BusinessWire
Let's face it, when it comes to breast cancer awareness, pink works. I mean, who doesn't know that the girlie color and No. 2 cancer killer of women are joined at the hip? After my own diagnosis, while I was in the midst of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation my then four-year-old son spotted a trio of nurses exiting a restaurant. They were decked out in pink scrubs, and Joey shouted, "Look, mommy -- breast cancer!" The kid had been so inundated with the color that it had become synonymous with the disease that was consuming our lives. He was aware, that's for sure. Now, almost nine, he still is.
You’re probably aware, too. And that’s great, because we need to be aware and raising funds to fight a disease that is taking the lives of our mothers, daughters, sisters and friends. But there's more to this whole pink issue than merely connecting the color with the life-threatening condition. The big question is: Have some companies gone too far to capitalize on that message?
Sure, pink ribbon campaigns can help in the fight against breast cancer. KitchenAid’s Cook for the Cure has raised $7 million in donations for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. But even amazing efforts like this come with a cost.
While I’m not a survivor who feels a strong sense of “pink fatigue,” there are many who do. Some experience guilt over the other cancers that don't get the same attention, and some feel exploited by the color and all its cutesy, bubbly variations. Here we’ve got a serious, deadly illness, and pink comes off as a celebration. In 2009, an estimated 40,170 people will die from breast cancer, says the American Cancer Society. We don’t need any more awareness, what we really need is action.
“Pinkwashing" is what it’s called when corporations try to boost sales by pushing pink. It’s all part of cause-related marketing, one of the most effective techniques used by companies today. Tie a product to a cause, then rake in the bucks. It works -- it’s just not nice, especially when the pink items are linked to the disease.
Mike’s Hard Lemonade Co., for example, has turned their alcoholic drink pink, and will make a $250,000-contribution toThe Breast Cancer Research Foundation this year. We’re talking alcohol here – and research shows that as little as one to two drinks a day can up the risk of diagnosis. Yoplait was another past offender, promoting their Save Lids to Save Lives program while making their yogurt with rBGH, the possibly-cancer-causing artificial growth hormone given to cows. Yoplait has come around, and their yogurt is now rBGH-free -- thanks to an online campaign by Think Before You Pink, a project of Breast Cancer Action calling for more accountability by companies and increased responsibility by consumers.
Remember this: Pink, and the ribbon that often accompanies it, is not regulated in any way. Some companies might state how much money they give to research, but others can just slap the color on a ball cap or a pad of paper without forking over a dime for charity.
There’s no doubt pink products have gotten a bit out of hand (pink toilet paper, really?). What likely started as a grass-roots effort to raise awareness has turned into something very commercial, and that’s not going to make breast cancer go away. Unfortunately, the crummy disease isn't going anywhere anytime soon. But I still believe pink is making a difference. If just one woman remembers in Pink-tober that she needs to schedule a mammogram, that’s enough to give merit to the color in my eyes.
