Kevin Pivovarov
Contributor
“I like it on the couch.”
“I like it on the dresser.”
“I like it on the chair.”
For some of us, these phrases carry great meaning and value.
The rest of us, however, are left scratching our heads, questioning our mothers’ understanding of what makes for an acceptable Facebook status. If this is not your mother’s or sisters’ way of telling the world where their dirty business goes down, however, what is it?
To understand it, we need to go back a year. Last October many women posted their bra style and colour in their Facebook statuses in an effort to raise awareness for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Was it effective? Well, it doesn’t take an astrophysicist to connect bras with breasts – in this case, breast cancer.
In an effort to keep this “awareness” going, women this year began to post comments like “I like it on the couch” in an effort to, once again, raise breast cancer awareness. In fact, the “it” referred to in those statuses are a woman’s purse: yes, women are talking about where they like to place their handbags.
Robyn Urback says in her article in the National Post that “The idea again was to unite women for a pressing cause and keep men (*tee hee*) in the dark.” Well, she wasn’t kidding about keeping people in the dark. When I asked a few of my friends to what their statuses on Facebook were alluding, I was shocked and mildly aggravated to hear, “If I told you, I’d have to kill you.”
The problem with this sort of awareness is that it’s hardly awareness at all. I’m no awareness-raising professional, but how about not threatening people who are inquiring about something potentially important with death? That, I would think, is an excellent start.
The awareness campaign failed again by segregating the sexes, since breast cancer affects both males and females. In fact, according to the Canadian Cancer Society’s website, 50 males will likely die from breast cancer this year alone. I guess this is what happens when a bunch of people who know nothing about breast cancer launch an awareness campaign for breast cancer.
Some people argue that just because men – and women who are not in the loop – are asking about it, the campaign is doing its job. After all, breasts are sexual and sex sells; this campaign has promoted curiosity by simply appealing to what men like and will ask about!
The problem is that there is very little connection to the cause, and very few people will actually do anything except talk about how funny or useless they think these status updates are.
Instead of really helping the cause, the advent of this sort of positive viral marketing has only created a new kind of activism – Urback calls it “slacktivism” – where people think they are making a difference by changing their Facebook statuses.
Here’s a thought: why not just make your status a link to the Breast Cancer donation page? The message, at least, would be clear, and it would reach the same amount of people.
It’s unfortunate breast cancer research, funding and awareness has overshadowed the public’s awareness of other cancers, such as lung and colon cancers. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, 24,600 males will contract prostate cancer this year, the most prevalent cancer found in men; 4,300 of them will die. Breast cancer will see 23,200 cases, and 5,300 women will die from it.
I am not trying to instigate a battle of the sexes: I am just trying to prove a point: cancer is serious, no matter what form it takes. Where you place your handbag has nothing to do with breast cancer. Drafting a large inside joke that confuses a lot of people trivializes a very important and serious issue. I am fairly certain men and women afflicted with breast cancer wouldn’t see this as a clever joke, but as a failure to get people motivated to do something.
If you really care, go make a donation.
