I Wear, So I Care

Don't even get me started on this topic.

Let me pimp out my charities before I get too involved and forget to praise something.  The causes that are near and dear to my heart are: Lupus, Autism, Juvenile Arthritis and Diabetes.

Lupus: My Aunt Karen Martin passed away due to complications with Lupus 10/11/11.
Subsequently, this article discusses her lawsuit against Ford because of their refusal to hire her
Autism: My Cousin Kamren is a child on the Autism Spectrum
Juvenile Arthritis: My sorority, Alpha Omicron Pi, has been championing this debilitation since 1967.
and Diabetes: Sadly, there isn't a female member on my extended family living today that doesn't deal with something diabetes related...this includes my mother.

That's the short list of the issues facing us today that I care about.  But let's talk about this notion of commercialized charity shall we?

If you didn't rock one of these bad boys,
 you weren't cool.  I think it took me about three months to realize I was on the fast train to lamesville when I finally understood Lance Armstrong's yellow banded message.  And really think about it right; that trend started when I was a freshman in high school.  Not to date myself, but that was May 2004 and we are nine years past that.  Other companies and charities have flocked to this seemingly insignificant moniker but what a cash cow/promotional tool is has spiraled into.  You can tell just by looking at someones wrist what tugs their heartstrings, what gets them teary eyed and what they really, truly care about.  Well, that was the thought anyway.

Recognize this?

This charitable initiative began in 2006.  You remember the GAP clothes right?  Of course you do.  Likely because it made you aware of the plight of the less fortunate right?  Well, if you don't remember that, you at least remember Bono and the excitement you felt when they finally released an iPod that wasn't either black or white though don't you?

What about Susan G. Komen and the race for the cure?  We've all been pinkwashed into believe that this is the only organization to support in order for people to believe that you really are supporting breast cancer research.  There are individual organizations that support the research in a more grassroots manner.

Have you seen the fact sheets on some of these major charitable organizations?  Pennies on the dollar actually make it to the intended cause. PENNIES!

That having been said, guess how many people that put their pink and (red) on actually care that money went to the charity?  Of that amount, how many just care that you noticed they had a pink ribbon on their apparel or their fresh red laces?

That's been the trend.  Take this company Sevenly.  They make it pretty clear in both the name and their company description that a flat seven dollars from every product goes to the weekly supported charity.  They don't flash their logo on everything you buy.  In fact, all I have from them with their name visibly on it is my phone and that's because they sent me this sticker, see?






 It's cute, subtle and I didn't have to choose between supporting the cause and pimping it out by placing it on my phone.