Our Body, Parts Ourselves: Komen and the New Divide in Women’s Health

Thanks to Susan G Komen’s recent decision to defund Planned Parenthood, proponents of women’s health are being forced to choose between the leading breast cancer advocacy group and the leading provider of women’s preventative health services.

On the surface, this may seem like it is forcing people to choose between being pro-choice and being anti-breast cancer, but the dividing line is much more complex than meets the eye. Planned Parenthood is an important ally in the fight against breast cancer; the organization provides nearly 750,000 annual breast exams to underserved women. By no longer giving grants to Planned Parenthood, Komen is denying these women a vital preventative service. Komen has been a leader in funding prevention, early detection, and awareness. Walking away from a provider of these services is an unacceptable deviation from the Komen mission.

Since hearing this announcement yesterday, I have been struggling with the realization that I cannot support Komen as long as it has this policy. This is not a decision I reached lightly. I have been a proud supporter of Komen since high school. I have done everything from exclusively using their stamps to captaining Race for the Cure teams. I even defended the organization in a McDermott Minute post. The work I did for Komen helped me feel empowered against breast cancer after my family was affected by the disease.

There are three considerations that have led me to this decision:

1) This action has made me lose respect for Komen as an organization. I cannot support an organization that is putting its image in the eyes of anti-abortion groups above its mission to improve women’s health. I also find Komen’s excuse for why they are cutting PP funding cowardly. Komen is claiming this decision is purely based on their policy of not funding organizations that are under investigation. It is an insult to our intelligence to suggest this is not politically driven, or not the result of Komen appointing a new, anti-choice Vice President. Komen is kowtowing to political pressure and trying to act like they are being completely apolitical.

2) I am angry that Komen is creating a divide in the fight for women’s health. Women’s health is constantly under attack from the right, and it is vital that all women’s advocacy groups stand together to ensure women have access to proper health care. Suddenly women’s health advocates across the country are being forced to choose between two of the leading women’s health organizations. Why would Komen choose to make itself a divisive force in the women’s health community?

Breast cancer and reproductive rights advocates are being attacked together, so they need to fight back together. Last week marked the 39^th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, and the rulings 39^th year came with a record number of restrictions on reproductive services. The fine print of many of these restrictions also cut off access to breast exams and cancer screenings.

Last year, I had the honor of representing AAUW at the Rally for Women’s Health on the National Mall. It was in the midst of the budget showdown, and Republicans were using Title X funding, which provides cancer screenings for women, as a bargaining chip. I was impressed by the range of organizations that had come out to support Planned Parenthood. The rally made it clear that we stood together as one body in the fight for women’s health. One speaker at the rally was a single mother with breast cancer. If she had not gotten a breast exam at Planned Parenthood, she may not have found her cancer in time. I remember feeling so proud in that moment that I raised money for Komen, an organization that funded early detection services at Planned Parenthood. Now, the pride of that moment has been diminished*.

3) If Komen’s actions were caused by pressure from anti-abortion groups, it is time for us to pressure it right back. Komen seems to be under the impression that appeasing anti-abortion groups is worth backlash from pro-choice groups. We need to show Komen that they are wrong. For Komen to recognize the error of its ways, it needs to understand how much support it is risking. Since the announcement, Komen has already lost support and suffered the resignations of top officials. Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood has been showered with donations. We need to make sure this backlash continues to gain momentum.

My view at the Women's Health Rally

So, it is with a heavy heart that I have decided I will not be supporting Susan G. Komen until it reverses this decision. The energy I put into the Race for the Cure will be better directed toward organizations that puts women’s health first. I am pro-cancer-prevention, I am pro-choice, I am pro-women, and I’ll be damned if I have to give up one of these values for the others.

*Read more about my experience at the Women’s Health Rally on AAUW Dialog.