Will Planned Parenthood flap hurt Race for the Cure?

Charlotte's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure is next week, and organizers hope to dodge a recent trend. Other cities have taken big hits with their Race for the Cure this year following the national flap over Komen's ending (and quickly restoring) funding for Planned Parenthood. Raleigh and Winston-Salem, for example, were each down 35 to 40 percent, Komen officials in Charlotte say.

That has Komen officials in Charlotte working overtime to avoid the same fate. The Charlotte affiliate raised about $1.6 million with last year's race, which was about two-thirds of its total revenue for the year. So any backlash could undercut Komen's ability to make grants for free mammograms and other services related to fighting breast cancer.

Lori Vaccaro, the executive director of Komen in Charlotte, said she has heard from folks with opposite viewpoints who have stopped supporting Komen because of the Planned Parenthood episode. Even so, race registrations so far are on track to meet last year. "Flat is the new up," Vaccaro says.

In February, Komen's national office waded into politics and sparked a furor by announcing it would stop making grants to Planned Parenthood. Anti-abortion advocates were thrilled, but an outcry from Planned Parenthood supporters, including among Komen affiliates, prompted Komen to reverse its decision. The whole affair ended up alienating some people on both sides of the abortion issue.

Vaccaro emphasized to the Observer editorial board this week that Komen and its Charlotte affiliate are focused on a singular mission: Fighting breast cancer. "We're not pro-life or pro-choice, we're not Democrat or Republican." She said it was a mistake to let Komen's mission to battle breast cancer become politicized.

It was indeed, and it would be a shame if it took a bite out of the Charlotte affiliate. The group says it spends 16 to 18 percent of its revenue on local administrative costs. The rest goes to community health grants ($1.4 million last year) and breast cancer research ($550,000).  Its work saves lives, and with one in eight women being diagnosed with breast cancer, one misstep by the national office shouldn't distract from that vital work.

The race, which last year attracted 17,000 people, is next Saturday, Oct. 6, starting in Marshall Park uptown. For more information, go to http://www.komencharlotte.org/.

-- Taylor Batten

You have read this article with the title Will Planned Parenthood flap hurt Race for the Cure?. You can bookmark this page URL https://ogbcommunity.blogspot.com/2012/09/will-planned-parenthood-flap-hurt-race.html. Thanks!