You’ve seen them everywhere, circling the wrists of youth and
adults alike: thin, colored rubber bracelets with imprinted letters
proclaiming a message.
You’ve seen them everywhere, circling the wrists of youth and adults alike: thin, colored rubber bracelets with imprinted letters proclaiming a message.
For some, the bracelets are simply a fashion statement, the latest accessory in the ever-changing world of vogue. But for others, the bracelets hold special meaning, signifying everything from sexual purity to the fight against cancer.
The popularity of the colored bands exploded during last year’s Tour de France, when the Lance Armstrong Foundation launched its Wear Yellow Campaign, which raised money to help fund research and education for cancer survival. The foundation produced yellow silicone bracelets that sold for $1 each and had the words “Live Strong” inscribed on them.
The Nike Corp., which sponsored six-time Tour de France winner and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong, donated $1 million in seed money to the foundation and set a goal of raising $5 million more through bracelet sales.
Cheryl Franzn, manager of the Nike Factory Store in the Gilroy Premium Outlets, said her store started selling the bracelets June 1 and completely sold out less than two months later. The store continues to sell the bands, and even now, one shipment – about 3,000 bracelets – usually sells out in about 10 to 14 days, Franzn said.
Initially, most of the bracelets were purchased by adults who were watching the Tour de France on television, Franzn said. But as the trend caught on, more and more teenagers started coming into the store requesting them.
“Then they became more fashionable among the youth,” she said. “When the kids would come in, they’d have on a whole armful of colored bands.”
And those colored bands have taken on meanings as varied as the colors themselves. While some imitate the Armstrong bracelets and advocate a cause – such as a camouflage bracelet with the message “Support Our Troops” – others are inscribed with more vague concepts, such as a light blue band proclaiming “friendship” or a lilac-colored band inscribed with the word “serenity.” White bracelets are inscribed with the word “purity” to signify sexual abstinence.
The National Wildlife Federation recently launched its own line of green bands with raised images of a wolf, bear, buffalo and songbird and the words “Green at Heart” to advocate support for wildlife and the environment. The recyclable bands are made with natural silica.
Still other bracelets, available online and at a number of fashion accessory stores, are less poignant, such as a hot pink band with the words “Drama Queen.” A handful of athletic companies such as Nike and Adidas have their own versions of the bracelets, with inspirational sayings such as Adidas’ “MVP” and “Impossible is Nothing.”
Westin Jones, a 14-year-old Gilroy student, often wears a black band with the words “Music is life,” a gift from a friend.
“I like all kinds of music, so it’s just something I like to wear,” he said.
Following the debut of Armstrong’s yellow bracelet, bands benefiting cancer research became popular with celebrities, including professional athletes and, thanks to pop-rock singer Sheryl Crow – Armstrong’s girlfriend – Hollywood.
Rock artist Melissa Etheridge helped make popular a pink band inscribed with the words “Share beauty, spread hope,” to promote the fight against breast cancer, which Etheridge is battling. Another bracelet, blue, states the phrase, “Colorectal cancer: Preventable. Treatable. Beatable.”
Locally, the colored bands are hot items and have taken on advocating local causes. Gilroy’s three middle schools – Ascencion Solorsano, Brownell and South Valley – recently started selling teal bracelets for $1 with the words “Support performing arts” to drum up support for arts programs in schools.
Gilroy High School also sells a blue band for $2 with the words “Drive responsibly” on one side and the initials “E.K.” on the other to commemorate Erin Kinkel, a former GHS student who died in a car accident Aug. 1.
On Tuesday, Chelsie Johnson, a 14-year-old student at Brownell, sported a teal performing arts bracelet as well as a light blue bracelet that signified support for tsunami relief efforts.
Although she said she wore the bracelets partly because she believed in their causes, Chelsie also had another reason.
“They match my outfit,” she said.
Leah Jackson, a full-time mother in Morgan Hill, wears a pink breast cancer bracelet almost every day to remember her cousin, who died of breast cancer three years ago.
“I think of her all the time anyway, but I like that the bracelet is there as a constant reminder,” Jackson said.
