# Support ribbon colors - meanings?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 23, 2001, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777 "2001-08-23T20:12:51Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/1 "2001-08-23T20:12:51Z")

</div>

Okay, I know some of the little folded ribbons have fairly significant meanings, but there are a couple which confuse me.

Standard ribbons:

red = AIDS awareness  
pink = breast cancer awareness  
yellow = general support of [this week’s cause]  
black = mourning

Confusing:

I’ve met two people with a green ribbon - one claims it’s for supporting environmental causes, another says it’s for organ transplant awareness.

I’ve met one person with a blue ribbon who says it’s for domestic abuse awareness, another says it’s for censorship awareness.

Now I’ve also seen white and purple support ribbons. What do they mean!?! And is orange the only one not currently connected to a cause?

And can a group ‘copyright’ a color ribbon as a logo or trademark? For example, can an AIDS awareness group sue another group for using the ‘red folded ribbon’ with a cause not at all connected with AIDS?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/2 "2001-08-23T20:20:58Z")

</div>

I’ve seen red used for D.A.R.E., as well (side note: I saw posters for D.A.R.E. for years before I ever saw what the acronym actually stood for; I just decided it was Drugs Are Real Evil).

I go with Paula Poundstone’s theory, that this is all some vast conspiracy by the ribbon industry to sell more ribbon.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/3 "2001-08-24T03:53:12Z")

</div>

Just take a look at this page, [Color Guide to Ribbon Campaigns](http://rampages.onramp.net/~arthur/ribbons/ribtext.htm), and you will just give up on any attempt to interpret the meaning of a ribbon. Every color ribbon has at least 5 different groups claiming it as a symbol.

BTW, orange is apparently used for [anti-racism](http://www.angelfire.com/ok/hexichess/race.html).

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/4 "2001-08-24T10:53:45Z")

</div>

Thank you for the link, SmackFu. Some of the groups are, um, “interesting” [No “Phantom of the Opera” Movie]…

I think I’ll just make a tie-dye ribbon and join the “Non-conformists are All Alike” society.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![DVous\_Means](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@DVous\_Means](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DVous_Means)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/5 "2001-08-24T13:49:18Z")

</div>

Isn’t purple the Gay colour?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![andygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@andygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andygirl)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/support-ribbon-colors-meanings/77777/6 "2001-08-24T14:27:50Z")

</div>

**The** gay color? It wishes, the hussy.

Lavender has been used as a gay color, particularly among the lesbian movements of the 70s. It, along with pink and the rainbow, have strong associations with the queer community. That having been said, it’s not an exclusive thing.