Ribbon Colours.

Many, many, many years ago (more than a century), young ladies would display a ribbon to show support for their boyfriend, fiance or husband who was in the military. The most common one was a yellow ribbon. In the days long ago when soldiers wore colorful uniforms, the "facings" of their uniform coat displayed a color which identified their branch of service--infantry was light blue, artillery was red and the cavalry wore yellow facings. At the time of the Indian Wars in the United States (late 19th century), most of the soldiers employed in the campaigns were in the cavalry, so one most commonly saw a woman displaying a yellow ribbon.

There was once even a popular song on the subject:

Around her neck
She wore a yellow ribbon,
She wore it in the springtime
And in the month of May.
And if you asked her
Why the heck she wore it,
She'd say "It's for my lover
Who is far, far away".

That became a common idea of showing support for someone who was away from home, and expressing the idea that the woman in question hoped the man would come home safely. The connection to the uniform facings of the branches of service was forgotten, and by the era of the First World War, displaying a yellow ribbon meant that a woman had a sweetheart or a husband, father or brother in the service, and was showing their support and their hope that he would come home safely. People forgot the origin, if they ever knew, and the yellow ribbon just meant "come home safely."

In the 1970s, there was a sappy song, Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree which became popular, so that by the time of the Gulf War, the use of a yellow ribbon to mean support and the wish that a soldier would come home safely was again popular. Thereafter, people took the idea of using a colored ribbon to mean support for a particular group of people and extended it by adopting different colored ribbons to show support for different causes. Why the particular colors used were chosen, i couldn't say.

Wait, isn't pink to cure homosexuality?

It's pretty much always associated with cancer, and particularly, breast cancer, in my experience.

Well, actually, I was joking. There is no cure for gay.

Hi, I know

Blue is for Australian Police.

Yellow is for Cancer.

PINK is for Breast Cancer.

Gwen 39

PINK better be for breast cancer. i just paid for a $20 umbrella...it's very nice though...and pink

brown is for lactose intolerance.

Wow Setanta, I can only be in awe of the veritable cornucopia of knowledge you have


Er, I don't think they use blue all over the world for the Australian police.

So the list is:

Red- Aids
Purple- Alzheimers
Yellow- Cancer
Pink- Breast Cancer
(?)Blue-Australian Police(?)
Brown- Lactose Intolerance.

Are there any other colours?
Thanks everyone for your answers

No no, brown is rectal cancer.













...ahhhahaha.... i just shat my pants

I received a four color (red, yellow, blue, green) bracelet from a Lakota Indian School. The four colors represented the four spiritual directions.

So I guess they mean different things in (or is that 'at'?) different places in the world.
And how is it that you came to receive such a ribbon Noddy?

Quincy--

Long story. I made a small contribution to a college fund for the toddler children of the Indian woman who was killed in the early days of the Iraqi conflict.

My name wound up on all sorts of Indian mailing lists.