Wristbands

Many people wear yellow, blue, white, pink, purple or red rubber wristbands, showing that they are supporting a particular good cause. Although wearing them is fashionable, they are not meant as a fashion item. You can compare them with the poppies worn in November, showing that you remember the many soldiers who lost their lives in World War I.

The coloured wristbands have each a message on them, in accordance with the good cause they support.

The good cause supported by the yellow wristband is cancer awareness. It is inspired by American cyclist Lance Armstrong’s successful fight against testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain. After chemotherapy he went on to win the Tour de France six years in a row. Profits from the sales of the yellow bands helps young people with cancer and their families.

The blue band was launched by BBC Radio One as part of their campaign to tackle bullying. The band is stamped with 'Beat Bullying' and has been worn by loads of celebrities and sports stars.

The white band is about bringing an end to world poverty. The message on the band is 'Make Poverty History'. The bands can be bought from various charities, but the campaign is about encouraging rich governments to drop the debt poor countries owe them, and not about raising money.

The pink wristband is made by the Breast Cancer Care charity. They provide information, care and advice to anyone in the UK who has or had breast cancer. The bands cost £1 and the money raised goes to the patients.

The purple bands raise awareness and money to find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is a life-threatening disease. The bands cost £1 each and cash raised goes to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

The red bands are from the British Heart Foundation. The BHF is a charity that campaigns to fight heart disease, which is one of the biggest killers in the UK. All of the money raised by their sale goes to help people affected by heart disease, and to research into prevention.

I wear four wristbands, two on each arm. They are made of metal, not of rubber, and there is no text printed on them. Their message is simple : support all good causes ! All people who have any connection with Sikhí wear one, from Moné to Taksalís and followers of the AKJ. Guru Gobind Singh gave us these bands, and tasked us to work for the welfare of all.

We do not need to wear coloured wristbands, our kara is all-purpose. Let’s get inspired by our kara, and truly become the sevadars of all.

extract from "the man in blue"
harjindersinghkhalsa@yahoo.co.uk

Just to add now there’s these "Sikh" wristbands I mean Guru Sahib gave us kara and now we need a rubber band which is blue and orange. Also another reason for me being critical about these bands in particular is they have gurbani in terms of "Ik Oankar," and khanda embossed on them which is total disrespect for gurbani, etc.