I am glad that breast cancer awareness month is over. Maybe the world can get back to normal without slogans like "I love boobies," "save second base," or "save the ta-tas." Breast cancer is not sexy. As a breast cancer survivor and someone who has lost a breast to this disease, I find these slogans distasteful at best; at their worst, they objectify and sexualize women and breast cancer. You don't see bracelets with "save the cajones" for testicular cancer.
Worst case of all
KLTV 7 reports that a porn site, trying to sell its wares, said they would donate one cent for every 30 videos watched to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The charity said it would not accept the donation. This is the worst case of pinkwashing to date. Women in porn videos are not breast cancer survivors, and many of the "stars" have had breast augmentation. Breast cancer is not sexy; it is disfiguring, physically and emotionally exhausting, and it can kill a woman's self esteem. How is objectifying and sexualizing a debilitating disease even close to a good idea? Kudos to Susan G. Komen for not accepting the donation.
A survivor's view
My body has been completely changed because of breast cancer. I live in pain, I have scars, and there is nothing sexy about the ordeal I have been through. For those who want to "save second base," instead of showing someone with amazing cleavage in a bikini, why not ask David Jay of the SCAR Project or one of his models to pose for the picture. That's right, actually show real pictures of what breast cancer is and what it looks like. It is not done, because the public is too happy viewing models with perfect cleavage, pink ribbons, and distasteful puns.
There are too many women dying from breast cancer every year. The American Cancer Society states that 226,870 new cases of invasive breast cancer will occur in 2012, and 35,910 women will die from the disease. One of these women could be your wife, mother, sister, or daughter.
Positive action
If you really want to "save the ta-tas," tell the women in your life to be aware of any changes in their breasts and to get screened according to a plan set up between them and their doctors. Donate money where it really helps. Ask any organization who sells "pink" merchandise how much of the proceeds go toward finding a cure for breast cancer, and specifically ask which charity the money will go to.
Don't support pink campaigns that sell products known or suspected to cause breast cancer or increase a woman's risk of getting the disease, for example, alcohol and junk food products. If you really want to "save the boobies," support charities and research that will bring a cure by 2020.
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