Granny Bird Award: Komen Foundation
This edition of the Granny Bird Award, given from time to time to those who in some impair the rights or welfare of the elders, goes to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization for their weak-kneed yanking of grants to Planned Parenthood.
From an AP report:
The nation's leading breast-cancer charity, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, is halting its partnerships with Planned Parenthood affiliates — creating a bitter rift, linked to the abortion debate, between two iconic organizations that have assisted millions of women.
The change will mean a cutoff of hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants, mainly for breast exams.
Planned Parenthood says the move results from Komen bowing to pressure from anti-abortion activists. Komen says the key reason is that Planned Parenthood is under investigation in Congress — a probe launched by a conservative Republican who was urged to act by anti-abortion groups. [Emphasis added]
As even the anti-choice people must know, abortions comprise a very small portion of the services which Planned Parenthood provides. One of the services provided which is key to women's health is breast exams and access to mammograms to women who could not otherwise afford them. This, of course, includes elders who do not have health insurance and who do qualify for Medicare for any number of reasons, including the fact they have not yet reached age 65.
The Komen Foundation claims that under a newly adopted rule that forbids grants to organizations under investigation by authorities. Planned Parenthood, a favorite target of the Religious Reich, is currently being investigated by a House Committee to see if it illegally has provided abortions with federal money. Launched by Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., the investigation is just a little grandstanding by the right in its attempt to roll back women's rights. That a foundation which claims to be deeply concerned with an important health issue for women -- breast cancer -- would cave in to such a despicable ploy is both astounding and shameful.
It is also worthy of the Granny Bird Award.
Labels: Abortion Rights, Granny Bird, Women's Health, Women's Rights
posted by Diane at 4:19 AM
3 Comments:
Unbelievable, just unbelievable!!
BTW, for your next GB award, you may want to consider Mitt Romney and his Christian compassion for the very poor.
That's on the docket, Florence. I've already started collecting Mitt's amazing quotes.
I wish that someone I know would tell her story about Bishop Romney and his grand compassion for the poor. She (non-Mormon) ended up visiting his Temple so she could feed her kids. In services, they would point her out as their charity case. She was completely humiliated, but went through with it to get the food.
They should strap Romney to the top of a car and drop him off in Canada.
As for Komen, the real place to aim the money is against Cliff Stearns. I'm hoping Credo adds him to their list.
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