Does it seem weird that they hire an anti-abortion Veep and drop PP 12 months later? Planned Parenthood may have prevented more abortions than any organization in America.

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Southern Beale has a good take on this too.

I will no longer be participating in the Race for the Cure. A better slogan would be "Planned Parenthood--preventing cancer before it needs a cure."

Shameful. How could Komen be so foolish as to allow this ignorant person to infiltrate their organization?

There goes the carefully cultivated branding. I trust everyone will find better venues to support this funding. I think PP has something on their site where you can donate directly.

Too bad curing cancer has become political. I won't be supporting Race for the Cure anymore.

More wisdom from Komen's Handel:
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racechair@komenknoxville.org

I suspect they're going to take quite a hit over this.

As a breast cancer survivor (stage 2 when diagnosed) I have not supported Komen for quite a few years. Here's why.

I was also uninsured when "a problem" was detected in my breast, by the physicians assistant at Planned Parenthood (I've used PP for my woman's checkups since college, and have never found a reason not to use them). I tried jumping through Komen's hoops to get funding for the biopsy, to no avail. Yes, they will give funding to the poor and uninsured for mammograms, but when biopsies are needed, that's another story, and help for biopsies are hard to come by, regardless of what they may state.

As I went through treatment, I started digging into the politics of breast cancer, treatment, surgery, and advocacy. It's not a pretty picture. The long and short of it: Komen accepts monies from and gives monies to (via grants) the very same pharmaceuticals that market cancer-causing drugs to women. That alone was enough for me to withdraw any support I may have given them.

While I fully understand that not all of the monies raised in each city that holds a Race for the Cure will stay in that city, I believe that most people are unaware just how much money raised does not stay in the area. Back when I was looking into this (about 7 years ago), an average of 75% of the money stayed in the area where it was raised.

Then we have the Pink Washing each year in October. It was a fabulous strategy to raise awareness. However, it has been co-opted by many companies jumping on the bandwagon. Think about all those pink products you buy in October. Do you know how much money is actually donated to Komen from those products? Most companies will tell you, "a percentage of your purchase will be donated to Komen." What percentage? There are many more questions to ask about the yearly pink-washing, including what environmental hazards are there to the product or as the product was produced.

As I did my digging, I also found a wonderful advocacy organization, that 1. does not take money from the same corporations that produce and market cancer-causing drugs to women and 2. Has an on-going "Think Before You Pink" educational program to combat the yearly pink-washing.

I also will only donate to local programs that help the uninsured get mammograms and help fund biopsies. Kim Rowden Fund through the Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center, was instrumental in getting my treatment started.

So, no, I do not support Komen, instead I keep my donations completely local, helping local women. And for advocacy, I choose to support an organization that holds itself above the fray and is 100% true to it's mission and women's health.

Susan G. Komen's Founder Is Major GOP Donor, Ex-Bush Ambassador

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