It’s October, and for those that haven’t noticed the pink ribbons on everything from beauty products to fast food. It’s also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Personally, I had never questioned all these companies supporting Breast Cancer. It’s hard to even imagine questioning something that seems so positive. After listening to an interview on WBEZ’s The Morning Shift, I began to question if the way we are commercializing and commodifying Breast Cancer is really the best way to help those suffering from this terrible disease.
One point that I found to be quite shocking was illustrated best by Tania Katan, Author of My One Night Stand With Cancer, and a two time Breast Cancer survivor. She states, “I am outraged that all too often, the pink products sold to us under the guise of “finding a cure,” or “raising awareness,” or “research” contain the very chemicals that can CAUSE cancer in the first place!”. This seems plainly wrong to me. How much can these corporations be helping those with the disease when they are part of the very reason why so many people have it in the first place?
Another point that added to this new sense of mistrust was, sometimes products that are proudly boasting the pink ribbon give no money whatsoever to any of the many charities trying to help people with Breast Cancer. In my own fridge I found a package of mushrooms that was "pinkwashed" but had no fine print saying that they were giving any portion of their profits to support breast cancer. It seems to me that these companies that just give their packaging a makeover, are giving the impression that by buying their product you are directly helping someone with Breast Cancer for the purpose of increasing their profits.
Now I realize that they are raising awareness, and the pink ribbon campaign has been one of the most successful marketing campaigns of any cause. I just wonder if it is still the best way to help the cause. Barbara Brenner is the executive director of Breast Cancer Action and was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1994. She argues, “We don't really need more awareness. The question is, what do we do now?'". Brenner goes on to say that what we need to be focusing on is better ways of detecting it in the first place and how to eliminate the things that can trigger Breast Cancer like chemicals, diet, and pollution. I think Brenner brings up a lot of good points and I would agree that the focus should be on detection, prevention and I would add better treatment, rather than a cure.
Another activist in the fight against Breast Cancer with an opposing view, is Robbie Finke. Finke is the marketing director at the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. In an interview with Minnesota Public Radio, Finke argues, "Just by having this kind of information on products that touch people every day is the best public relations anyone could do. It may joggle their mind to get a mammogram or go for a clinical exam. They don't even have to buy the product and we've already sent out a positive message." I never considered that having all these pink products on the market encourages early detection.
While I think depending on corporations and pink buckets of KFC for solving Breast Cancer is problematic in a number of ways, I wonder if it's simply the best we can do. It may be that, in our consumer driven society commercialization is somewhat inevitable for addressing an issue as difficult and expensive as cancer. One thing’s for sure though, the next time I personally buy a pink candy bar I will not kid myself with the misguided notion that I just made difference in someone’s life. There’s a good chance that all I did was buy a pink candy bar, or if I’m lucky, some single digit percentage of the profits will go to a charity. To be aware of people suffering is one thing, it’s what people chose to do with that awareness that truly makes the difference.
If you would like to learn more about the non-profit Breast Cancer Action, or sign their online petition protesting chemicals linked to breast cancer in the products people use everyday, the link is posted below: http://org2.salsalabs.com/o/6098/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=15464
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