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TCU 360

TCU 360

All TCU. All the time.

TCU 360

Students discuss religious topics in a small group. (Photo courtesy of tcuwesley.org)
Wednesday nights at TCU’s Methodist campus ministry provide religious exploration and fellowship
By Boots Giblin, Staff Writer
Published Mar 27, 2024
Students at the Wesley said they found community on Wednesday nights.

Public misunderstood Komen decision

Many women are concerned about Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s motives for halting funding to Planned Parenthood, which for years has provided them with services such as breast exams and cancer screenings.

Most people wonder why a foundation devoted to helping women would cut ties with a well-known women’s health organization and are misattributing this parting to former senior vice president for the Komen foundation Karen Handel, a strong pro-life supporter.

A huge misconception is that the Komen foundation cut funding to Planned Parenthood because of Handel’s opposition to abortion. However, too many people are blindly blaming the Komen foundation for being too political.

The Komen foundation’s Facebook page showed users claiming the organization should be “ashamed” for removing funding and many users said they would no longer support it.

The Komen foundation parted with Planned Parenthood because of a policy which, according to Komen spokeswoman Leslie Aun, would “block grants to organizations currently under investigation by any local, state or federal authorities.”

The investigation in question is an audit led by U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns, who seeks to determine if taxpayers’ money had been spent on abortions over the last 10 years.

Handel’s views had nothing to do with Komen Foundation’s decision. The organization was only following protocol, not involving politics in this decision.

The Komen foundation decided to resume funding to Planned Parenthood after the backlash. Handel has since stepped down, and because of this the foundation can ensure employees place importance on the care of women nationwide.

It is vital for the foundation to provide funding to Planned Parenthood to further the “pro-cure” cause, but it is even more vital that we as a nation be careful to understand the full story behind an issue before we jump to conclusions.

Multimedia editor Taylor Prater for the editorial board.

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