Get well soon Momma!! You were the first feminist I ever knew, and I couldn't ask for a better role model.
I love you!
Monday, February 6
Get Well Soon Momma!
Today my momma is having heart surgery. Eek! I know she is in the best of hands, but I still wish I could be there with her. I'm sure we'd have tons of fun hanging out in the hospital!
Get well soon Momma!! You were the first feminist I ever knew, and I couldn't ask for a better role model.
I love you!
Get well soon Momma!! You were the first feminist I ever knew, and I couldn't ask for a better role model.
I love you!
Friday, February 3
BREAKING NEWS: Komen reinstates grants to Planned Parenthood
UPDATE: Komen VP, and anti-choicer, Karen Handel has resigned. She said in her resignation letter that she had supported de-funding Planned Parenthood. This is important in part because it shows that Komen recognizes the severity of their decision and hopefully indicates that they're moving in the right direction re: women's health. Learn more here.
UPDATE: Planned Parenthood just sent me an email saying that in the past 3 days, they have received 3 million dollars in donations. All of this money will go toward cancer screenings. That is amazing! I'm so happy that so many people put women's health ahead of politics.
After a huge outcry, the Susan G. Komen foundation has issued an apology and reinstated funding to Planned Parenthood!
Read more about it here and here.
I'm beyond thrilled, especially now that Planned Parenthood will have lots of extra money from recent donations on top of the Komen grant. But I'm not sure the Komen foundation can recover from their mistake and honestly, they've lost my support unless they can demonstrate that they've thought long and hard about what their priorities are re: women's health. If anything, this whole debacle has brought attention to the organization's leadership and raised serious concerns about their practices.
UPDATE: Planned Parenthood just sent me an email saying that in the past 3 days, they have received 3 million dollars in donations. All of this money will go toward cancer screenings. That is amazing! I'm so happy that so many people put women's health ahead of politics.
After a huge outcry, the Susan G. Komen foundation has issued an apology and reinstated funding to Planned Parenthood!
Read more about it here and here.
I'm beyond thrilled, especially now that Planned Parenthood will have lots of extra money from recent donations on top of the Komen grant. But I'm not sure the Komen foundation can recover from their mistake and honestly, they've lost my support unless they can demonstrate that they've thought long and hard about what their priorities are re: women's health. If anything, this whole debacle has brought attention to the organization's leadership and raised serious concerns about their practices.
Writing
"I do not like to write. I like to have written." -- Gloria Steinem
I found this quote the other day and thought to myself, "Truer words have never been spoken! She understands me!"
Part of the reason for starting this blog was to help me learn to enjoy the writing process. I'm getting there. But writing often feels like giving birth to me. I stress, I agonize, I sweat, I yell, I don't ever want to have to do it again. But then it is over and I'm exhausted, happy, proud, and can't wait to get started writing something else. :-)
I found this quote the other day and thought to myself, "Truer words have never been spoken! She understands me!"
Part of the reason for starting this blog was to help me learn to enjoy the writing process. I'm getting there. But writing often feels like giving birth to me. I stress, I agonize, I sweat, I yell, I don't ever want to have to do it again. But then it is over and I'm exhausted, happy, proud, and can't wait to get started writing something else. :-)
Wednesday, February 1
Susan G. Komen Stops Grants to Planned Parenthood
Yesterday, Susan G. Komen announced that they will stop supporting Planned Parenthood. In the past, they have given approx. $700,000 to Planned Parenthood, helping provide nearly 170,000 clinical breast exams and 6,400 mammogram referrals at Planned Parenthood centers across the nation.
In the past five years, Planned Parenthood has provided more than 4 million clinical breast exams and 70,000 mammogram referrals, often helping low-income or uninsured women detect breast cancer in the earliest stages.
When I found out about this last night, I was outraged. I couldn't believe that the Susan G. Komen foundation would put politics ahead of women's lives. Luckily, I quickly learned from facebook and twitter that many others felt the same. Planned Parenthood and Komen were actually trending last night because there were so many people denouncing their actions. The Komen foundation's facebook page was also full of negative comments, although they seemed to be working overtime to delete them. I wrote a post telling them that their actions were shameful and that I wouldn't support them financially or attend any event sponsored by them until they re-fund Planned Parenthood. It received about 30 likes in the seconds before it was deleted.
Ironically, the Komen foundation just posted a study conducted by the CDC on their facebook page, which says that more work is needed to reduce the disparity of cancer screenings between white women and minority, low-income, and uninsured women.
And then they have the nerve to stop funding Planned Parenthood, the place where these minority, low-income, and uninsured women actually have access to cancer screenings?
That is shameful.
Today, Komen released a statement saying that their move wasn't political. But as Lori Stahl of the Washington Post writes, that is total bull shit. Her article is worth reading in its entirety, but I've copied some of the relevant info below:
Planned Parenthood has also created a Breast Health Emergency fund. I encourage you to donate to it! Democratic Underground also suggests that when you donate, you request that a thank you note be sent to the Susan G. Komen foundation. That way, they'll know exactly how much money and support Planned Parenthood is getting.
And while we're talking about the Susan G. Komen foundation, I'm going to recommend that everyone read the New York Times article from October 2011 about the Pinking of America. The article suggests that the foundation is really kind of a marketing machine, and that it isn't actually doing that much with all the money they're getting. This upcoming movie (which I have not seen) also takes a critical look at the organization.
In the past five years, Planned Parenthood has provided more than 4 million clinical breast exams and 70,000 mammogram referrals, often helping low-income or uninsured women detect breast cancer in the earliest stages.
When I found out about this last night, I was outraged. I couldn't believe that the Susan G. Komen foundation would put politics ahead of women's lives. Luckily, I quickly learned from facebook and twitter that many others felt the same. Planned Parenthood and Komen were actually trending last night because there were so many people denouncing their actions. The Komen foundation's facebook page was also full of negative comments, although they seemed to be working overtime to delete them. I wrote a post telling them that their actions were shameful and that I wouldn't support them financially or attend any event sponsored by them until they re-fund Planned Parenthood. It received about 30 likes in the seconds before it was deleted.
Ironically, the Komen foundation just posted a study conducted by the CDC on their facebook page, which says that more work is needed to reduce the disparity of cancer screenings between white women and minority, low-income, and uninsured women.
And then they have the nerve to stop funding Planned Parenthood, the place where these minority, low-income, and uninsured women actually have access to cancer screenings?
That is shameful.
Today, Komen released a statement saying that their move wasn't political. But as Lori Stahl of the Washington Post writes, that is total bull shit. Her article is worth reading in its entirety, but I've copied some of the relevant info below:
The decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood comes shortly after Komen unveiled a new partnership that strengthens its ties to the George W. Bush Institute. The institute is the policy-making arm of Bush’s presidential library, which is scheduled to open in Dallas next year. The founding corporate sponsor [of this new initiative] is Merck, which is making a financial contribution of $3 million over three years.Merck, which manufactures the Gardasil vaccine, is a longtime campaign donor to Texas Gov. Rick Perry, whose ties to the company were briefly an issue during his failed presidential bid.Erin Gloria Ryan, of Jezebel, also calls Komen's statement bullshit. She writes:
Komen's absolutely a political organization, and one of their most recent political moves was to hire as it's Vice President of Communications one Karen Handel, a Sarah Palin-endorsed, rabidly anti-choice failed gubernatorial candidate from Georgia. Even though the services that Komen grants support at Planned Parenthood are breast exams for poor women, Handel was vocally in favor of defunding the organization as a candidate. In addition, Komen's founder Nancy Brinker was a major donor to George W. Bush.If you think that the Susan G. Komen foundation shouldn't cave to extremists, or prioritize politics over women's lives, I encourage you to sign this petition. I also encourage you to send them an email letting them know that you're disappointed in their actions and that you will not financially support them until they re-fund Planned Parenthood.
Planned Parenthood has also created a Breast Health Emergency fund. I encourage you to donate to it! Democratic Underground also suggests that when you donate, you request that a thank you note be sent to the Susan G. Komen foundation. That way, they'll know exactly how much money and support Planned Parenthood is getting.
And while we're talking about the Susan G. Komen foundation, I'm going to recommend that everyone read the New York Times article from October 2011 about the Pinking of America. The article suggests that the foundation is really kind of a marketing machine, and that it isn't actually doing that much with all the money they're getting. This upcoming movie (which I have not seen) also takes a critical look at the organization.
Shit Wendys Say
It was only a matter of time before someone made a "Shit Wellesley Women Say" video. And here it is! It couldn't be more spot on.
I hope they make a second version with more fun stereotypical things Wellesley ladies say, especially the often-used, "My parents don't pay $50,000 a year to this school so that I have to x" or "I'm offended!"
