Awareness ribbon

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Awareness ribbons are short pieces of ribbon folded into a loop, or representations of such, which are used in the United States and Canada as a way for the wearer to make a subtle statement of support for a cause or issue.

The meaning behind the awareness ribbon depends on its color. Many groups have adopted ribbons as symbols of support or awareness, and as a result, many causes often share each color. Some causes may also be represented by more than one color. Red or teal may represent substance abuse, and purple or white may represent Alzheimer's disease.

Awareness ribbons are frequently pinned to clothing or tied around objects such as car antennas. When a more pronounced statement is being made, larger ribbons may be tied around objects such as trees and poles. Representations of awareness ribbons may also take the form of stickers, bumper stickers or magnets and are frequently affixed to vehicles.

1 Ribbons on vehicles
2 Criticism
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Ribbons on vehicles

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Vehicle ribbon magnets were originally made popular by the "Support Our Troops" yellow ribbon magnet. The Support Our Troops magnet was created by Magnet America in April 2003. While originally created for local distribution in King, NC and surrounding cities, it spread throughout the United States.

[edit] Criticism

The proliferation of 'Awareness Ribbons' has been criticized as a form of slacktivism, allowing people to 'show support' without making an effort in time or money. Comedian George Carlin has denounced this particular type of slacktivism in his act, and suggested wearing a brown ribbon as a scatological response.