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 associations, most commonly forgiveness and hope.
United States Different uses The yellow ribbon is a symbol for hope.
In the United States displaying a yellow ribbon is a show of support for the safe return of American troops, including the missed in action (MIA) and prisoners of war (POW).
Suicide prevention campaigns and suicide survivors themselves also use the yellow ribbon.
It is also used by or for adoptive parents, and in cases of Amber alert (child abduction emergency 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 (1872, 1898) 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 (1888).
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 (For Her Lover Who Is Far, Far Away)". While he tells in the song about the love between Susie Simpkins and her soldier lover Silas Hubbard, his chorus goes:
'Round her neck she wears a yeller ribbon,She wears it in winter and the summer so they say,If you ask her "Why the decoration?"She'll say "It's for my lover who is far, far away."
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:
Around her hair she wore a yellow ribbonShe wore it in the springtimeIn the merry month of MayAnd if you ask her why the heck she wore itShe wore it for her soldier who was far far away
Far away, far awayShe wore it for her soldierWho was far, far away
Around the block she pushed a baby carriageShe pushed it in the springtimeIn the Merry month of MayAnd if you ask her why the heck she pushed itShe pushed it for her soldier who was far far away
Far away, far awayShe pushed it for her soldierWho was far, far away
Behind the door her daddy kept a shotgunHe kept it in the springtimeIn the merry month of MayAnd if you ask him why the heck he kept itHe kept it for her soldier who was far far away
Far away, far awayHe kept it for her soldierWho was far, far away
On the grave she laid the pretty flowersShe laid them in the springtimeIn the merry month of MayAnd if you asked her why the heck she laid themShe laid them for her soldier who was far far away
Far away, far awayShe laid them for her soldierWho was far, far away
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.John Kord Lagemann, The Reader’s Digest, March 1961, pp. 41–42 The story described a man whose family used a white ribbon as a sign of forgiveness.Thomas S. Monson. "Never Alone", Ensign, May 1991. Monson then connected the story to the tradition of the yellow ribbon's use as a symbol of home-welcoming and forgiveness. "A friend of his happened to be sitting in a railroad coach next to a young man who was obviously depressed. Finally, the young man revealed that he was a paroled convict returning from a distant prison. His imprisonment had brought shame to his family, and they had neither visited him nor written often. He hoped, however, that this was only because they were too poor to travel and too uneducated to write. He hoped, despite the evidence, that they had forgiven him.
"To make it easy for them, however, he had written to them asking that they put up a signal for him when the train passed their little farm on the outskirts of town. If his family had forgiven him, they were to put up a white ribbon in the big apple tree which stood near the tracks. If they didn't want him to return, they were to do nothing, and he would remain on the train as it traveled onward.
"As the train neared his hometown, the suspense became so great that he couldn’t bear to look out of his window. He exclaimed, 'In just five minutes the engineer will sound the whistle indicating our approach to the long bend which opens into the valley I know as home. Will you watch for the apple tree at the side of the track?' His companion said he would; they exchanged places. The minutes seemed like hours, but then there came the shrill sound of the train whistle. The young man asked, 'Can you see the tree? Is there a white ribbon?'
"Came the reply, 'I see the tree. I see not one white ribbon, but many. There is a white ribbon on every branch. Son, someone surely does love you.'"
"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 (among many others), 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.
From the Library of Congress:
In October 1971, newspaper columnist Pete Hamill wrote a piece for the New York Post called "Going Home". In it, college students on a bus trip to the beaches of Fort Lauderdale make friends with an ex-convict who is watching for a yellow handkerchief on a roadside oak. Hamill claimed to have heard this story in oral tradition.
In June 1972, nine months later, Reader's Digest reprinted "Going Home". Also in June 1972, ABC-TV aired a dramatized version of it in which James Earl Jones played the role of the returning ex-con. A month-and-a-half after that, Irwin Levine and L. Russell Brown registered for copyright a song they called "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree." The authors said they heard the story while serving in the military. Pete Hamill was not convinced and filed suit for infringement.
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 17 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 and 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 (YRRP) 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 that 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 sarcoma
Yellow 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.
This practice is associated with The Yellow Dog Project, a global movement founded in 2013 by Canadian dog trainer Tara Palardy to raise awareness that some dogs need space for reasons including fear, anxiety, health conditions, or ongoing training. A yellow ribbon on a dog’s leash or collar signals that the dog should not be approached or petted without the owner‘s permission.
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.