If you have been online these past weeks, you have seen the Ice Bucket Challenge. You may have even been nominated to do this challenge. However, where did this challenge come from? What was the reason for it?
Some people may remember this challenge from when it surfaced in 2014. According to the ALS Association, Chris Kennedy is believed to have started this challenge in the name of ALS. The full name is Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This neurological disorder causes the motor neurons in your brain to deteriorate; eventually resulting in the inability to move. People with ALS often have a shortened life expectancy.
When the challenge resurfaced a few weeks ago, it kept the name; though, it was said to bring awareness to mental health issues. It was brought back by the University of South Carolina, MIND club (Mental Illness Needs Discussion).
It is fairly easy to find videos on peoples stories documenting their participation in this challenge but it is unlikely that they ever actually speak up about the reason for this challenge. It has become a trend, like the rest, fun without meaning. There is nothing wrong with doing things for fun. However, awareness is nothing without purpose.
When it was still meant to bring awareness to ALS, it raised over $200 million dollars to support research on how to make ALS livable. Currently, the USC Ice Bucket Challenge has made about $300,000 in donations. While that still is a lot of money, it is not nearly as much as it had made in the past.
The rules of the USC Ice Bucket Challenge state that in order to participate in this challenge you must nominate 2-5 people, donate, use the relevant tags, follow @uscmind, and educate yourself on the cause. With more than 17 million people having done the USC challenge this year, it is obvious that a majority of people did not follow the rules of donating to the cause or educating themselves in any way.
This challenge has died down in the past week. Since then, people have started to nominate other people for other things. It is now a thing to be nominated for a “side-shot,” a picture of you that is taken from the side and to nominate six people of your own.
This challenge has been repurposed to be a mindless trend amongst the rest of the internet craze, forgetting why it was made and what good it could’ve brought to research.
Some people may say that this challenge has done good and they wouldn’t be wrong. It has raised plenty of money and brought awareness to the cause. However, somewhere along the way the challenge had lost its purpose; lost its reasoning for doing it.
Works Cited
ALS Association. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge: How it Started. ALS Association, 2014.
Mayo Clinic. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Mayo Clinic Staff, 2024.
The Oklahoman. The Ice Bucket Challenge is back: Here’s what it is, the 2025 rules, what to know. Lori Comstock, 2025.
