 The best thing that I've seen, politically, for quite a while (since the failure of the keep-them-barefoot-and-pregnant "personhood" initiative in Mississippi, in fact), was last week's backlash against the Susan G. Komen foundation's infamous decision regarding Planned Parenthood funding. I'm far, far from the only one that feels that way.More than that, though: The starkly observable attack against something as crucial and basic as breast exams for poor women, as well as the fact that so many divergent voices were pulled into it, meant that the conversation was not about partisan politics; it was about women. For the first time in what feels like forever, passion and fury were being loudly, proudly given in a full-throated voice, on behalf of women - women as moral actors; women as citizens with rights, health, bodies, freedoms; women as people with families and economic concerns. This is an intensive, detailed look at what "for the cure" really entails, over at SGK. (I'm not promoting the stuff at the bottom of the article, about nutrition "cures" for cancer, etc.) Now, I recognize that a number of non-profits, including some that I admire, might not end up looking so spotless if held to this kind of scrutiny, either. And I don't believe that just because someone works for such an organization, he or she shouldn't be able to make a good/very good living. But those outfits don't go around bowing and scraping to far-right fanatics, targeting health care for poor women in the process, either.
Here are poll results on the topic. |
