Health communication in Boston, MA: Emergence of the Pink and Black Campaign

In Boston, MA, Black women over 40 are more likely to have a mammography screening than White women. However, the breast cancer mortality rate is 33.6 per 100,000 population for Blacks compared to 29.6 per 100,000 for Whites. In an effort to reduce these disparities, the Boston Public Health Commission launched a 2005 breast cancer awareness campaign, “Pink isn't the only color associated with breast cancer.”

Nine African American women who survived breast cancer were recruited to appear on the poster. These women were known to Boston's community of color because of their Church affiliations, past employment as nurses or current involvement in their neighborhoods. The nine exchanged contact information and shared stories of their experiences with breast cancer. A bond was formed and the group agreed that sharing these stories with the public should become a priority. Posters appeared for about six months on public transportation. Requests from churches, schools, hospitals and media flowed into the BPHC for posters, educational materials and speaking engagements for the “Pink and Black Ambassadors”. What originated as a transit poster for Breast Cancer Awareness Month evolved into a year-round, educational campaign in Boston. Twelve volunteer ambassadors are now doing breast cancer education in Boston neighborhoods.

Our 2007 poster, reaching 11,123,100 transit customers, features additional, younger African American women. The Pink and Black Campaign has emerged as a public health education campaign as a result of public demand, and the insistence of the original nine women that outreach involve more than a poster.