Teh One Who Knocks
10-08-2015, 11:49 AM
Matt Levin - Seattle Post-Intelligence
http://i.imgur.com/6Xwo4VO.jpg
All this month NFL fans will see pink on the football field for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Houston Texans’ most vibrant pink publicity will be on display for national audiences when the struggling team takes on the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday for Pink Ribbon Day.
So we’re here to remind you that the NFL’s “support” for fighting breast cancer at best amounts to a misguided effort. At worst, it could be considered a straight-up scam. The money raised by the league does not reach the places that need it most.
Advocacy group Breast Cancer Action has been fighting for more than a decade against pink through its “Think Before You Pink” campaign. They call what goes on each October “pinkwashing.” That’s when “a company or organization claims to care about breast cancer by promoting a pink product” and raising money for cancer charities.
But the same company sells products that are carcinogenic or cause other health problems. These pinkwashing deals are just exchanges for public goodwill, wrote Karauna Jaggar, head of Think Before You Pink, in an op-ed last year.
Recent examples include Susan G. Komen teaming up with oilfield services corporations, Baker Hughes or fried chicken purveyors KFC or makeup companies that sell products that contain carcinogens.
The NFL has its own perilous health issues that the league has attempted to cover up. And in fact, they toned down all the pink last year in what appeared to be an effort to avoid looking too hypocritical – after the league bungled several domestic violence cases involving players.
The issue with football’s self-congratulatory awareness month goes beyond pink pom-poms, pink penalty flags and pink cleats. Hardly any of the money raised during this month even reaches the American Cancer Society.
Business Insider wrote in 2013 that just 8.01 percent of money from NFL Breast Cancer Awareness merchandise goes to research efforts. Even worse, VICE Sports reported last year that none of that money goes toward cancer research programs. A spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society told VICE the NFL donations go to awareness, education and screenings.
But those programs aren't effective, according to Karuna Jagger, head of the Think Before You Pink campaign.
From VICE:
"Screening doesn't save lives and screening mammography ... is different from diagnostic mammography," Jagger says. "The NFL has no business providing medical advice to women that is outdated, unproven, and misguided."
Jagger quotes well-regarded and independently conducted research that shows screening mammography has no overall impact on survival rates of women with the disease.
The idea of an NFL breast cancer awareness seems baseless. If it wasn’t for the NFL, would you not have heard of breast cancer? Breast cancer still remains a devastating disease. However, spending money on awareness or unnecessary screenings doesn’t make the fight even easier. (Meanwhile, research has increased survival rates significantly since the 1970s).
There are better ways the NFL could fight cancer. Here are Time’s list of the charities that do the most for battling breast cancer (Susan G. Komen is noticeably absent). Or the NFL could raise awareness for less publicized cancers that are as common as breast cancer and even more deadly like lung cancer or colorectal cancer.
But the criticism – many from breast cancer survivors – hasn’t phased the NFL or its partners. That’s unfortunate for Texans fans who are already suffering through an awful product on the field and now will be hocked a rubbish product off the field.
For a look at some of the most ridiculous pinkwashing items, see the gallery below
http://img208.imagevenue.com/loc347/th_304887633_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS001_122_347lo. jpg (http://img208.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304887633_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS001 _122_347lo.jpg) http://img284.imagevenue.com/loc400/th_304887838_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS002_122_400lo. jpg (http://img284.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304887838_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS002 _122_400lo.jpg) http://img145.imagevenue.com/loc37/th_304888465_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS003_122_37lo.j pg (http://img145.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304888465_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS003 _122_37lo.jpg) http://img176.imagevenue.com/loc384/th_304889258_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS004_122_384lo. jpg (http://img176.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304889258_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS004 _122_384lo.jpg) http://img129.imagevenue.com/loc996/th_304891302_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS005_122_996lo. jpg (http://img129.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304891302_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS005 _122_996lo.jpg) http://img217.imagevenue.com/loc1197/th_304892416_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS006_122_1197lo .jpg (http://img217.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304892416_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS006 _122_1197lo.jpg) http://img175.imagevenue.com/loc472/th_304894563_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS007_122_472lo. jpg (http://img175.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304894563_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS007 _122_472lo.jpg) http://img176.imagevenue.com/loc131/th_430489627_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS008_122_131lo. jpg (http://img176.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=430489627_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS008 _122_131lo.jpg) http://img131.imagevenue.com/loc86/th_430489756_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS009_122_86lo.j pg (http://img131.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=430489756_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS009 _122_86lo.jpg) http://img226.imagevenue.com/loc226/th_304899285_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS010_122_226lo. jpg (http://img226.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304899285_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS010 _122_226lo.jpg) http://img183.imagevenue.com/loc404/th_304901678_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS011_122_404lo. jpg (http://img183.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304901678_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS011 _122_404lo.jpg) http://img131.imagevenue.com/loc139/th_304903998_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS012_122_139lo. jpg (http://img131.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304903998_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS012 _122_139lo.jpg) http://img220.imagevenue.com/loc1124/th_304904798_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS013_122_1124lo .jpg (http://img220.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304904798_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS013 _122_1124lo.jpg) http://img141.imagevenue.com/loc559/th_304906205_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS014_122_559lo. jpg (http://img141.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304906205_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS014 _122_559lo.jpg) http://img106.imagevenue.com/loc118/th_304907746_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS015_122_118lo. jpg (http://img106.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304907746_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS015 _122_118lo.jpg) http://img106.imagevenue.com/loc210/th_304908770_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS016_122_210lo. jpg (http://img106.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304908770_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS016 _122_210lo.jpg) http://img269.imagevenue.com/loc153/th_304908808_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS017_122_153lo. jpg (http://img269.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304908808_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS017 _122_153lo.jpg) http://img251.imagevenue.com/loc214/th_304909592_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS018_122_214lo. jpg (http://img251.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304909592_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS018 _122_214lo.jpg) http://img187.imagevenue.com/loc67/th_304909487_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS019_122_67lo.j pg (http://img187.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304909487_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS019 _122_67lo.jpg) http://img124.imagevenue.com/loc393/th_304910176_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS020_122_393lo. jpg (http://img124.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304910176_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS020 _122_393lo.jpg)
http://i.imgur.com/6Xwo4VO.jpg
All this month NFL fans will see pink on the football field for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Houston Texans’ most vibrant pink publicity will be on display for national audiences when the struggling team takes on the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday for Pink Ribbon Day.
So we’re here to remind you that the NFL’s “support” for fighting breast cancer at best amounts to a misguided effort. At worst, it could be considered a straight-up scam. The money raised by the league does not reach the places that need it most.
Advocacy group Breast Cancer Action has been fighting for more than a decade against pink through its “Think Before You Pink” campaign. They call what goes on each October “pinkwashing.” That’s when “a company or organization claims to care about breast cancer by promoting a pink product” and raising money for cancer charities.
But the same company sells products that are carcinogenic or cause other health problems. These pinkwashing deals are just exchanges for public goodwill, wrote Karauna Jaggar, head of Think Before You Pink, in an op-ed last year.
Recent examples include Susan G. Komen teaming up with oilfield services corporations, Baker Hughes or fried chicken purveyors KFC or makeup companies that sell products that contain carcinogens.
The NFL has its own perilous health issues that the league has attempted to cover up. And in fact, they toned down all the pink last year in what appeared to be an effort to avoid looking too hypocritical – after the league bungled several domestic violence cases involving players.
The issue with football’s self-congratulatory awareness month goes beyond pink pom-poms, pink penalty flags and pink cleats. Hardly any of the money raised during this month even reaches the American Cancer Society.
Business Insider wrote in 2013 that just 8.01 percent of money from NFL Breast Cancer Awareness merchandise goes to research efforts. Even worse, VICE Sports reported last year that none of that money goes toward cancer research programs. A spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society told VICE the NFL donations go to awareness, education and screenings.
But those programs aren't effective, according to Karuna Jagger, head of the Think Before You Pink campaign.
From VICE:
"Screening doesn't save lives and screening mammography ... is different from diagnostic mammography," Jagger says. "The NFL has no business providing medical advice to women that is outdated, unproven, and misguided."
Jagger quotes well-regarded and independently conducted research that shows screening mammography has no overall impact on survival rates of women with the disease.
The idea of an NFL breast cancer awareness seems baseless. If it wasn’t for the NFL, would you not have heard of breast cancer? Breast cancer still remains a devastating disease. However, spending money on awareness or unnecessary screenings doesn’t make the fight even easier. (Meanwhile, research has increased survival rates significantly since the 1970s).
There are better ways the NFL could fight cancer. Here are Time’s list of the charities that do the most for battling breast cancer (Susan G. Komen is noticeably absent). Or the NFL could raise awareness for less publicized cancers that are as common as breast cancer and even more deadly like lung cancer or colorectal cancer.
But the criticism – many from breast cancer survivors – hasn’t phased the NFL or its partners. That’s unfortunate for Texans fans who are already suffering through an awful product on the field and now will be hocked a rubbish product off the field.
For a look at some of the most ridiculous pinkwashing items, see the gallery below
http://img208.imagevenue.com/loc347/th_304887633_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS001_122_347lo. jpg (http://img208.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304887633_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS001 _122_347lo.jpg) http://img284.imagevenue.com/loc400/th_304887838_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS002_122_400lo. jpg (http://img284.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304887838_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS002 _122_400lo.jpg) http://img145.imagevenue.com/loc37/th_304888465_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS003_122_37lo.j pg (http://img145.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304888465_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS003 _122_37lo.jpg) http://img176.imagevenue.com/loc384/th_304889258_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS004_122_384lo. jpg (http://img176.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304889258_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS004 _122_384lo.jpg) http://img129.imagevenue.com/loc996/th_304891302_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS005_122_996lo. jpg (http://img129.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304891302_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS005 _122_996lo.jpg) http://img217.imagevenue.com/loc1197/th_304892416_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS006_122_1197lo .jpg (http://img217.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304892416_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS006 _122_1197lo.jpg) http://img175.imagevenue.com/loc472/th_304894563_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS007_122_472lo. jpg (http://img175.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304894563_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS007 _122_472lo.jpg) http://img176.imagevenue.com/loc131/th_430489627_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS008_122_131lo. jpg (http://img176.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=430489627_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS008 _122_131lo.jpg) http://img131.imagevenue.com/loc86/th_430489756_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS009_122_86lo.j pg (http://img131.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=430489756_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS009 _122_86lo.jpg) http://img226.imagevenue.com/loc226/th_304899285_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS010_122_226lo. jpg (http://img226.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304899285_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS010 _122_226lo.jpg) http://img183.imagevenue.com/loc404/th_304901678_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS011_122_404lo. jpg (http://img183.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304901678_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS011 _122_404lo.jpg) http://img131.imagevenue.com/loc139/th_304903998_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS012_122_139lo. jpg (http://img131.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304903998_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS012 _122_139lo.jpg) http://img220.imagevenue.com/loc1124/th_304904798_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS013_122_1124lo .jpg (http://img220.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304904798_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS013 _122_1124lo.jpg) http://img141.imagevenue.com/loc559/th_304906205_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS014_122_559lo. jpg (http://img141.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304906205_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS014 _122_559lo.jpg) http://img106.imagevenue.com/loc118/th_304907746_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS015_122_118lo. jpg (http://img106.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304907746_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS015 _122_118lo.jpg) http://img106.imagevenue.com/loc210/th_304908770_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS016_122_210lo. jpg (http://img106.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304908770_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS016 _122_210lo.jpg) http://img269.imagevenue.com/loc153/th_304908808_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS017_122_153lo. jpg (http://img269.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304908808_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS017 _122_153lo.jpg) http://img251.imagevenue.com/loc214/th_304909592_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS018_122_214lo. jpg (http://img251.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304909592_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS018 _122_214lo.jpg) http://img187.imagevenue.com/loc67/th_304909487_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS019_122_67lo.j pg (http://img187.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304909487_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS019 _122_67lo.jpg) http://img124.imagevenue.com/loc393/th_304910176_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS020_122_393lo. jpg (http://img124.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=304910176_tduid10128_jennifer_FOS020 _122_393lo.jpg)