Yellow ribbon
A yellow ribbon has various uses. It can be applied as a necktie, worn on a person, mounted on a car, or wrapped around a tree. In the United States, it has many different purposes, most commonly associated with forgiveness and hope.
United States
Different uses
The yellow ribbon is a symbol for hope.The best known use for this ribbon in the United States is for showing support for the troops, including the missed in action and prisoners of war.
Suicide prevention campaigns and survivors of people who killed themselves are also using the yellow ribbon.
It is also used by or for adoptive parents, and in cases of Amber alert.
History and etymology
"She Wore a Yellow Ribbon"
Yellow is the official color of the armor branch of the U.S. Army, used in insignia, etc., and depicted in Hollywood movies by the yellow neckerchief adorning latter-half 19th century, horse-mounted U.S. Cavalry soldiers. However, a review of the U.S. War Department's Regulations for the Uniform and Dress of the Army of the United States reveals that a neckerchief, of any color, was not an item required by dress code. Despite this, neckerchiefs were a popular accessory employed by cavalrymen to cope with the frequently dusty environs. The specific association of the yellow neckerchief with the U.S. Cavalry may have arisen from a work of popular American West artist Frederic Remington—Lieutenant Powhatan H. Clarke, Tenth Cavalry.In the United States military, the symbol of the yellow ribbon is used in a popular marching song. The first version copyrighted was the 1917 version by George A. Norton, which he titled "Round Her Neck She Wears a Yeller Ribbon ". While he tells in the song about the love between Susie Simpkins and her soldier lover Silas Hubbard, his chorus goes:
The lyrics were altered and the song was titled She Wore a Yellow Ribbon by Russ Morgan for the 1949 movie of the same name. This was performed by several popular musicians of the 1940s, including Mitch Miller and The Andrews Sisters. The Tanner Sisters recorded their version in London on December 30, 1949. It was released by His Master's Voice as catalog number B 9873.
The text of the Army version approximates the following, with local variations:
Forgiveness
In a 1991 speech, former Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints president Thomas S. Monson quoted a story relayed by prison warden Kenyon J. Scudder in a 1961 Reader's Digest article. The story described a man whose family used a white ribbon as a sign of forgiveness. Monson then connected the story to the tradition of the yellow ribbon's use as a symbol of home-welcoming and forgiveness."''Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree''"
The symbol became widely known in civilian life in the 1970s. It was the central theme of the popular song "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree", Written by Irwin Levine and L. Russell Brown and recorded by Tony Orlando and Dawn, as the sign a released prisoner requested from his wife or lover to indicate that she would welcome him home. He would be able to see it from the bus driving by their house and would stay on the bus in the absence of the ribbon. He turned out to be very welcome: There were a hundred yellow ribbons.From the Library of Congress:
One factor that may have influenced Hamill's decision to do so was that, in May 1973, "Tie A Yellow Ribbon" sold 3 million records in three weeks. When the dust settled, BMI calculated that radio stations had played it 3 million times, or seventeen continuous years of airplay. Hamill dropped his suit after folklorists working for Levine and Brown turned up archival versions of the story that had been collected before "Going Home" had been written.
Iran hostage crisis (1979-1981)
During the Iran hostage crisis, the yellow ribbon was used as a symbol of support for the hostages held at the United States embassy in Tehran. In November 1979, a committee headed by Suzan E. Garrett of the Jaycees ladies service organization in Leitchfield, Kentucky organized a campaign to "Tie A Yellow Ribbon" around public trees as well as encouraging people to wear tied ribbons on lapels in support of the U.S. hostages being held in Iran. She was interviewed on ABC-TV by Ted Koppel on the newly created Nightline late-night news program and later by Peter Jennings for ABC's World News Tonight.This symbolism continued and gained further recognition in December 1979, when Penelope Laingen, wife of Bruce Laingen who was the most senior foreign service officer being held hostage, tied a yellow ribbon around a tree on the lawn of her Maryland home. The ribbon primarily symbolized the resolve of the American people to win the hostages' safe release. Yellow ribbons featured prominently in the celebrations of their return home in January 1981.
Troop support during & after deployment
The yellow ribbon saw renewed popularity in the United States during the Gulf War in the early 1990s. It appeared along with the slogan "support our troops", in the form of yellow ribbons tied to trees, and countless other contexts. It often had the implied meaning of "bring our troops home" from the Desert Shield and Desert Storm troop deployments. It appeared again during the 2003 invasion of Iraq with similar meanings, most prominently in the form of a yellow ribbon printed on magnetized material and displayed on the outside of automobiles.The Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program uses the yellow ribbon in its logo. YRRP is a Department of Defense-wide effort to promote the well-being of National Guard and Reserve members, their families and communities, by connecting them with resources throughout the deployment cycle. An American charity named the Yellow Ribbon Foundation was founded in 2001 to support military veterans.
The yellow ribbon is also the scholastic symbol adopted by universities and institutions which provide student veteran support through the "Yellow Ribbon Program" and represents a matched financial contribution between that establishment and the U.S. Government to cover tuition costs that the normal Post Montgomery or Post 9/11 GI Bill would not normally cover.
Health issues
Bladder cancer and sarcomaYellow ribbons are the emblem used for bladder cancer and sarcoma awareness.
Endometriosis
The yellow ribbon is the emblem for endometriosis awareness, especially during March for endometriosis awareness month. Yellow ribbons are worn by endometriosis patients and supporters, and is a common color for fundraising products. This was established by the Endometriosis Foundation of America in the 1980s, using the color yellow for its awareness brochure.Microcephaly
The color associated with microcephaly awareness is yellow, as well. Microcephaly is a physical finding consistent with the incomplete development of the head—and often the brain—at birth or soon thereafter. Microcephaly Awareness Day is on September 30.Spina bifida
It also shows support for people with spina bifida.Dog bite prevention
In May 2014, the American Veterinary Medical Association released a series of videos about preventing dog bites. One of the videos explained the practice of tying a yellow ribbon to a dog's leash to indicate the dog did not like strangers.Original AIDS awareness ribbon
The yellow ribbon was the original symbol for AIDS awareness, before the red ribbon became used for HIV/AIDS from 1991 onwards.Suicide prevention
The yellow ribbon is an international emblem for suicide prevention awareness, particularly for young people, and is used for suicide prevention awareness in many countries including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland.In Brazil, "Yellow September" is a movement to raise awareness about the problem of suicide in the country - for more see under Brazil.
In the United States, the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program is a community-based program primarily developed to address youth/teen/young adult suicides through public awareness campaigns, education and training and by helping communities build capacity. The program began in September 1994 after the suicide of 17-year-old Mike Emme.
Usage in various countries
Australia
In Australia, the Save Albert Park group has utilized the yellow ribbon as a symbol of protest. The group is a coalition protesting the reclamation of public space in Albert Park, Melbourne for the annual Australian Grand Prix. When the race moved to Melbourne in 1996, yellow ribbons were tied around the trees in the park which were designated for removal. Although the group was unsuccessful in protecting the designated trees, they and their supporters still tie ribbons around the trees each year at the time of the race.In 2009, the yellow ribbon was used during the appeal for those affected by the 2009 Victorian bushfires.
The yellow ribbon is also used for the Australian National Road Safety Week.
Brazil
In Brazil, "Yellow September" is a movement to raise awareness about the problem of suicide in the country.Canada
A yellow ribbon, for any symbolic purpose, was uncommon in Canada until the Great War when it was used by mothers and wives of soldiers who were fighting. The ribbon represented a commitment, belief, and hope in the Canadian soldiers.World War II created a more powerful nationalism and national pride when Canada entered the war. The yellow ribbon began to represent the close ties and strong relationship it had with France and Great Britain, forgiving the countries of all past wrongs and fighting for their brothers and sisters. As the war progressed and an allied defeat seemed imminent, the ribbon represented the close ties the soldiers had back home and for their country, Canada.
On September 11, 2001, three planes were hijacked and were deliberately crashed into World Trade Center 1, World Trade Center 2 and The Pentagon. A fourth plane was hijacked but failed to crash into its intended target, the White House. Nearly 3,000 Americans died. The Canadian Government enacted Operation Yellow Ribbon, to land hundreds of flights bound for the United States and all flights out of the United States. The ICAO announced at 9:40 am EDT that all U.S bound flights, whether over Canada or having had just departed, were to land in Canada anyway for security and protection purposes. Operation Yellow Ribbon represented Canada's connection and ties to America and Canada's commitment to give the American people who were stranded, food, healthcare, and shelter until all was safe and they could go home.