Originally published in CharityVillage.com, March 19, 2012
By Claire Kerr

If your nonprofit organization is like most, your mission statement doesn't include the line: "We are the generation that will make late stage cancer diagnosis F*cking History."

For some Canadian charities, the use of unexpected or attention-getting words is an effective strategy to build brand awareness for a good cause. For others, it's a powerful way to connect followers on their own terms.

Vancouver's F*** Cancer is one of those organizations. It's been turning heads since their provocative t-shirts first caught attention online. With a mandate to reach out to Generation Y about early cancer detection, F*** Cancer explains their use of the F-word with: "If there's ever a time to use the word, it's now."

What started in 2009 with a single t-shirt made for a cancer patient has grown to an online movement active on communities like Facebook and Twitter. While there's no doubt that the novelty of having a t-shirt, sticker or pair of cufflinks with an expletive on it is irresistible to young people, the movement has generated positive action beyond the shopping cart.

                 Flickr gallery of F*** Cancer supporters

With the support of celebrity advocate Sophia Bush, the organization raised the most money in the Mozilla Firefox Holiday Challenge, earning a bonus $25,000 donation. A recent initiative was a 30-day fitness challenge asking young people to be active for the month of February. Participants are expected to donate (and confess on Twitter or Facebook) when they "cheat" by missing work-outs.

Their Facebook community is also safe space for members to share personal stories and express anger and frustration about cancer's impact on their lives.

The conversational nature of social networks like Facebook means many communications professionals have adopted a more relaxed tone when engaging with followers on social media.

For the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), the most effective way to approach serious issues means using real language in context. With events like One Night Stand Discussion Group, ACT is known for the occasional eyebrow-raising, clever, and funny tweet or Facebook post.

Adam Ferraro, ACT Communications Coordinator, explains: "We realize that relying on clinical language isn't always engaging and the use of honest, sex positive language connects more effectively with the communities we serve."

"We're not dishing out an F-bomb with every message, just when it suits the campaign. ACT has a reputation for creating captivating and ground-breaking communication and educational material, like our Attack of the Cursed Syphilis campaign, or our recent resilience campaign celebrating the strength of the gay community, we want our messages to be bold and accessible."

ACT's supporters largely react positively to the organization's use of down-to-earth, informal language. "We've had very few people complain. It's in the organization's history to push the boundaries when discussing these topics, regardless if the message is being delivered in a tweet or an outreach campaign."

It doesn't have to be a word on George Carlin's Seven Words You Can't Say On TV list to ruffle feathers. In some school boards, "I heart boobies!" plastic wristbands benefiting Save a Breast Foundation caused enough controversy for the popular fundraising items to be banned as inappropriate for American students.

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