Red ribbon

From AIDS Wiki

The red ribbon is a group-fantasy symbol of the AIDS phenomenon which first came to prominence at the 1991 Tony Awards. The red ribbon has been a powerful psychological component of AIDS, although it has recently declined in popularity (Cohen 2004).

Disagreement over origins

There is some disagreement as to the origin of the ribbon. Many attribute its creation to Frank Moore, a New York painter, who allegedly pitched the project to the New York-based Visual AIDS Artists Caucus. (Farha 2006) However, others credit Paul Jabara, a singer, songwriter, and actor who died of "AIDS" in 1992. In any case, there is little doubt that the idea was conceived sometime around 1991, shortly before the Tony Awards (Red Ribbon Foundation 2004).

By 1991, red ribbons were already in use – ironically – as a symbol of drug abuse awareness (Red Ribbon Coalition 2005). The idea most likely ultimately derived from the yellow ribbon symbolism used in the United States at least since the 1940s by family and friends awaiting the return of military troops. This derivation is consonant in a group-fantasy sense with Caspher Schmidt's epidemic hysteria hypothesis of AIDS (see below): "The epidemic represents an equivalent of war in the group's unconscious fantasies." (Schmidt 1984) and with John Lauritsen's "AIDS War" metaphor (Lauritsen 1993).

Group psychological aspects

A World AIDS Day 2005 promotional poster asks, "Wise up. Wear it. Where's yours?", in reference to the viewer's red ribbon.

The red ribbon quickly became a fashionable symbol of AIDS activism in the early 1990s, especially amongst entertainers and artists. Under the epidemic hysteria hypothesis of Casper Schmidt, the role of the red ribbon is to confirm group solidarity against the fantasy poison threat of HIV (Schmidt 1984). The Red Ribbon Foundation describes the "meaning" of the red ribbon as follows: "The Red Ribbon is the global symbol for solidarity with HIV positive and people living with AIDS, and it unites the people in the common fight against this disease." (Red Ribbon Foundation 2004)

The colour of the ribbon is especially notable, as it coincides with the colour of blood, one of the three components (poison blood, poison sperm, dangerous promiscuity) of the epidemic "fantasy complex" described by Schmidt (Schmidt 1984). The Red Ribbon site stresses the colour red [colour and boldface as in original]:

"The Red Ribbon is ...

• red, like love, as a symbol of passion and tolerance towards those affected.
• red, like blood, representing the pain caused by the many people that died of AIDS.
• red, like the anger about the helplessness by which we are facing a disease for which there is still no chance [sic] for a cure.
• red as a sign of warning not to carelessly ignore one of the biggest problems of our time." (Red Ribbon Foundation 2004)

Also notable is the fact that many red ribbons are handmade (Farha 2006). In this way, the red ribbon phenomenon shares many elements in common with other group-fantasy rituals such as the AIDS Quilt. This group-fantasy aspect has been particularly acute in the United States, and has resulted in a group psychological "spill-over effect" into the use of "awareness ribbons" for hundreds of diverse and even conflicting causes. For example, green ribbons are used to indicate support of environmental causes, organ and tissue donation, mental health advocacy, open records for adoptees, "cannabis liberation", and Chechnya.

Use of upside-down red ribbon by dissidents

In response to the popularity of the red ribbon, many AIDS dissidents began to use the symbol of an upside-down red ribbon to show their resistance. For example, the Virusmyth website displays an upside-down red ribbon prominently in its tour. However, many dissidents have become so disgusted with the red ribbon symbol that they feel distressed at the use of the upside-down red ribbon.

There is at least one orthodox website that displays an upside-down red ribbon: AIDS Walk.

Decline in popularity

The red ribbon began to decline in popularity around the early 2000s and although it still appears on many websites, its actual display in public has curtailed significantly. This may be due to a general growing disinterest, disillusionment, or exhaustion amongst the general public with AIDS activism and AIDS organisations. (Engle 2000)

Quotes

• "In India, a proposed Red Ribbon Campaign through the national rail network has been abandoned, following a national convention on HIV in Bangalore last October attended by more than 1,500 HIV-positive people where the once-fashionable symbol of Aids awareness was ceremoniously rejected. In front of television cameras, a six-foot red ribbon was cut into pieces as a protest against the 'oppressive and patronising' symbol." — Neville Hodgkinson (Hodgkinson 2006)
• "I have argued that AIDS is a catastrophe of fear, hate, negativity, and hopelessness – that when I see that red ribbon, I see a noose: one of the most strangulating, anti-life, misanthropic, terror-ridden, guilt-ridden, shame-inducing, life-snuffing medical ideologies that has ever existed." — Celia Farber (Helke 2007)

See also

• The Group-Fantasy Origins of AIDS
• World AIDS Day
• awareness ribbon

References