Ribbon Histories

Abstract

Though we know that the ribbon originated from the USA, it is difficult to establish precisely when it came into existence. Whilst some point to the yellow-ribbon campaign that emerged in 1979 after 52 US citizens were taken captive in Iran,¹ there is evidence that there was a green ribbon worn to show concern about the Atlanta Child Murders around the same time (Engle, 2000; Sturken, 1997, p. 106). What is clear, however, is that by 1991 the ribbon’s time had come. The reaction en masse to the invitation to ‘tie a yellow ribbon’ for troops fighting in the Gulf during this period meant that the yellow ribbon became a widely recognised symbol in the USA. As Larsen notes, ‘[f]ew symbols … have been so quickly embraced by so many segments of society’ (Larson, 1992, p. 11). Several months later, the red AIDS-awareness ribbon was launched, a symbol that was to transform a US practice into a global phenomenon. Indeed, the success of the red ribbon prompted numerous groups and charities to launch ribbon campaigns, the most prominent of which has been the pink breast-cancer awareness ribbon.