This photo released by Save the Ta-tas shows one of their T-shirts. The company also has hats. The T-shirts proclaim everything from "caught you lookin' at my ta-tas" and "I love my big ta-tas" for women to "my girl has great ta-tas" and "save a life grope your wife" for men.
You know, I am all for raising awareness of the horrible disease, Breast Cancer. I have done many a fundraiser over the years, have worn the pink hat or shirt, have even been involved in some of the "walks". This, this is TOO MUCH!
What has happened in our society that we just don't have any shame anymore!
Let me quote from the Associated Press story:
LOS ANGELES — A woman in a skimpy white bikini sashays next to a swimming pool. Onlookers gawk, men's tongues roll and music blares in the background.
The camera zooms in slow motion to her jiggling chest as a message spreads across the screen: "You know you like them / Now it's time to save the boobs."
It may resemble a beer commercial, but it's really a public-service announcement for Toronto's annual Boobyball party to benefit the charity Rethink Breast Cancer, and it's gone viral, with more than 350,000 hits on YouTube. It's just one of the edgier ways awareness is being promoted among younger women during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
"Generally, with people my age, who watch MTV, there's no association between the breast and breast cancer. They think the boobs in beer commercials are different," said MTV News Canada host Aliya-Jasmine Sovani, 27, who stars as the bikini-clad gal and wrote and co-directed the clip.
"But everyone uses sexy imagery for commercials," Sovani said. "I thought guys would watch it because they would watch it naturally, and girls would like the humor and irony ... We all like boobs, we all celebrate boobs, so let's save the boobs."
Similar messages are showing up on feisty T-shirt lines and at events aimed at younger women. According to leading breast cancer organization Susan G. Komen for the Cure, about 5 percent of all breast cancer in the United States occurs in women younger than 40. Worldwide, about 465,000 women die from breast cancer each year.
Julia Fikse started her cheekily named T-shirt business Save the Ta-tas in 2004.
Her T-shirts proclaim "caught you lookin' at my ta-tas" and "I love my big ta-tas." Five percent of every sale goes to breast cancer research and awareness. About $340,000 dollars have been donated so far, Fikse said.
Men's involvement, noted Fikse, was paramount. Her company has T-shirts for men with slogans "my girl has great ta-tas" and "save a life, grope your wife."
"Men have an ability to take it into a sexual place very fast," Fikse said. "But you can turn an awkward, sexual conversation into something awesome about breast cancer awareness."
The tongue-in-cheek message makes a serious point, said Rethink Breast Cancer founder and executive director MJ DeCoteau: Information on breast cancer has been mostly directed toward older women.
"I remember grabbing a pamphlet with a 60-year-old woman on the cover. Another one had a dark shadowy woman facing the corner. It looked quite fearful," said DeCoteau, now 39. "Taking control of your breast health should be positive and upbeat."
Not everyone is comfortable with such boundary-pushing campaigns. Susan G. Komen for the Cure founder Nancy Brinker voiced reservations about using sexy imagery, though said she wouldn't discredit what anyone else does.
Sovani brushes off comments that her video may be inappropriate.
"Whether you love it or hate it, it gets people talking," she said. "Breast cancer is scary. We're not trying to take away from that. But preventing breast cancer doesn't have to be scary. If it's made to be scary, people don't want to check as much."Ok, so we want MEN to stare at Women's chests now? One of the absolute worst things for a man to do, especially when he may want to remain as clean in his thought life as possible. Do men really need another reason to look? Do we not already as a society "sexualize" enough?
This offends me and I believe makes light of Breast Cancer Awareness.
I would love to hear from women on this story. Are you offended?
