It’s October. That means, changing leaves, football season, pumpkins and lots of pink. At least on the athletic fields.
October means National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and all levels of athletics throughout the U.S. are all doing their part to supports the cause.
According to ESPN, the National Football League will hold several Breast Cancer Awareness games this month in line with “A Crucial Catch” campaign, promoting annual screenings for cancer.
Players and coaches have been sporting pink in various aspects of their uniforms, anything from socks, towels, cleats and gloves. The New York Giants have their own program set up for this month “Tackling Breast Cancer.”
“The Giants will host a series of initiatives aimed at bringing awareness to the importance of annual mammography screenings. The team will also be honoring those who were affected by breast cancer with special pre and in-game presentations as well as online at Giants.com and its social networking subsites,” according to a Giants rep.
Even high schools are getting in on the action. Earlier in the month on Long Island, N.Y., the Longwood Lions squared off against the Sachem Arrows and players on both teams wore pink gloves, socks and armbands.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women, besides skin cancer. The Susan G. Komen Foundation reports every 23 seconds someone in the world is diagnosed. The foundation also reports this year about 39,520 American women will die from the disease.
The small gesture of pink adorning a helmet is a monumental gesture in the hope to find a cure. Sports everywhere are taking the time to make that happen. Whether it be a pink sock or towel, each stand for something much bigger. If a big burly linebacker, or anyone else for that matter, can brush aside the girly stigma of wearing pink, that monumental gesture can help save someone’s mother, sister, cousin or even daughter’s life.
