Okay, red ribbons are for AIDS; green ribbons are either anti-war or to stop child abuse or for POW-MIAs; white ribbons are either for domestic violence, gay teen suicides, or peace. Now we have black and white ribbons for clergy sex abuse.
I appreciate the thought behind the idea, but wearing ribbons has completely lost its impact. Nobody can keep track of what they’re for anymore. And if no one knows what your little ribbon means, then what’s the point of doing it. Besides, wearing a ribbon is the least effective way to aid someone or support a cause. Or it’s the least amount of work you can do to support it.
I remember last year or the year before, someone did a parody before the Academy Awards, showing a chest full of little ribbons of all colors and patterns, to highlight all the different causes the actors were “supporting.” You needed a program just to figure it out.
Of course, if you want to start your own ribbon campaign there’s the Amazing Ribbon-O-Matic!
Todd,
Good memory! I think the lyrics went something like: “I’m coming home, I’ve done my time…”
Anyway, this is a horrible idea, in my opinion. Horrible because it’s illogical.
As ineffective as ribbon campaigns are, they generally have a legitimate target.
Aids is bad.
Breast cancer is bad.
Child abuse is bad.
And war, as we all know, is heck.
Agreed.
But this ribbon campaign misses, because it visually targets, not child abusers, but priests. A black and white ribbon? Come on. Even the article focused on a priest’s Roman collar.
What if somebody wanted to show support for victims of atrocities committed by a few U.S. soldiers? By the above logic, the ribbons would be made of camoflauge material, thereby slamming every infantry soldier.
Still another way to try to make a buck out of the scandal.
I thought the black and white ribbon was for vocations to the priesthood and to the religious life.
When Rush Limbaugh did a parody of the various “cause” ribbons, he created a ribbon for “Deficit Spending Awareness.” The color scheme was mostly green—it was a folded-up dollar bill.
Victor,
I think that’s the ribbon parody I’m remembering. It was funny stuff, good satire because it extends the everyday into the absurd.