Nathan Exposed » Red Ribbons… for Troops?

Red Ribbons… for Troops?

Rodney and I went to buy groceries tonight. As we were checking out, I noticed our cashier (whom I presumed to be younger, probably 16) was wearing a red ribbon on her name tag.

I was so touched. I looked around at the other adolescent cashiers and none of them had a red ribbon on. I thought it was wonderful for one young girl to make a statement, without fear of all the ridiculous stereotypes about HIV/AIDS.

With a big smile, I said “I think it’s nice that you’re wearing a red ribbon.”

She smiled back, in fact her face lit up. “Thanks! So you know what a red ribbon is for?” she asked me.

We had such a connection. Two strangers discussing an important cause. If only I could bottle that moment in time and share that special feeling with all of you.

“Why yes, I do. Tomorrow is World AIDS Day,” I said proudly.

A perplexed look of confusion came over her face. “This is for my school, to support the troops,” she explained.

The connection was broken.

‘Well, um… the ribbon for troops is yellow. Red ribbons are for AIDS. But uh… supporting your troops is good too” I said.

—

December 1st is World AIDS Day. I hope we can all feel connected about it, because it’s something that affects all of us.

Fri, Nov 30, 2007 @ 7:52 pm | Filed in Life | Permalink

5 Comments

This is a classic case of how things like ribbons seem to lose their meaning as the focus becomes diffused among generations. So many kids now can’t keep up with the difference of continents and countries, let alone which color ribbon stands for which cause. I suppose we can count ourselves fortunate that you were there to set her straight, so to speak.

-C

Posted by Christopher on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 6:30 am

Sadly, it’s more than kids not knowing the appropriate colors of ribbons or what they can keep up with.

The real issue is why. AIDS awareness has faded. Younger people think more and more that AIDS was a thing of the 80’s and is no longer a big deal so in effect they just don’t care about it as much as they should.

I’m not just pulling words from some dark hole either. I hear those words all the time and have seen AIDS awareness fade over the years due to lack of funding, etc.

There are many reasons this has happened. But the number one reason is the perception that modern medicine some how makes it OK now. AIDS is no longer viewed as a death sentence as it once was. That is simply not true. While medicine certainly does help greatly there are different strains of the virus mutating itself all the time which is not so favorably treatable by modern drug cocktails.

The most disturbing thing is there are bareback clubs in larger metropolitan areas specifically geared towards getting AIDS - “get it and get the meds so you don’t have to worry about it,” seems to be the motto of these clubs.

We all need to do our part and re-educate our community. We as bloggers can make a huge difference with an ongoing campaign. It is as simple as a graphic permanently displayed on your page.

I am asking all bloggers I know (and those I don’t) to do this. It’s not just about World AIDS Day - It’s every day.

I apologize in advance for posting a link to my own link in my comment. Feel free to edit/remove it, if necessary. If it’s OK, then for those who want to see what I’ve recently done at my blog take a peek as that this page:

http://likastarr.com/archives/251

Posted by Lika Starr on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 4:32 pm

Thanks Nathan

Posted by Lika Starr on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 5:24 pm

Ahh….the voice of innocence (or is it ignorance). They occasionally (often?) blend together nicely. I’m SO GLAD you told her what it was for. We all need reminders. And she obviously doesn’t know anyone with HIV.

Posted by Lewis on Sat, Dec 1, 2007 @ 6:55 pm

The reason we decided to make a push to get the red ribbon back on the map in Houston is because it seems that one of the heart disease agencies is using it.
www.worldaidsdayhouston.org

Posted by Timmy on Sun, Dec 2, 2007 @ 1:10 am