Susan G Komen Defunds Planned Parenthood.

Soon · 02-01-2012, 06:35 PM

UofMfan · 02-02-2012, 09:02 AM

Top Susan G. Komen Official Resigned Over Planned Parenthood Cave-In ~ The Atlantic

UofMfan · 02-02-2012, 09:30 AM

The story behind Komen's cut-off ~ The Maddow Blog

Cin · 02-02-2012, 09:37 AM

Breasts Yes, Vaginas No? How to Fight Back Against Komen "Race for the Cure" Foundation's Bizarre Capitulation to Right-Wingers
How the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation put their corporation-friendly image before women’s actual health concerns.

It’s probably the fastest-spreading story in Internet history about the relationship between two non-profits. Late Tuesday afternoon, Planned Parenthood and Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure announced that Komen would be withdrawing grants given to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screenings. Despite Komen’s lame attempts to claim otherwise, it was widely understood that this was about Komen aligning itself with the anti-choice movement, despite the anti-choice movement’s long history of opposing not just safe and legal abortion, but also access to contraception and even the prevention of cervical cancer through the use of the HPV vaccine.

So what gives? Why would Komen, which purports to be a women’s health organization, choose to align itself with an anti-health, anti-science movement instead of with another prominent women’s health organization that actually helps prevent and detect cancer? What role does Komen’s hearty corporate fundraising efforts play in all of this? Is there anything that people who care about women’s health concerns can do?

In the past couple of decades, one of the biggest accomplishments in women’s healthcare advocacy is destigmatizing breast cancer, and Komen certainly played a major role in this. In the past, women didn’t talk much about breast cancer, because like all things related to women’s sexuality, breasts were considered naughty and unspeakable and therefore so was breast cancer. Through cutesy methods, such as draping everything imaginable in pink ribbons, advocates were able to get breast cancer out of the closet and into the public discourse.

Unfortunately, in doing so, they weren’t quite able to lift the taboo on all of women’s healthcare. In place of the old taboo against all of women’s reproductive healthcare, there was now an above-the-belt/below-the-belt divide. When it comes to healthcare that allows women to keep their breasts, everyone from baseball players to every corporation looking to shore up its image was happy to talk about it. But anything below the belt, especially with regard to women managing their actual sex lives, remained taboo. STDs, pregnancy prevention, cervical cancer, abortion? All still considered dirty, and all still available for conservatives to demagogue about sin and sexuality. We are a country where everyone was clawing all over each other to talk about how important it is for women to get their boobs squeezed in a vise to look for cancer, but we’re also a country where a vaccine that’s been proven to prevent cancer below the belt is excoriated by prominent Republican politicians who want you to believe it gives “license” to female sexuality.

Anti-choice activists have been trying to exploit this divide for years now, demanding that when it comes to women’s healthcare, our bodies should be divided against themselves. Boobies are apple pie and baseball, but vaginas are subversive pits of hell, and all funding aimed at their upkeep is suspect. While the anti-choice movement has been pressuring Congress to cut federal subsidies for below-the-belt care such as contraception and STD treatment, they’ve been also pressuring Komen to distance itself from Planned Parenthood. With this decision, Komen reinforces this illogical divide between above-the-belt and below-the-belt healthcare for women.

In a sense, it shouldn’t be surprising. As illogical as it is to offer only piecemeal support for women’s healthcare, it also fits into a larger pattern of Komen putting its corporation-friendly image before women’s actual health concerns. For instance, Komen allowed KFC to sell “pink ribbon” buckets of fried chicken, even though it was obvious that KFC was trying to distract from scientific evidence showing that a diet high in saturated fat is linked to breast cancer.

Of course, relying so heavily on corporate partnerships can cut both ways. Many brands that want to cultivate a pro-woman image partner with Komen for that purpose. This year’s national sponsors of Race for the Cure could double as a list of brands that very much want female customers to like them: Yoplait, Ford, Bank of America, Caltrate, New Balance, and Self magazine, among others. The massive media hit demonstrating how little Komen actually prioritizes women’s health could really ding the impact of these partnerships.

Take, for instance, Yoplait. Most yogurt companies target female consumers with glowing images of health and good digestion, mixed with suggestions that yogurt be substituted for more fattening desserts for weight control, but Yoplait maximizes that marketing strategy. Draping its product in pink ribbons helps tie the product to the concept of “health” in women’s minds. For this same reason, Caltrate, a supplement designed specifically for women, has also become a sponsor of Race for the Cure.

New Balance gets a double whammy for supporting Komen. Not only does it get its sneakers associated with general health, but because Komen fundraises through 5K races, New Balance gets a chance to advertise directly to women who have an undeniable need for running shoes. Komen’s “soccer mom” image dovetails nicely with New Balance’s own image as being the sensible shoe of the moderate exerciser, in opposition with a brand like Nike, which prefers to associate itself with high-level athletes.

Self magazine is a relatively new sponsor of Komen, but like Yoplait and New Balance, it very much benefits from Komen’s base of support in women who are eager to take a personalized approach to good health and cancer prevention. Self tries to distinguish itself from other women’s magazines that are more fashion- and man obsessed, instead staking itself out on the rack as the sensible health-oriented magazine that just happens to have similar diet and exercise advice as those other magazines. Komen’s branding can certainly help Self distinguish itself from its competition on the magazine rack.

Ford Motor Company may not need the health glow these other companies get from the association, but it definitely needs the audience of women. Sixty percent of new cars sold in a year are sold to women, meaning that if you want to sell a car, you should appeal directly to female consumers. The Komen brand helps Ford seem like the sensible, safe brand, the sort of thing ordinary women racing for the cure might find attractive, especially if they’re mothers.

For the same reason, Bank of America has a strong need to appeal not just to women, but specifically to the stable, often married women that make up the majority of organizers and runners for Komen’s Race for the Cure. Women tend to handle more of the household finances than men, meaning that anyone trying to get families to switch banks needs to address themselves directly to wives and mothers. Enter the pink ribbons.

This all means that American women have the power to vote with their dollars. The pink ribbon on a product used to symbolize health, safety, and a general pro-woman attitude. Now, for increasing numbers of women, it symbolizes capitulation to the belief that women don’t deserve healthcare that addresses all their needs, not just those above the belt. We need to let corporations know that if they want to market to women, they have to market to the whole woman, the one who has a vagina as well as a more PG-friendly pair of breasts.

Estella · 02-02-2012, 04:51 PM

So Michael Bloomberg has announced he will match every new dollar donated to Planned Parenthood up to $250k. If the goal of SGK was to drive up support for Planned Parenthood, their success has been dramatic.

JustJo · 02-02-2012, 05:11 PM

I got an email today from the director of the Susan G. Komen affiliate in AZ, where I donated and sponsored participants in runs and walks due to my professional connections there.

The director worked very hard to make the point that they are still supporting the health and healthcare needs of local women through grants to other organizations, and that their particular affiliate has never funded Planned Parenthood...and therefore hadn't withdrawn any funding.

After I finished laughing, I sent my response:

"While I appreciate your effort to distance yourself from the reprehensible actions of your national affiliate, I will no longer be donating to Susan G. Komen or any of its affiliates. My donations will go directly to Planned Parenthood instead.

I find the actions of your national organization to be a slap in the face to all women who need healthcare. I stand with Planned Parenthood."

It's not enough to stop donating to SGK....we need to tell them WHY also.

UofMfan · 02-02-2012, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JustJo

I got an email today from the director of the Susan G. Komen affiliate in AZ, where I donated and sponsored participants in runs and walks due to my professional connections there.

The director worked very hard to make the point that they are still supporting the health and healthcare needs of local women through grants to other organizations, and that their particular affiliate has never funded Planned Parenthood...and therefore hadn't withdrawn any funding.

After I finished laughing, I sent my response:

"While I appreciate your effort to distance yourself from the reprehensible actions of your national affiliate, I will no longer be donating to Susan G. Komen or any of its affiliates. My donations will go directly to Planned Parenthood instead.

I find the actions of your national organization to be a slap in the face to all women who need healthcare. I stand with Planned Parenthood."

It's not enough to stop donating to SGK....we need to tell them WHY also.

This is great Jo!

Everyone is doing their part, one by one we all make a difference.

Here is more:

The Decemberists Pull Support From Komen, Raise Funds for Planned Parenthood ~ Pitchfork

Ryobi · 02-02-2012, 05:57 PM

When I read about this yesterday, I about puked. The laughable part is the claim it has nothing to do with politics.

1.) Hire a Republican Pro-Lifer as one of your top dogs in the SGK.

2.) Allow new top dog (cant remember her name) to write new rules for SGK funding. One of the new rules, can't fund any organization under federal, state, or local investigation. Rep. congressman launches state investigation against PP, funding is cut.

Out of hundreds of organizations that get funding from SGK, Planned Parenthood is the ONLY one cut off the list. I'm pretty sure Penn State is under investigation, yet they were funded 7.5 million bucks from SGK.

NOPE! Doesn't sound like politics at all. Where's my barf bucket?

Quintease · 02-03-2012, 12:04 PM

This is a great group to follow, they've even got a list for alternative organisations to donate to:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/De-fu...71880872914883

TexasCowboi · 02-04-2012, 08:45 AM

unfortunately, it was too late for me to pull out of the Race for the Cure..... so I have decided to Run in the competitive 5k division of the 2012 Race for the Cure, and have formed a race team called "Jogging for Jugs".

Somewhere on my race tee-shirt, I will have the letters "ISWPP" and "FYSGKF" (let's see if you can guess what those stand for!

The reason I have decided to go ahead and race is that I support my local affiliation as they are against the national's decision and are still working with our Local PP organization to provide screenings and mammograms. I would be more than happy to provide anyone who asks, a copy of the email the local chapter sent me.

While, this may very well be my last Race for the Cure because of this issue, I cannot turn my back on the reason I run in this race.... because i'm sure not running for the Komen Foundation!.

I am running for those who are still dealing with this horrible disease.... I am running for those who have laid down their swords in their fight against breast cancer, and I am running for those who cannot run.

Those of you who decide you want to help out a local affiliate such as the Greater Fort Worth affiliate, here is the link to my race team..... feel free to help out.

http://greaterfortworth.info-komen.o...eam&fr_id=2347

02-02-2012, 09:37 AM	#4
Cin Senior Member How Do You Identify?: Butch Preferred Pronoun?: she Relationship Status: Truly Madly Deeply Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: In My Head Posts: 2,814 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 6,333 Thanked 10,436 Times in 2,476 Posts Rep Power: 21474851	From now on the pink ribbon on a product can tell us what not to buy! Breasts Yes, Vaginas No? How to Fight Back Against Komen "Race for the Cure" Foundation's Bizarre Capitulation to Right-Wingers How the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation put their corporation-friendly image before women’s actual health concerns. It’s probably the fastest-spreading story in Internet history about the relationship between two non-profits. Late Tuesday afternoon, Planned Parenthood and Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure announced that Komen would be withdrawing grants given to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screenings. Despite Komen’s lame attempts to claim otherwise, it was widely understood that this was about Komen aligning itself with the anti-choice movement, despite the anti-choice movement’s long history of opposing not just safe and legal abortion, but also access to contraception and even the prevention of cervical cancer through the use of the HPV vaccine. So what gives? Why would Komen, which purports to be a women’s health organization, choose to align itself with an anti-health, anti-science movement instead of with another prominent women’s health organization that actually helps prevent and detect cancer? What role does Komen’s hearty corporate fundraising efforts play in all of this? Is there anything that people who care about women’s health concerns can do? In the past couple of decades, one of the biggest accomplishments in women’s healthcare advocacy is destigmatizing breast cancer, and Komen certainly played a major role in this. In the past, women didn’t talk much about breast cancer, because like all things related to women’s sexuality, breasts were considered naughty and unspeakable and therefore so was breast cancer. Through cutesy methods, such as draping everything imaginable in pink ribbons, advocates were able to get breast cancer out of the closet and into the public discourse. Unfortunately, in doing so, they weren’t quite able to lift the taboo on all of women’s healthcare. In place of the old taboo against all of women’s reproductive healthcare, there was now an above-the-belt/below-the-belt divide. When it comes to healthcare that allows women to keep their breasts, everyone from baseball players to every corporation looking to shore up its image was happy to talk about it. But anything below the belt, especially with regard to women managing their actual sex lives, remained taboo. STDs, pregnancy prevention, cervical cancer, abortion? All still considered dirty, and all still available for conservatives to demagogue about sin and sexuality. We are a country where everyone was clawing all over each other to talk about how important it is for women to get their boobs squeezed in a vise to look for cancer, but we’re also a country where a vaccine that’s been proven to prevent cancer below the belt is excoriated by prominent Republican politicians who want you to believe it gives “license” to female sexuality. Anti-choice activists have been trying to exploit this divide for years now, demanding that when it comes to women’s healthcare, our bodies should be divided against themselves. Boobies are apple pie and baseball, but vaginas are subversive pits of hell, and all funding aimed at their upkeep is suspect. While the anti-choice movement has been pressuring Congress to cut federal subsidies for below-the-belt care such as contraception and STD treatment, they’ve been also pressuring Komen to distance itself from Planned Parenthood. With this decision, Komen reinforces this illogical divide between above-the-belt and below-the-belt healthcare for women. In a sense, it shouldn’t be surprising. As illogical as it is to offer only piecemeal support for women’s healthcare, it also fits into a larger pattern of Komen putting its corporation-friendly image before women’s actual health concerns. For instance, Komen allowed KFC to sell “pink ribbon” buckets of fried chicken, even though it was obvious that KFC was trying to distract from scientific evidence showing that a diet high in saturated fat is linked to breast cancer. Of course, relying so heavily on corporate partnerships can cut both ways. Many brands that want to cultivate a pro-woman image partner with Komen for that purpose. This year’s national sponsors of Race for the Cure could double as a list of brands that very much want female customers to like them: Yoplait, Ford, Bank of America, Caltrate, New Balance, and Self magazine, among others. The massive media hit demonstrating how little Komen actually prioritizes women’s health could really ding the impact of these partnerships. Take, for instance, Yoplait. Most yogurt companies target female consumers with glowing images of health and good digestion, mixed with suggestions that yogurt be substituted for more fattening desserts for weight control, but Yoplait maximizes that marketing strategy. Draping its product in pink ribbons helps tie the product to the concept of “health” in women’s minds. For this same reason, Caltrate, a supplement designed specifically for women, has also become a sponsor of Race for the Cure. New Balance gets a double whammy for supporting Komen. Not only does it get its sneakers associated with general health, but because Komen fundraises through 5K races, New Balance gets a chance to advertise directly to women who have an undeniable need for running shoes. Komen’s “soccer mom” image dovetails nicely with New Balance’s own image as being the sensible shoe of the moderate exerciser, in opposition with a brand like Nike, which prefers to associate itself with high-level athletes. Self magazine is a relatively new sponsor of Komen, but like Yoplait and New Balance, it very much benefits from Komen’s base of support in women who are eager to take a personalized approach to good health and cancer prevention. Self tries to distinguish itself from other women’s magazines that are more fashion- and man obsessed, instead staking itself out on the rack as the sensible health-oriented magazine that just happens to have similar diet and exercise advice as those other magazines. Komen’s branding can certainly help Self distinguish itself from its competition on the magazine rack. Ford Motor Company may not need the health glow these other companies get from the association, but it definitely needs the audience of women. Sixty percent of new cars sold in a year are sold to women, meaning that if you want to sell a car, you should appeal directly to female consumers. The Komen brand helps Ford seem like the sensible, safe brand, the sort of thing ordinary women racing for the cure might find attractive, especially if they’re mothers. For the same reason, Bank of America has a strong need to appeal not just to women, but specifically to the stable, often married women that make up the majority of organizers and runners for Komen’s Race for the Cure. Women tend to handle more of the household finances than men, meaning that anyone trying to get families to switch banks needs to address themselves directly to wives and mothers. Enter the pink ribbons. This all means that American women have the power to vote with their dollars. The pink ribbon on a product used to symbolize health, safety, and a general pro-woman attitude. Now, for increasing numbers of women, it symbolizes capitulation to the belief that women don’t deserve healthcare that addresses all their needs, not just those above the belt. We need to let corporations know that if they want to market to women, they have to market to the whole woman, the one who has a vagina as well as a more PG-friendly pair of breasts. __________________ The reason facts don’t change most people’s opinions is because most people don’t use facts to form their opinions. They use their opinions to form their “facts.” Neil Strauss

02-02-2012, 04:51 PM	#5
Estella Member How Do You Identify?: Straightforward Femme. What you see is what you get. Preferred Pronoun?: We Relationship Status: Sadie, Sadie ... married lady. Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Love that dirty water ... Posts: 355 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 94 Thanked 551 Times in 130 Posts Rep Power: 8279290	So Michael Bloomberg has announced he will match every new dollar donated to Planned Parenthood up to $250k. If the goal of SGK was to drive up support for Planned Parenthood, their success has been dramatic. __________________ Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too? -- Douglas Adams

02-02-2012, 05:11 PM	#6
JustJo Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: pushy broad Preferred Pronoun?: she Relationship Status: Follow your heart; it knows things your mind cannot explain. Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Southeast corner Posts: 5,633 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 24,417 Thanked 25,406 Times in 4,660 Posts Rep Power: 21474857	I got an email today from the director of the Susan G. Komen affiliate in AZ, where I donated and sponsored participants in runs and walks due to my professional connections there. The director worked very hard to make the point that they are still supporting the health and healthcare needs of local women through grants to other organizations, and that their particular affiliate has never funded Planned Parenthood...and therefore hadn't withdrawn any funding. After I finished laughing, I sent my response: "While I appreciate your effort to distance yourself from the reprehensible actions of your national affiliate, I will no longer be donating to Susan G. Komen or any of its affiliates. My donations will go directly to Planned Parenthood instead. I find the actions of your national organization to be a slap in the face to all women who need healthcare. I stand with Planned Parenthood." It's not enough to stop donating to SGK....we need to tell them WHY also. __________________ I'm not tall enough to ride emotional roller coasters

02-02-2012, 05:57 PM	#8
Ryobi Member How Do You Identify?: TG Stone Butch. Over all, I identify by living my life. Preferred Pronoun?: He/His Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Upper Midwest Posts: 633 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 683 Thanked 1,238 Times in 357 Posts Rep Power: 12468328	When I read about this yesterday, I about puked. The laughable part is the claim it has nothing to do with politics. 1.) Hire a Republican Pro-Lifer as one of your top dogs in the SGK. 2.) Allow new top dog (cant remember her name) to write new rules for SGK funding. One of the new rules, can't fund any organization under federal, state, or local investigation. Rep. congressman launches state investigation against PP, funding is cut. Out of hundreds of organizations that get funding from SGK, Planned Parenthood is the ONLY one cut off the list. I'm pretty sure Penn State is under investigation, yet they were funded 7.5 million bucks from SGK. NOPE! Doesn't sound like politics at all. Where's my barf bucket? __________________ "If you can't do great things, do small things in a great way" Napoleon Hill. "To choose a word is to choose a world" Anonymous

02-03-2012, 12:04 PM	#9
Quintease Member How Do You Identify?: Rainbow femme Preferred Pronoun?: princess Relationship Status: Married Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 514 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 508 Thanked 1,817 Times in 417 Posts Rep Power: 10560327	This is a great group to follow, they've even got a list for alternative organisations to donate to: https://www.facebook.com/pages/De-fu...71880872914883 __________________ It is not worth an intelligent person's time to be in the majority. By definition, there are already enough people to do that.

02-01-2012, 06:35 PM	#1
Soon Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: femme Relationship Status: attached Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: . Posts: 6,896 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 29,046 Thanked 13,094 Times in 3,386 Posts Rep Power: 21474858

02-02-2012, 09:02 AM	#2
UofMfan Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: Butch Relationship Status: A very happy Mr. Grumpy Cat Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Neither here or there Posts: 7,987 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 27,733 Thanked 18,937 Times in 4,705 Posts Rep Power: 21474859	Top Susan G. Komen Official Resigned Over Planned Parenthood Cave-In ~ The Atlantic

02-02-2012, 09:30 AM	#3
UofMfan Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: Butch Relationship Status: A very happy Mr. Grumpy Cat Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Neither here or there Posts: 7,987 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 27,733 Thanked 18,937 Times in 4,705 Posts Rep Power: 21474859	The story behind Komen's cut-off ~ The Maddow Blog

02-04-2012, 08:45 AM	#10
TexasCowboi Member How Do You Identify?: TGStoneButch Relationship Status: Married....'nuff said Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Texas Posts: 181 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 178 Thanked 502 Times in 128 Posts Rep Power: 4791449	Q unfortunately, it was too late for me to pull out of the Race for the Cure..... so I have decided to Run in the competitive 5k division of the 2012 Race for the Cure, and have formed a race team called "Jogging for Jugs". Somewhere on my race tee-shirt, I will have the letters "ISWPP" and "FYSGKF" (let's see if you can guess what those stand for! The reason I have decided to go ahead and race is that I support my local affiliation as they are against the national's decision and are still working with our Local PP organization to provide screenings and mammograms. I would be more than happy to provide anyone who asks, a copy of the email the local chapter sent me. While, this may very well be my last Race for the Cure because of this issue, I cannot turn my back on the reason I run in this race.... because i'm sure not running for the Komen Foundation!. I am running for those who are still dealing with this horrible disease.... I am running for those who have laid down their swords in their fight against breast cancer, and I am running for those who cannot run. Those of you who decide you want to help out a local affiliate such as the Greater Fort Worth affiliate, here is the link to my race team..... feel free to help out. http://greaterfortworth.info-komen.o...eam&fr_id=2347

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