Something about this rubs me the wrong way. . .

Ultramegasaurus · 2015-02-12T15:19:34+00:00

Heart disease campaigns were never gendered before, despite it affecting men significantly more harshly. And I am okay with that, not every issue needs to be gendered. We all have hearts.

The ones who start to segregate and genderbait are -again- feminists and other advocates of gynocentrism.

5th_Law_of_Robotics · 2015-02-12T16:23:15+00:00

I don't recall it ever being called a mans disease.

Agraitear · 2015-02-12T15:11:03+00:00

There hasn't been a "Wear blue to raise awareness for heart disease in men" EVER! So money was spent to do this once a certain percentage of women were affected. When it was mainly a "mans" disease it just faded into the background.

It reinforces the attitude that men are only valuable if they are useful, as soon as they are not (like if they suffer from a heart disease) they should go off and die as long as they do it quietly.

Wargame4life · 2015-02-12T14:26:54+00:00

well I think that says more about you than anything else.

you can interpret this many ways, the way i see it is "if you thought you were immune from heart disease because you are female you are wrong"

i would have the same thought if it was about breast cancer but claiming it wasn't just a womans disease (it isn't)

you probably interpret it as "its not really a problem if its a man disease but now its a woman's disease that means we need to do something about it"

pincher_martin · 2015-02-12T14:39:45+00:00

At least they're starting to phrase their statistics in a less misleading way. A previous ad said "heart disease affects 1 in 3 women," which I think is intentionally ambiguous.

In my opinion there is nothing wrong with raising awareness about women's risk of heart disease and stroke, especially if there is a cultural assumption that only men suffer from these things.

At the same time, if the campaign wants to imply that women suffering from these issues deserve special consideration in terms of health care or funding, it at least needs to justify that sentiment.

Do women lack resources for stroke and heart disease? If so, why? Are women disproportionally left out of research and funding programs? When women get a stroke or heart disease, are they more likely than men to die? Is there any reason at all, besides common misconceptions about percentages, that women require special attention in this area?

Essentially, why should I allocate the majority of my attention on the topic of stroke and heart disease to women, when it's clear that mostly men suffer from these problems?

bloodshot_eyes · 2015-02-12T16:21:13+00:00

The thing that rubs me the wrong way is the word "Just". As if heart disease would be less-bad if it only affected the male population.

Instead, if the poster said "It's not only a man's disease" I think I would support it.

Edit: now that I think about it, "only" sounds kind of dismissive too. Perhaps "Exclusively" would be better.

dingoperson2 · 2015-02-12T16:56:13+00:00

What rubs me the wrong way is that I still haven't seen any large posters saying that "X is considered a women's problem but it also affects men, so everyone please stand up for men".

Sure, people say it on the internet, but the gynocentric movement rules what's out there.

thatsabargain · 2015-02-12T18:34:58+00:00

You sound like a feminist getting upset at the slightest statements

PhotoShopNewb · 2015-02-12T20:23:44+00:00

Actually it's a pretty popular misconception that only men, or very few women, get heart disease. I think this poster is trying to break that misconception more then being sexist or feminist.

SarnXero · 2015-02-12T20:32:42+00:00

no, thats fine. it is in deed not just a man's disease.

ohthatwasme · 2015-02-12T21:51:27+00:00

What is Go Red For Women?

In 2004, the American Heart Association (AHA) faced a challenge. Cardiovascular disease claimed the lives of nearly 500,000 American women each year, yet women were not paying attention. In fact, many even dismissed it as an older man’s disease. To dispel the myths and raise awareness of heart disease as the number one killer of women, the American Heart Association created Go Red For Women, a passionate, emotional, social initiative designed to empower women to take charge of their heart health.

What is the goal of Go Red For Women?

Go Red For Women encourages awareness of the issue of women and heart disease, and also action to save more lives. The movement harnesses the energy, passion and power women have to band together and collectively wipe out heart disease. It challenges them to know their risk for heart disease and take action to reduce their personal risk. It also gives them the tools they need to lead a heart healthy life.

In 2010, the AHA set a strategic goal of reducing death and disability from cardiovascular disease and strokes by 20 percent while improving the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent by the year 2020.

Why do Go Red For Women and other red dress campaigns target women instead of men and women?

In the past, heart disease and heart attack have been predominantly associated with men. Historically, men have been the subjects of the research done to understand heart disease and stroke, which has been the basis for treatment guidelines and programs. This led to an oversimplified, distorted view of heart disease and risk, which has worked to the detriment of women.

Because women have been largely ignored as a specific group, their awareness of their risk of this often-preventable disease has suffered. Only 55 percent of women realize heart disease is their No. 1 killer and less than half know what are considered healthy levels for cardiovascular risk factors like blood pressure and cholesterol. The Go Red For Women movement works to make sure women know they are at risk so they can take action to protect their health.

How does the AHA use funds raised from Go Red For Women activities?

The AHA uses all revenues from local and National Go Red For Women activities to support awareness, research, education and community programs to benefit women.

From https://www.goredforwomen.org/home/about-go-red/

painbod · 2015-02-13T00:07:03+00:00

I'd say something negative but then I think about other campaigns like "Domestic Violence" where I've harped on them for not including men since it affects them too.

Though a better wording for the poster would be, in my opinion: "Man or Woman, heart disease affects everyone." with a photo of a male and female silhouette side-by-side holding hands below it.

LupusSuperius · 2015-02-13T00:55:53+00:00

I HATE this crap. Why does anything have to "be for women" with regards to this? Are we going to stand up for men? Wear blue for men?

Of course not. Keep wearing those pink ribbons and red shirts, because, after all, in our infinite malice of "patriarchy," we want women to live, and don't care for men.

/EndRant

ExhaleYourWill · 2015-02-13T05:25:03+00:00

Condescending and rude to all the men who experience heart disease. Who has even said it's gendered?

AtomicBLB · 2015-02-12T17:30:49+00:00

Originally I had a problem with this but hadn't checked it out yet. The CDC states (as of 2009) that women and men both have a 1 out of every 4 deaths is because of Heart Disease. Women (and myself before) think of it as being only a serious issue for men. People just aren't aware of this. I mean it says in big bold letters that it's not just a man's disease, so it's not taking anything away from us.

Sardonislamir · 2015-02-12T17:48:40+00:00

Sometimes, you can get overly sensitive to issues when you look for them. If it spun, it like,"Don't be like them, get help." That'd been an issue, but here it is just raising awareness.

NewAeon · 2015-02-12T18:53:54+00:00

This looks legit to me. It helps women and doesn't hurt men. I support this.

WhenIVoteIUPVote · 2015-02-12T18:09:15+00:00

Its the website that bothers me, why not "go red for everyone" why just women.

hotsizzlepancakes · 2015-02-12T21:45:00+00:00

I am ok with this.

It's the same as messaging to men to say "Breast Cancer Doesn't just effect Women"

Iamthesmartest · 2015-02-12T19:09:45+00:00

Some of you guys are just looking to be offended, jfc.

It's the same as saying "Breast Cancer isn't just a disease for women." It's just trying to raise awareness for a disease that is not talked about very much for that specific gender. No need to get all uppity about it.

intensely_human · 2015-02-12T18:47:36+00:00

The reason it rubs you the wrong way is because there's a subtle problem with it: by supplying a "correction", it implies that the dominant belief is that it's a man's disease, further implying that someone has been actively trying to frame it that way.

It's bogeyman defense tactics. It's like putting up a sign that says "We don't deserve to get robbed by asian immigrants!". On the one hand it's true; on the other hand it implies taking a stand against a problem that isn't there.

BruceCampbell123 · 2015-02-13T00:07:49+00:00

Breast Cancer: It's not just a Woman's disease.

yelirbear · 2015-02-12T16:15:20+00:00

Ive been seeing lots of posts about this topic recently and although the posters are purposely ignoring the major demographic of heart disease victims I don't think this may be as bad as we think. Does anybody know where the money goes that they raise? If all the donation money goes into heart disease research then who cares how they choose to raise the money? The media knows the public cares more about women as victims than men so why not use that to an advantage when raising money for a disease that effects men more?

Also did they pull that 1:3 stat out of their asses?

DLK601 · 2015-02-12T19:55:31+00:00

Yeah, that typography is hideous.

blacknights55 · 2015-02-13T02:37:24+00:00

They are inserting their gender politics into healthcare.

Lordscallywag · 2015-02-12T22:14:58+00:00

If this truely bothers you, take a minute while you are sitting at your computer and send a complaint to the American Heart Association letting them know of your concern.

Manwithyourlamps · 2015-02-12T23:05:54+00:00

Someone should make an identical version of this poster saying: Rape and Domestic violence, it's not just a woman's problem

farkface · 2015-02-13T02:16:15+00:00

Is heart disease just being a men's issue even a thing? Every time I've seen a warning about heart disease it was always genderless.

tryanather · 2015-02-13T02:33:41+00:00

This is some next level projection.

Men never made gendered programs and funded programs based on gender - but look what is happening to prostate cancer funding.

These idiots think just because they do it, men do it also.

outhouse_steakhouse · 2015-02-13T02:57:30+00:00

"We don't give a shit about two-thirds of the people who die of heart disease."

looneytunes2 · 2015-02-13T05:24:20+00:00

Breaking news: humans, regardless of gender, have organs!

fashanoo · 2015-02-13T09:18:22+00:00

Literally never heard someone claim it was a male, or male dominated disease

scdi · 2015-02-13T13:11:26+00:00

The thought behind this: "Hmm... men have it worse in this issue. Better put adds out to ensure that women are still seen as the real victim on it."

GrammarJew · 2015-02-13T17:06:59+00:00

$36,295,187 Raised This Year to End Heart Disease

... and what are they doing to end heart disease?

What We Do: To improve the lives of all Americans, we provide public health education in a variety of ways.

We’re the nation’s leader in CPR education training. We help people understand the importance of healthy lifestyle choices. We provide science-based treatment guidelines to healthcare professionals to help ensure the best treatment for every patient, every time. We educate lawmakers, policy makers and the public as we advocate for changes to protect and improve the health of our communities.

Well, considering the international crime that is currently being perpetrated for the last 60 years in the US with absolute impunity - the utterly false food guidelines that were bribed into place, you assholes haven't done shit.

Another bullshit charity that just funds it's own awareness of itself mostly.

Sure, a dollar here or there might accidentally go to a cause that might help a mite, but I doubt it.

InLoveWithKueppers · 2015-02-12T18:17:28+00:00

If the money goes into the same fund, I don't care about this. If the money goes to the same scientists, I don't care about this. If the money goes to the same cause, I don't care about this.

This might simply advertisement to bring in money from feminists or from people who think that they will only be helping women or just simply helping, because women are also affected.

IlleFacitFinem · 2015-02-12T18:03:46+00:00

Page 155 of this PDF by the CDC shows that per 100k population in 2007, 237 men died of heart disease, while 154 women died of heart disease. 83 difference. A 50% disparity shows clear bias in this campaign and a lack of attention to men dying of Heart diseases.

IN FACT: In 2007, 50% more men died than women (per 100k pop). If the media doesn't care about that, what do they have a right to complain about?

This is biased and it is wrong. I am angry.

Black_caped_man · 2015-02-12T20:32:14+00:00

I against gendering issues on a whole because I feel it's rather counterproductive and overly simplifies the problem from the start. The outset needs to be that there are no "gendered" problems because the reality is always much more complicated than that. Gender can be a factor but never so large that it carries the whole issue.

Heart disease is not a gendered issue, it affects a ridiculously huge amount of people and kills way too many of these people, be they men or women. Stats show that more men die from heart disease and they do this earlier too, by several years. The fact is that the male heart is actually much softer and less resilient than the female heart and this may well have some impact on these results. Men have also historically carried the bulk of the stress, leading to higher risk of heart disease.
This did lead to a much higher amount of men dying from heart disease and also contracting heart disease and in turn leading a lot of people to think it was a "men's issue".

What I take issue with in this case is that two wrongs don't make a right. Why not billboards with "wear red for peoples hearts" or "Women! you can also get heart disease" or "Heart disease is the greatest killer of both men and women, take care of your hearts!" or something. I don't even have that much of an issue with the billboard in the OP if it weren't for the underlying cause being so incredibly directed towards women and women alone. It's just as wrong as putting way too much emphasis on men and men alone.

It's fine to have a gendered approach to an issue but that approach has to be founded in the knowledge that you actually forsake a big part of the picture. It should be obvious that it's a detail centered approach.

blkarcher77 · 2015-02-12T23:20:17+00:00

"Men need to stop making thing about themselves"

MotherFuckin-Oedipus · 2015-02-12T20:01:00+00:00

The way I see this ad:

The organization is preying on the public's sympathy towards women to raise money to fight heart disease. By doing this, they are turning the campaign into a gendered one.

Even if the ad was only successful because it focuses on women, the research will inevitably help fight the leading cause of death for both men and women in the U.S.

I'm not going to take issue with the fact that they leave out the statistics for men. The place to fight over informing the public of men's issues shouldn't be one over a heart disease campaign.

If nothing else... Ask the women in your life: "what's the leading cause of death for women in the U.S.?" Due to success in advertising, they are most likely to answer with "breast cancer". This ad campaign will make people re-evaluate that.

I won't say that we shouldn't fund breast cancer prevention research, but the focus needs to shift to more pressing health issues, and it would be nice for that to go to heart disease.

Griever114 · 2015-02-12T21:35:55+00:00

I will say that i saw the same adds and it irked me too. Whats next, Hillary Clinton saying that Prostate Cancer affects women more b/c it robs them of their husbands?

Seriously, men can get breast cancer too but god forbid you even mention it being a male issue you will get railroaded for not respecting a "womens' issue."

freethinkaa · 2015-02-12T22:36:02+00:00

I hate it, and love it.

From a gender standpoint, so what? PEOPLE need this help.. why take the focus off of men and put it on to women?

From a marketing standpoint: because there is a large group of women who love when the attention is on them. This captivates that audience, and women who would have otherwise not donated are now donating.

So, strictly from a marketing standpoint, this is taking advantage of a current behavior, and getting people to donate to a cause that will help all of us.

But, yea, it's stupid that we are even in that position.

AmazingFlightLizard · 2015-02-12T23:16:54+00:00

Conveniently enough, the US government thinks cancer is just a woman's disease though.

co_radio · 2015-02-13T01:55:33+00:00

Oh fuck right off with this. There is nothing wrong with an ad pointing out that heard disease effects 1 in 3 women.

apullin · 2015-02-12T17:58:51+00:00

Charities are largely scams. Is this a new charity that is just try to make it in the charity marketplace? That would make perfect sense, if so, that they have to care out a little bit of the morality market that hasn't been done yet.

Corn-Tortilla · 2015-02-13T04:13:49+00:00

At least it mentions men. That's an improvement.

shupedupe · 2015-02-12T20:20:49+00:00

Gored For Women...

FuuurSuuure · 2015-02-12T16:10:46+00:00

Is it the terrible design? You could drive a fat chick through those letters.

Title	Something about this rubs me the wrong way. . .
Author	JohnnyOTJ
Upvotes	399
Comments	134
Date	February 12, 2015 2:15 PM UTC (11 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/2vni5n/something_about_this_rubs_me_the_wrong_way/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/something-about-this-rubs-me-the-wrong-way.988237 https://theredarchive.com/post/988237

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