This is a partial list of awareness ribbons. The meaning behind an awareness ribbon depends on its colors and pattern. Since many advocacy groups have adopted ribbons as symbols of support or awareness, ribbons, particularly those of a single color, some colors may refer to more than one cause. Some causes may be represented by more than one ribbon.
| Ribbon | Color | First use | Author | Meanings < | -- FIRST GROUP: SINGLE TONE (by hue) --> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pink ribbon | data-sort-value="1992-10" | October 1992[1] | Alexandra Penney for Self and Evelyn Lauder | Breast cancer awareness[2] | |
| Red ribbon | ? | Heart disease | |||
| data-sort-value="1985" | 1985 | Duncan Hunter and Henry Lozano's Camanera Clubs | Substance-abuse awareness including tobacco, alcohol and drugs (Red Ribbon Week is commonly held in American schools.)[3] | ||
| data-sort-value="1991-06" | June 1991[4] | Visual AIDS Artists' Caucus (anonymous) | HIV/AIDS awareness[5] | ||
| ? | Stroke | ||||
| Maroon ribbon | ? | International Myeloma Foundation | Multiple myeloma awareness[6] | ||
| Orange ribbon | ? | Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) | |||
| ? | Amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome, a chronic pain condition consisting of four different disorders, including complex regional pain syndrome. - the newer multicolored orange/red flame is also used | ||||
| ? | Cultural diversity | ||||
| ? | Kidney cancer[7] – alternative to the green ribbon | ||||
| ? | Gun violence protests, including after the Parkland shootings[8] [9] | ||||
| ? | Leukemia & Lymphoma Society | Leukemia awareness | |||
| ? | Malnutrition/hunger | ||||
| ? | Multiple Sclerosis International Federation | Multiple sclerosis awareness[10] | |||
| ? | Self-injury awareness/self-harm awareness | ||||
| ? | Work Zone Safety Awareness [11] [12] [13] [14] | ||||
| Yellow ribbon | ? | Traditional (in the U.S. and in Canada) symbol of support for military forces, especially those deployed overseas and in conflicts, including prisoners of war and those missing in action. | |||
| 1994[15] | International Association for Suicide Prevention, Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program | See also: Suicide awareness. Suicide prevention[16] | |||
| ? | Endometriosis awareness[17] [18] | ||||
| data-sort-value="2012" | 2012–2014 | Rural Fire Brigades Association Queensland | Rural Fire Service Queensland – A symbol of unilateral support of Rural Fire Brigades across the state of Queensland, Australia[19] | ||
| 2014 | Yellow Ribbon Campaign and Sewol Ferry Protest Movement | Sinking of South Korean ferry MV Sewol in 2014 which resulted in more than 300 deaths.[20] | |||
| 2014 | Supporters of 2014 Hong Kong protests[21] | ||||
| 2018 | Protest against imprisonment of Catalan independence movement leaders during the Catalan crisis[22] | ||||
| 2022 | Yellow Ribbon | Resistance movement in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, created in April 2022 after the Russian military invasion. The goal of the movement is informational resistance to the Russian occupiers[23] | |||
| 2023 | Advocating safe return of the hostages taken by Hamas in its attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.[24] | ||||
| Bright green ribbon | ? | Climate change/global warming[25] | |||
| Lime green ribbon | Lyme disease, Post-Treatment Lyme Disease[26] | ||||
| ? | Non-Hodgkin lymphoma awareness[27] [28] | ||||
| Green ribbon | ? | Bipolar disorder (manic depression) | |||
| ? | Cerebral palsy | ||||
| ? | Depression | ||||
| ? | Kidney cancer – alternative to the orange ribbon, kidney disease[29] | ||||
| ? | Mitochondrial disease awareness[30] | ||||
| ? | Mental health awareness and mental illness awareness[31] [32] | ||||
| 2022 | Anti-war movement in Russia protesting against the 2022 invasion of Ukraine[33] | ||||
| Jade ribbon | 2001 | Jade Ribbon Campaign awareness about hepatitis B and liver cancer[34] | |||
| Teal ribbon | ? | Cervical cancer an alternative is the Teal and White ribbon | |||
| 2001 | Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) | Sexual assault/sexual abuse including Military Sexual Trauma[35] [36] | |||
| ? | Food allergies | ||||
| ? | Ovarian cancer[37] [38] | ||||
| ? | Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) | ||||
| ? | Post-traumatic Stress Disorder | ||||
| 2014[39] | Trigeminal neuralgia | ||||
| ? | Tsunami victims | ||||
| ? | Uterine cancer | ||||
| Turquoise ribbon | ? | Addiction recovery – alternative to red for substance use | |||
| ? | Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) | ||||
| ? | Dysautonomia | ||||
| ? | Native American and Native American reparations | ||||
| Light blue ribbon | ? | Childhood cancer | |||
| ? | Men's health | ||||
| Prostate cancer | |||||
| Blue ribbon | ? | Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) | |||
| ? | Autism spectrum[40] although the autism infinity symbol is often used | ||||
| ? | Hydrocephalus | ||||
| ? | Mourning and honoring a police officer killed in the line of duty.[41] [42] [43] [44] | ||||
| 1993 | Tom Hennessy[45] | Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ | |||
| 1996 | Electronic Freedom Foundation's Blue Ribbon Online Free Speech Campaign | Support of freedom of speech, press, freedom of association online, and protesting against Internet censorship[49] [50] [51] | |||
| ? | Parkinson's disease awareness[52] | ||||
| ? | Canada's National Non-Smoking Week[53] [54] [55] | ||||
| ? | "Stand With ACLU" initiative[56] | ||||
| 2014 | Supporters of government officials and police during the 2014 Hong Kong protests. | ||||
| Dark blue ribbon | Arthritis | ||||
| ? | Child abuse prevention[57] | ||||
| ? | Colon/Colorectal cancer awareness[58] | ||||
| Purple ribbon | ? | Alzheimer's awareness[59] | |||
| ? | Domestic violence/intimate relationship violence | ||||
| ? | Fibromyalgia | ||||
| ? | Opioid crisis awareness – Notably worn by various Senators during President Donald Trump's 2018 State of the Union address.[60] | ||||
| ? | Month of the Military Child, Celebrating Military Kids[61] | ||||
| ? | Spirit Day and victims of homophobia[62] | ||||
| ? | Epilepsy awareness[63] | ||||
| ? | Lupus Awareness Month (May)[64] [65] | ||||
| ? | Pancreatic cancer[66] | ||||
| ? | |||||
| ? | Leiomyosarcoma[67] [68] | ||||
| Periwinkle ribbon | ? | ||||
| ? | |||||
| ? | Pulmonary hypertension | ||||
| Lavender ribbon | ? | Craniosynostosis[69] | |||
| ? | Epilepsy | ||||
| ? | General cancer awareness | ||||
| ? | Rett Syndrome | ||||
| Silver ribbon | ? | Parkinson's Disease | |||
| 1993 | Jean Singleton | Schizophrenia, brain illness and brain disorders[70] | |||
| Gray ribbon | ? | Asthma | |||
| ? | Brain Tumor Awareness Month/Brain Cancer Awareness[71] [72] | ||||
| ? | Borderline personality disorder[73] | ||||
| ? | Diabetes Awareness Month | ||||
| White ribbon | ? | Bone cancer | |||
| ? | Lung disease including cancer | ||||
| ? | Peace | ||||
| 1991 | White Ribbon Campaign, of men and boys working to end male violence against women and girls[74] | Violence against women | |||
| Black ribbon | ? | Typically a sign of mourning, or otherwise in memoriam[75] | |||
| ? | Melanoma (skin cancer) | ||||
| ? | Awareness of the POW/MIA issue in the US | ||||
| ? | Black Ribbon Initiative awareness and public outreach program of Madhya Pradesh Police (India) to make all sections of society computer security aware and alert[76] | ||||
| ? | Anti-violence campaign in New Zealand[77] | Black Ribbon New Zealand (anti-violence campaign) website | |||
| ? | Gang prevention | ||||
| 2015 | Black Ribbon Movement of medical professions and medical students against the appointment of military officers to positions within Ministry of Health in Myanmar (Burma) in August 2015[78] | ||||
| Zebra print ribbon | ? | Carcinoid cancer | |||
| ? | Neuroendocrine tumors (NET)[79] | ||||
| ? | Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes (EDS)[80] | ||||
| 2008 | EURODIS | Rare diseases, especially on Rare Disease Day[81] | |||
| Houndstooth ribbon | 2011 | Relief efforts in Tuscaloosa and northern Alabama following 27 April 2011 tornado (The pattern evokes former University of Alabama head football coach Bear Bryant, an icon of the city and its area.)[82] | |||
| Orange and black ribbon | 17691945 | Ribbon of Saint George
| |||
| Pink and blue ribbon | ? | Infant and pre-natal death or premature birth | |||
| Hydrocephalus two tone blue ribbon | ? | Hydrocephalus | |||
| Blue denim ribbon | 1992 | Chronic Granulomatous Disorder Society in the UK | Hereditary/genetic diseases – Jeans for Genes campaign[85] | ||
| Red, white and blue ribbon | 2011 | Used in Omaha, Nebraska, after a deadly shooting at Millard South High School (Matches to the school's colors)[86] | |||
| Awareness ribbon for Parkinson's UK | ? | Parkinson's[87] |