How can the Koman Foundation get back in the good graces of women?

[cynatnite]

Fallout from the Planned Parenthood controversy continues at the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation, with several executives at headquarters and affiliates departing, questions arising about fundraising ability, and structural changes underway to give affiliates more influence, officials said Wednesday.

The chief executives of the Greater New York and Oregon affiliates, among the most outspoken in their criticism of Komen’s unsuccessful attempt to defund Planned Parenthood, are leaving. Three officials at the Dallas headquarters have left or announced their resignations, a spokeswoman said.

Meanwhile, questions are being raised about the breast cancer charity’s ability to raise money after the public relations fiasco. The New York affiliate postponed two events, including its annual awards gala, “because we were not certain about our ability to fundraise in the near term,” spokesman Vern Calhoun said Wednesday.

Komen is asking staff members at headquarters to review budgets for the fiscal year beginning April 1 because of anticipated drops in revenue, according to a source familiar with the process who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. Budgeting for the coming year was basically completed before the Planned Parenthood controversy erupted.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/komen-foundation-continues-to-see-fallout-from-planned-parenthood-controversy/2012/03/21/gIQAtfviSS_story.html

Now, I know it's easy to want Komen's head on a platter after the effort to defund Planned Parenthood, but I think if this is taken too far it will hurt women in the long run. This foundation does provide a lot of money for breast cancer screenings, treatment, and so on to poor women.

How long should they be punished? Should withholding donations be permanent? Should we demand the CEO and board members replaced? When do we stop punishing them or should we stop?

I would really hate to see this hurt the wrong people.

[Aerows]

1. Donate directly to Planned Parenthood

Brinker showed herself to be a grifter and a right wing nut job.

I don't fund right wing nut jobs so they can play bigshot with donor money, which is exactly what she did.

[cynatnite]

3. So defund Komen is your suggestion?

I took some time to go through both Komen’s tax filings for 2009 as well as its Annual Report for 2009-10 (PDF), and the breakdown of expenditures goes like this: 12 percent for administration; 8 percent for fundraising; 7 percent for treatment; 15 percent for screening; 24 percent research; and 34 percent for education. Putting the administrative costs aside for the moment, let’s break down what each of the remaining categories actually means.

While Komen understandably touts cases in which its funds have directly subsidized individuals’ cancer treatment, such intervention only accounted for about $20 million in 2010. In terms of individual patient care, far more money goes to screening (including Planned Parenthood), which include mammograms and general clinical exams; Komen claims to have funded 625,000 of these at a cost of a little under $50 million in 2010. On the research front, the foundation provides grants totaling about $75 million to both individual researchers and organizations with specific research projects, such as a study about the efficacy of flax seed as a cancer prevention measure. Finally, Komen dropped just over $140 million on breast cancer awareness education, which they say reached 2.2 million people in 2010.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2012/02/06/what_does_the_susan_g_komen_foundation_actually_do_.html

I am concerned that by the continuing punishment of Komen, we end up hurting the wrong people.

[Aerows]

6. Nancy Brinker is a right-winger

She also lives very high on the hog with donor money. I'd rather give it to Planned Parenthood. They don't play politics and rake in humongous CEO salaries, which Nancy Brinker does do.

We aren't hurting the wrong people by giving to Planned Parenthood instead of Komen for the Cure; we are choosing to no longer support Komen for the Cure because we've discovered that their right wing nut job CEO and Founder acts as a middle man for causes we care about, and there is no sense giving her a cut of our donor money so that she can live like a high roller.

You decide to do what you want, but myself? I won't give a penny to her now that she has exposed who she is.

[cynatnite]

8. I do think replacing her and the board is the way to go...

I think she is a major drag on the charity. Our next donation is Planned Parenthood because of the RW war on them.

I still believe that should things continue as they are the wrong people will pay the price at Komen. Brinks has to go, IMO. The blame will lie with her.

[Aerows]

10. If they replace the board and CEO

And just fill it right back up with right-wingers, it won't change my mind. I'd have to see a serious indication that they plan to support women, including every service performed at PP (yes, abortion, too) before I would even begin to think about donating to Komen for the Cure.

They seriously burned their donors, and all of the wailing and gnashing of the teeth after the fact isn't going to save them. The organization would have to take a RADICAL change in their structure and usage of donor money before they earn back the trust they callously tossed away.

And I don't think we are hurting anyone but Nancy Brinker and Komen for the Cure by donating to Planned Parenthood, since Komen is so picky about where it utilizes funds. It wouldn't surprise me if a large portion of "education" means "Nancy Brinker gets to strut around on a stage talking about how wonderful she is to an audience of donors."

[appleannie1]

2. They would have to get rid of all their officers and higher ups and then start over without playing

politics the second time around. In the meantime, donate directly to cancer programs or Planned Parenthood.

[cynatnite]

5. Agreed...

replacing the CEO and the board would probably be a good start to putting the foundation where it belongs.

[dflprincess]

12. As well as being able to fund all research

including stem cell and research into chemicals like BPA - even if its corporate donors don't like that.

[Control-Z]

4. I'm afraid I will never trust the organization

again. I would expect them to change their tactics not their objective.

[Aerows]

7. Exactly

Give directly to an anti-cancer organization or to Planned Parenthood - not some organization that acts like a middle man and rakes profits off of the top.

[Control-Z]

11. I don't know of an organization

I respect more than Planned Parenthood. I don't know of a better resource for women. Period. Koman tried to damage that resource and there is not a woman alive who should not be enraged. The thought of losing Planned Parenthood is incomprehensible. My donations go straight to PP, like you pointed out, without a middle man raking profits off the top. I no longer even buy the pink products that made donating to Koman so convenient.

[hlthe2b]

9. Clean house of their entire board and CEO--or at least those responsible...

Bring on a former head of PP as their new CEO, if that is a feasible option.