Friday, February 3, 2012

A Very Powerful Message

We at MWPC were thrilled to learn today that the Susan G. Komen Foundation has reversed its decision to withdraw its funding of Planned Parenthood. Their original decision was inherently harmful to women's health and we are pleased that the Komen Foundation listened to advocates and revised their decision in order to continue to provide funding for breast cancer screenings. The events since they announced their plans to withdraw funding have sent a very important message to anti-choice advocates: women will not allow political motivations to trump our health. We send our most sincere congratulations to Planned Parenthood and our most sincere thanks to everyone who spoke out in defense of this outstanding organization that is so crucial to the health and well-being of hundreds of thousands of women across the country. This was just one battle along what has proven to be a very long road, so we ask that you continue to stand with Planned Parenthood. We know we will.

We STILL Stand with Planned Parenthood

In the wake of the Susan G. Komen Foundation's disappointing and disturbing decision to withdraw their funds for breast cancer screenings from Planned Parenthood, we went public to make it known that we still stand with Planned Parenthood and that the Komen Foundation's decision is unacceptable. Here is our letter to the editor we sent to show our open support for PPFA and our conviction that political motivations should never trump women's health:

I am writing on behalf of the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus to express our profound disappointment in the Susan G. Komen Foundation for its decision to pull their funding from Planned Parenthood. The money that Susan G. Komen has provided to Planned Parenthood in the past five years has provided nearly 170,000 clinical breast exams and 6,400 mammogram referrals. The Komen Foundation's decision to divest from Planned Parenthood clearly is not in the best interests of women, tens of thousands of whom rely on the breast cancer prevention care provided by Planned Parenthood. We are deeply disturbed by the fact that the Komen Foundation has clearly bowed to political pressures and put ideology before women's health. For the sake of women across the country, we hope that the Komen Foundation reconsiders this unwise, counterproductive decision.

Sincerely,

Priti Rao
Executive Director
MA Women's Political Caucus