{UPDATE} The GOP and Religious Groups Put The Pressure to cut Off Funds to Planned Parenthood
The following excerpts are from Komen Senior VP Karen Handel running for GA governor less than two years ago. After you read her words you will know why the funds were cut off.
The breast cancer Race for the Cure's parent organization, Susan G. Komen, yesterday cut off funding for breast exams at Planned Parenthood clinics in response to demands from GOP members of Congress and the religious right. The funds were quickly restored today after an outcry from the community at large. But now we need answers. We know why, but we need it for the record of why they saw fit to commit a crime against women’s health and lives. adamfoxie*
KH: "I’ve been very clear. And you know, as a Christian, marriage is between a man and a woman. I do not think that gay relationships are — they are not what God intended. And that’s just my viewpoint on it. Others might disagree with that. But I would also hope that if you look at what is happening in our state, we’ve got issues we need to be focused on in Georgia . We have a constitutional amendment against gay marriage. And it’s something that I supported wholeheartedly. We have that, and let’s get dealing with the other issues that we also need to deal with in Georgia. And the press can help with that. (Laughs).
Q: Frequently, folks in the Legislature kind of threaten to — there are always rumblings in the Legislature that they may outlaw gay adoptions. You’re against gay adoption.
KH: I am against gay adoption. But remember — I mean, if there is legislation on that, certainly I will follow that and look at it. But in the end, ultimately courts are going to be the ones to have to make the decision on that and it’s always in the best interests of the child. Do I think that gay parents is in the best interest of the child? No. But we do have our court system that deals with many and most of those issues.
Q: Would you favor outlawing gay adoptions?
KH: Yeah, I would consider that, absolutely.
Q: Do you know any gay couples with children?
KH: Not that I’m aware of.
Q: So you think gay couples are less qualified to function as parents than straight couples?
KH: I think that for a child to be in a household — in a family in a household with a situation where the parents are not married, as in one man and one woman, is not the best household for a child.
Q: Is it better or worse than a single parent household?
KH: Doug, I’m really trying to be straightforward with you but I’m not going to debate all the nuances. I’ve made it abundantly clear that I think that marriage is between a man and a woman. And that’s what I believe, and I don’t know what more you would like me to add to that".
Q: I guess I want to know why you think gay parents aren’t as legitimate as heterosexual parents.
KH: Because I don’t.
(The excerpts were obtained from the John Aravosis site)
The breast cancer Race for the Cure's parent organization, Susan G. Komen, yesterday cut off funding for breast exams at Planned Parenthood clinics in response to demands from GOP members of Congress and the religious right. The funds were quickly restored today after an outcry from the community at large. But now we need answers. We know why, but we need it for the record of why they saw fit to commit a crime against women’s health and lives. adamfoxie*
KH: "I’ve been very clear. And you know, as a Christian, marriage is between a man and a woman. I do not think that gay relationships are — they are not what God intended. And that’s just my viewpoint on it. Others might disagree with that. But I would also hope that if you look at what is happening in our state, we’ve got issues we need to be focused on in Georgia . We have a constitutional amendment against gay marriage. And it’s something that I supported wholeheartedly. We have that, and let’s get dealing with the other issues that we also need to deal with in Georgia. And the press can help with that. (Laughs).
Q: Frequently, folks in the Legislature kind of threaten to — there are always rumblings in the Legislature that they may outlaw gay adoptions. You’re against gay adoption.
KH: I am against gay adoption. But remember — I mean, if there is legislation on that, certainly I will follow that and look at it. But in the end, ultimately courts are going to be the ones to have to make the decision on that and it’s always in the best interests of the child. Do I think that gay parents is in the best interest of the child? No. But we do have our court system that deals with many and most of those issues.
Q: Would you favor outlawing gay adoptions?
KH: Yeah, I would consider that, absolutely.
Q: Do you know any gay couples with children?
KH: Not that I’m aware of.
Q: So you think gay couples are less qualified to function as parents than straight couples?
KH: I think that for a child to be in a household — in a family in a household with a situation where the parents are not married, as in one man and one woman, is not the best household for a child.
Q: Is it better or worse than a single parent household?
KH: Doug, I’m really trying to be straightforward with you but I’m not going to debate all the nuances. I’ve made it abundantly clear that I think that marriage is between a man and a woman. And that’s what I believe, and I don’t know what more you would like me to add to that".
Q: I guess I want to know why you think gay parents aren’t as legitimate as heterosexual parents.
KH: Because I don’t.
(The excerpts were obtained from the John Aravosis site)
For the past year, anti-choice activists have set their sights on Planned Parenthood, determined to wipe out the behemoth provider of low-cost reproductive healthcare. The strategy? A massive propaganda effort aimed at painting Planned Parenthood as a dirty, criminal organization, instead of the efficient provider of quality care that it is. This strategy involved making false accusations of abetting sex traffickers, opening nuisance congressional investigations and throwing the word "abortion" around a lot to justify attempts to eliminate federal funding for contraceptive service.
As part of this strategy, anti-choicers mounted a pressure campaign on Komen, trying to get them to cut ties with Planned Parenthood in order to create the impression that Planned Parenthood has cooties. Anti-choicers had every reason to believe a shaming campaign would work. After all, this fight is fundamentally about female sexuality, a traditional site of much shame and secrecy.
But as Planned Parenthood demonstrated, shaming campaigns have a major weakness as a tactic: they don't work if the target refuses to be shamed.
Instead of slinking away in shame when Komen cut ties, Planned Parenthood went on the offensive, shooting off press releases,publishing a snarky public letter for supporters to sign, and exhausting their representatives with television appearances. The message was simple: there's nothing wrong with comprehensive reproductive healt care. On the contrary, those who should be ashamed are those who let their prudery and misogyny drive them to hate Planned Parenthood so ferociously.
Throwing anti-choice shaming tactics in their face worked, probably exceeding all of Planned Parenthood's expectations. The story has dominated the news cycle for an entire week, and Komen's efforts at damage control kept backfiring. The attention allowed Planned Parenthood to remind the public that while they unapologetically provide abortions to those in need, 97% of their services are not abortion but, instead, contraception services, STD prevention and treatment, and other sexual healthcare.
Planned Parenthood also trumpeted the fundraising that resulted from the dust-up, clocking in at least $680,000 – even before Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City pledged $250,000 in matching funds.
The mind-boggling numbers sent a strong message, that Americans don't appreciate conservative grandstanding on women's healthcare. Even some anti-choicers had to admit that Planned Parenthood took the upper hand during this skirmish. Komen removed all doubt, Friday morning, about who had won the battle, by caving and restoring their grants to Planned Parenthood.
The past week has erased months – years, really – of work on the right to build a cloud of suspicion around Planned Parenthood. Now, a new narrative is forming: if you attack Planned Parenthood, be prepared to meet massive resistance, as well as a ton of negative press. And it's not just because so many people have affection for Planned Parenthood, though considering how many women the organization has served, that does play a role. It's because the public increasingly understands that attacks on Planned Parenthood are a proxy for a larger war on sexual healthcare. The anti-choice strategy of flinging the word "abortion" around in order to attack contraceptive services – or, in this case, access to affordable mammograms – is losing its impact.
But above all, Planned Parenthood won this battle by going on the offense. The lesson learned here should not be forgotten. Instead of slinking away to nurse your wounds when anti-choicers call you a slut, throw it back in their faces by calling them prudes. Pro-choicers have nothing to fear by being loud and proud about what we believe. When they dish out shame, respond with pride – and you will win.
Comments