On Oct. 16, I came across a most unsettling situation in the University Centre: a breast cancer campaign.
It is not the campaign with which I have an issue, but the chosen slogan, “Save Second Base.” This motto is in poor taste; not only due to its offensive nature to women and breast cancer survivors, but because of its unnecessarily sexual implications. The issue with this kind of slogan is that it focuses our attention on breasts and distracts from the more serious reality of cancer.
The unfortunate truth is that sex sells. Sex has always sold. So what is the harm in using a little bit of sexual humor to support a greater cause? The underlying message it sends, that’s what.
“Save the ta-tas” and other such advertising campaigns suggest a masectomy is the worst possible thing that can happen to someone with breast cancer. One in nine women will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in their lives, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. Not only does this ignore that anyone with estrogen in their body is susceptible to breast cancer, including men, it fosters a sense of worthlessness in survivors who won their battle with this devastating disease—and lost their breasts in the process.
According to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, in the year 2014 alone, 24,400 Canadian women and 210 men will be diagnosed with the disease. It is estimated that more than 5,000 of these women and 60 men will die before 2015. The good news is the survival rate has increased to between 80-88 per cent thanks to tremendous research and fundraising efforts.
So why do these survivors struggle each and every day with self-image and sexuality?
Part of the answer is simply the side effects of the treatment, which can induce menopause-like symptoms in women and sexual changes in men.
But the negative feelings surrounding a masectomy can often be just as difficult as the physical side-effects.
Breast-less or not, beating cancer is hurdle that should be celebrated by everyone. Not just by those who can still be upheld to ridiculous beauty standards.
Breast cancer campaigns seem to be unique in the total domination of sexualization in advertising; you rarely see underwear-clad models on television sets and runways sporting “Long live the schlong” or “Bend over for your buttholes” catch phrases for prostate or colon cancer.
Instead we see heartfelt fundraisers such as “Ride for Dad” where participants can register to raise money via driving a motorcycle, ATV, or various kinds of water crafts.
The main difference between the strategies of these two campaigns is that one places the person and the role they share in your life before the sickness they have been diagnosed with, while the other stresses the importance of an erogenous body part.
If these types of cancer are treated with serious and utmost respect, why sexualize an equally devastating disease like breast cancer in the first place? It takes away from the sentiment that as a society we should be more concerned with saving the people underneath the breasts than focusing on preserving them for a purely sexual aesthetic.
An example for future breast cancer campaigns is the NFL’s “Crucial Catch” initiative, where players wear pink socks, sweatbands, and gloves to promote awareness. Like “Ride for Dad,” the focus is on the people in our lives, rather than sex.
While I applaud the individuals volunteering their time to raise much needed funds and breast cancer awareness, I hope that their chosen slogan can be changed in the future to celebrate the lives and recovery of those with the disease. All Carleton students should get involved on campus so that someday in the not-too-distant future, breast cancer and all other forms can be defeated once and for all.
