Rubber Wristbands Help Disaster Relief Fundraising Efforts Worldwide

Recent events around the world such as the Japan earthquake and tsunami have prompted many people to want to help survivors of natural disasters. Rubber wristbands have become a popular way to contribute, especially for people who might not be able to help in other ways.



It’s not really a surprising development. After all, rubber wristbands were introduced about eight years ago to help raise funds and awareness for worthy causes. In the process of raising millions of dollars for many worthy causes, they also have become a popular fashion accessory for people worldwide, especially young people.



Rubber wristbands have come into their own as a form of fundraising for disaster relief in the past two years. Last year’s devastating Haiti earthquake and the 2011 Japan earthquake/tsunami/nuclear emergency have shown that the rubber wristbands can be a force for positive change in devastated areas.



Musician Lady Gaga, for example, designed custom rubber wristbands to raise funds for Japan. In just 48 hours, the wristbands debossed with her art and the words "We Pray For Japan" raised $250,000 for relief efforts.



The singer’s custom rubber wristbands sold for $5 apiece, yet likely cost only pennies to produce. The low cost of production enables the wristbands to sell at a price that most people easily can afford, yet still raises funds fast for areas that need quick relief aid.



Rubber wristbands originally became popular with the introduction of the now-classic yellow "Livestrong" band in 2004. Introduced by professional cyclist Lance Armstrong in conjunction with Nike, the yellow bands sold for $1 each, with the proceeds dedicated to raising awareness of cancer and for medical research. To date, the simple yellow rubber wristbands debossed with a single word have raised millions for the cause.



Detractors like to denigrate the buying and wearing of custom rubber wristbands as "slacktivism." They define the term as something that makes the wristband wearer feel good while doing little or nothing for the cause.



Granted, rubber wristbands alone won’t change the world. But $250,000 raised in two days can make a real contribution to Japan’s relief efforts. And the millions of dollars raised over eight years for cancer research by the Livestrong rubber wristbands can hardly be described as "not a real contribution" to the cause.



Custom rubber wristbands also offer people who otherwise could not contribute a way to help their causes. Most people can’t travel to disaster sites such as Port-au-Prince or Sendai to help directly. But just about anyone can buy rubber wristbands to support their fellow citizens of the world.



School children for example, often want to help others, but in the case of disasters half a world away, don’t know how. They can buy custom rubber wristbands and know that their contribution, however small, will go toward helping people.



Rubber wristbands alone are not a total solution. But they do allow people to make a positive contribution to something they care about. In the case of disaster relief, they also help keep the public aware of the disaster months after the spotlight fades and media reports have moved on to other topics. For that reason, rubber wristbands are a valuable resource.