Wristbands

By now I’m sure that everyone is well aware of the colorful array of wristbands that seemingly everyone is sporting these days. And if you care to know, you might actually find out what the colors represent and what these bracelets stand for. Green for support of our troops, Blue for Mott’s Children’s Hospital, Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness, and the color that got it all started, Yellow LiveStrong bracelets.

Many people wear these wristbands not understanding the thought process from whence they come. For example, the “LiveStrong” bracelets, that were made popular by Tour de France record holder Lance Armstrong, are in large part Armstrong’s statement to denounce God. His bracelets were created in much the same mold as the Titanic; an outright defiance of God, or even the existence of such a higher being. Yeah, unbelievable, right?

Armstrong said that he didn’t beat Cancer because of God or prayer, but that he overcame Cancer by living strong, hard work, and good Doctors. And thus he gave birth to the bracelets. Nice to know, huh? Kinda makes you feel sorry for all those Cancer victims each year though. I guess they didn’t work hard enough. Better yet, maybe they didn’t pray hard enough.

However, by buying a LiveStrong bracelet you do send monetary support to a Cancer charity. And if that’s your goal, then I ain’t mad atcha.

But back to my original point. I recognize that each of these colorful bracelets represents something positive, and that proceeds for purchase of the bracelets often go to charities, but I do have a few fundamental issues with their ubiquitous presence.

Much like a great song that you hear on the radio, once it is in constant rotation, it loses its appeal and luster. Likewise, once people begin purchasing the bracelets without understanding their cause, and their existence becomes omni-present, then they become just another fad.

Think back about 10 years or so, when 4 letters headlined the wrists of half the country, "WWJD." You would see them on the wrists of “good Samaritans” as well as people holding Bacardi Limon in one hand, and a joint in the other (not that drinking Bacardi or smoking weed isn’t something that Jesus would have done-but I personally just don’t picture Jesus “throwin one back” or “blazing one”). The notion of “What Would Jesus Do” was lost in the fad, even though the wristbands were meant to be a constant reminder to the wearer that they should be on good behavior at all times. Once the fad kicked in though, the letters WWJD might as well have stood for “We Want Jelly Donuts.”

And I know the argument can be made that all of this is for a good purpose (certainly I don’t want to diminish the value of 100,000 people buying a $3 bracelet for charity because, well, that’s $300,000), but there are a dozen other ways that you can make a difference for charity that do not include joining a fad. If you really want to help out Mott’s Children’s Hospital, go and volunteer there. If you really want to support Cancer Research, donate a significant amount of money (no specific number) to the Susan G. Komen Cancer Center or the Cancer Center nearest your community.

And maybe I should point out (and not to toot my own horn, but to be real) that I’m not just saying these things, but that I have actually done them. I have spent ample time fundraising for Cancer Research as well as donating my own money. I’ve also spent time volunteering at places like Mott’s Children’s Hospital, which is always a very touching experience.

I guess I just hope that with all the fervor for the spectrum of bracelets, people understand the purpose behind why each bracelet exists. And if they deem that purpose reputable, that they won’t just stop at buying the bracelet, but will let the purpose drive them to do much more for that cause.

-Maelstrom