because as the environment becomes more and more carcinogenic, not having breast cancer may become the exception.  As for pink ribbons? Let's replace them with RED roars: save the food, save the earth, and put women and children before corporations!

5 comments:

  1. The more money is poured into the promotion of cancer awareness, the more people will believe they are going to get it ... and so they will!!

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  2. Stirring, as always. Spread your words far and wide...they're worth hearing!

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  3. Hi Denise - just wanted to let you know that this link is not working. Interesting blog post.

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