A breast cancer group explains the big problem with the 'pink' campaign

The White House lit by pink lighting for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

(Image credit: CHRIS KLEPONIS/AFP/Getty Images))

published 30 October 2015

Good intentions don't necessarily produce results. While everything from the White House to NFL uniforms have turned pink in October in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, some women's groups are questioning whether all of that pink is actually doing much for the cause, The New York Times reports.

"What do we have to show for the billions spent on pink ribbon products?" said Karuna Jaggar, the executive director of Breast Cancer Action. "A lot of us are done with awareness. We want action." Cindy Pearson, executive director of the National Women's Health Network, agrees. "The pinkification of the month of October, from football cleats to coffee cups, isn't helping women," she told The New York Times.

Certainly some organizations that receive money from pink campaigns spend at least part of it on research, but the campaigns have rarely made science their main focus. And how much of the money from pink products goes to any breast cancer cause at all is also unclear.The Dick's Sporting Goods website notes, in fine print, that some of the companies selling the pink products it offers do not donate any money to breast cancer charities. (Dick's did not respond to a request to comment.) Some companies have a cap on how much they will donate, but consumers, when they buy the products, usually do not know if that cap has been reached. [The New York Times]

Read the full story on the problems of the pink campaign over at The New York Times.

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