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Movember

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Movember (a neologism that is a portmanteau of the slang word "mo" for moustache and "November") is an annual, month-long event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November. The event was conceived in 1999 by a group of Australian men from Adelaide.

Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has run Movember events to raise awareness and funds for men's health issues, such as prostate cancer and depression, in Australia and New Zealand. In 2007, events were launched in Ireland, Canada, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Spain, the United Kingdom, Israel, South Africa, and the United States.

In 2010, Movember merged with the testicular cancer event Tacheback. Also in 2010, Movember was marked and moustaches were grown by friends of leukemia patient Michael Simning, in Gwangju City, South Korea.[1]

Rules

  1. On "Shadowe'en" (October 31), the complete moustache region, including the entire upper lip and handlebar zones, must be completely shaved.
  2. For the entire duration of Movember [November 1–30], no hair shall be allowed to grow in the goatee zone (any facial area below the bottom lip).
  3. There is to be no joining of the moustache to sideburns.[2]

Origins

Seven Nightly News aired a story in 1999 featuring a group of young men in Adelaide who claimed to have come up with idea of growing moustaches for charity in what "snowballed into a Mo-phenomenon, with people across Australia joining up".[3] In the news report, members of the Adelaide-based "Movember Committee" explained how they came up with the idea for Movember one night in the pub. The group was said to have 80 men from Adelaide and interstate involved in the event, and aimed to raise money for the RSPCA through selling T-shirts in what they termed "Growing whiskers for whiskers".[3]

Seven News also reported that the committee had received legal threats from a San Francisco-based group called the "Moustache Celebration Federation" that had claimed they had trade marked the term "Movember" in 1977.[3] A 2007 statement on the Committee's website states that upon following up on these threats it was discovered that neither the federation nor its alleged president, "Charles Kies III", actually existed. The committee still holds that its claims of having coined the term "Movember" in 1999 are "100% true".[4]

Charity events

Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has used Movember to raise awareness and funds for men's health issues in Australia and New Zealand. Monetary proceeds go toward the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, the Cancer Society and Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand, and Beyond Blue.[5]

In 2007, the foundation launched events in Canada (funds raised go to the Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada), Spain (FEFOC), the United Kingdom (The Prostate Cancer Charity), and the United States (Prostate Cancer Foundation).[5]

In 2008, the Movember Foundation started the event in the Republic of Ireland. The beneficiary in that country is Action Prostate Cancer, an initiative of the Irish Cancer Society.[6]

A non-foundation Movember event has been held in the Cayman Islands by a "MOvember Committee" since 2006. The event has been sponsored by CML Offshore Recruitment and raises funds for the Cayman Islands Cancer Society.[7]

The original Movember Committee does not hold any official fundraising events, but still encourages people to participate in Movember activities and to donate their raised funds to any charity that participants feel to be worthwhile.[4]

In 2009, many of the Australian rugby union team players were seen sporting moustaches during the Autumn Test Series.

In 2010, some of the Montreal Canadiens were seen sporting moustaches during the month of November, with a video appearing on the Canadiens homepage, thus confirming the worldwide spread of Movember.[8]

Ambassadors

Many high-profile Australian sports people, celebrities, and dignitaries have supported the Movember Foundation, including World Champion surfer Mick Fanning;[9] author, columnist, and presenter Samantha Brett;[10] Today sports presenter Cameron Williams; ex-Big Brother housemate Ryan Fitzgerald; Queensland cricket all-rounder Andrew Symonds; and several AFL players.[11] NHL "tough guy" George Parros, alongside Bill McCreary, shaved his mustache to participate in the 2010 Movember event. Brad Pozzi an Australian rules lineback. [12]

Controversies

Scots College

In November 2007 at Scots College in Wellington, New Zealand, several graduating students were banned from end-of-year prizes for growing moustaches and the college threatened to ban a senior student from their NCEA examinations (official secondary school qualification) for growing a moustache during Movember.[13]

Movember Foundation spending and accounting

In 2007, the Movember Foundation events were featured on Australian tabloid current affairs program Today Tonight, which accused the foundation of spending a disproportionate amount on running costs and high salaries for its directors.[14] The financial summary of the Australian 2008 Movember campaign listed campaign costs (administration and fundraising) as being 8% of the total amount raised.[15][16] In 2007, campaign costs were listed as 9% of total amount raised.[17] Givewell reports that in 2008, the "Average Fundraising Cost Ratio" (fundraising costs as percentage of total fundraising revenue) for Australian charities was 18%.[18]

Medical Research Council

In Movember 2011, the Tash Back team were featured on the Medical Research Council periodical The Weekly News, which wrongly claimed them to be the Medical Research Council (UK) Movember representitives. After a bloody and protracted dispute,The Weekly News team later retracted their statement after acknowledging the MRC CTU Movember team as the true representitives of the Medical Research Council (UK). The Tash Back team were subsequently described as poor play on the now defunct event Tacheback.


See also

References

  1. ^ "Thursday, 25th of Movember – The moustache movement" from "What's the Story?!" blog
  2. ^ "The MOVEMBER Manifesto". Movember.org. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  3. ^ a b c Ashcroft, J. (30 November 1999) Seven Nightly News, Channel 7 Adelaide
  4. ^ a b "Mo Wars". Movember Committee. 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2007.
  5. ^ a b "Movember Australia - Movember Foundation". Movember Foundation. 2008. Archived from the original on 19 July 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  6. ^ "Fund Raising Outcomes". Movember Ireland. Movember Foundation. 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2008. [dead link]
  7. ^ "MOvember News". Movember.ky. Archived from the original on 2 January 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2007.
  8. ^ "Things Are Getting Hairy". NHL Canadiens. Retrieved 19 November 2010. {{cite web}}: Text "MTL" ignored (help); Text "home" ignored (help)
  9. ^ "World's Best...Growing Moustaches". World Professional Surfers. 14 November 2007.
  10. ^ "Movember wrap-up!". Sydney Morning Herald. 28 November 2007.
  11. ^ "Movember millions". Herald Sun. 30 November 2006.
  12. ^ Ducks right wing George Parros, who has gained notoriety for his signature mustache during his tenure in the NHL, is leading the charge during the 30-day mustache-growing movement in November. Parros will “start from scratch” by shaving and re-growing his moustache.
  13. ^ Nichols, Lane (16 November 2007). "No mo or no show at exams". The Dominion Post. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
  14. ^ Seymour, B. (26 October 2007 [Eastern Seaboard]; 20 November 2007 [Adelaide]) Today Tonight, Channel 7 Adelaide
  15. ^ "Financial Summary 2008". Au.movemberfoundation.com. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  16. ^ "Givewell Charity Profiles - Movember Foundation". Givewell.com.au. 2009-04-30. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  17. ^ "More information Givewell Charity Profiles - Movember Foundation". Givewell.com.au. 2009-04-30. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  18. ^ "Important statistics on the state of Australian philanthropy". Givewell.com.au. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
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