By Garrett Ashley

When Nov. 1 hits the halls of our school, it isn’t hard to tell. Most of us are thinking the same thing “No Shave November”. But most students don’t really understand the purpose of the event. To most, it’s just an excuse not to have to pull out the razor for a month or more, depending on how risky you’re feeling.

No-Shave November is not just a clever alliteration. The “holiday” has roots in several other movements, all of which have the same purpose; to raise awareness about male-specific forms of cancer. No-Shave November actually originated as “Movember”, which is a movement that originated in Australia in 1999 to raise awareness for prostate cancer. The movement gained great ground throughout the years, and ended up absorbing a smaller movement of the same type in Britain, and eventually spread throughout the world, with holds in Ireland, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Spain, the United Kingdom, Israel, South Africa, Taiwan and the United States.

So, remember next time you lock your razor up on Nov. 1, you’re not just doing it for yourself—you’re doing it for cancer survivors everywhere.