Tuesday 7 February 2012

Handel out

Karen Handel, the vice president of the Komen Foundation, has resigned. In a released statement, she plays the victim card brilliantly:
I am deeply disappointed by the gross mischaracterizations of the strategy, its rationale, and my involvement in it. I openly acknowledge my role in the matter and continue to believe our decision was the best one for Komen's future and the women we serve. However, the decision to update our granting model was made before I joined Komen, and the controversy related to Planned Parenthood has long been a concern to the organization. Neither the decision nor the changes themselves were based on anyone's political beliefs or ideology. Rather, both were based on Komen's mission and how to better serve women, as well as a realization of the need to distance Komen from controversy. I believe that Komen, like any other nonprofit organization, has the right and the responsibility to set criteria and highest standards for how and to whom it grants. I am deeply disappointed by the gross mischaracterizations of the strategy, its rationale, and my involvement in it. I openly acknowledge my role in the matter and continue to believe our decision was the best one for Komen's future and the women we serve.
What was a thoughtful and thoroughly reviewed decision -- one that would have indeed enabled Komen to deliver even greater community impact -- has unfortunately been turned into something about politics. This is entirely untrue. This development should sadden us all greatly.

While Handel acknowledges her role in Komen's decision to break ties with Planned Parenthood, she totally denies the politics involved. Women's health is nothing but politics for conservatives. Her argument that defunding PP would have "enabled Komen to deliver even greater community impact" is asinine. What agency has a better capacity to serve low-income women than PP? 

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