28 Oct Company Contrast: Susan G. Komen {Issues: Life}
Each week 2ndVote takes a look at popular companies that score poorly and then try to provide alternatives that either better align with your 2ndVote values or should be avoided to the best of your ability. This series is called The Company Contrast – Navigating the Non-Profits, and the organization we will be focusing on this week is Susan G. Komen (2.67).
Susan G. Komen is now the largest non-profit organization that focuses on breast cancer awareness, research, and education. Ever since the founding in 1982, their mission has been to “save lives by meeting the most critical needs in our communities and investing in breakthrough research to prevent and cure breast cancer”. Of course, their mission statement is respectable. However, when we looked more deeply into the research, our team learned that not all of Susan G. Komen’s donations actually supported life-saving causes.
In 2017, Susan G. Komen donated $176,250 to Planned Parenthood (1.25). These donations increased to $247,634 in 2018. Planned Parenthood is one of the largest abortion providers in the world. Not only does this organization thrive on making money by killing innocent children, but they continue to advocate for dangerous, liberal ideologies.
The changing leadership of Susan G. Komen over the past decade resulted in flip flopping their public opinions and relationship with Planned Parenthood often. Unfortunately, Susan G. Komen is still affiliated with Planned Parenthood today. Susan G. Komen is listed as an employer that will match their employees’ donations to Planned Parenthood and last year, Susan G. Komen of Greater Central and East Texas awarded Planned Parenthood a grant.
Currently, the Susan G. Komen website states that no money goes to abortion and any money donated to Planned Parenthood only goes to breast related care. However, these statements are misleading on multiple levels.
- First, Planned Parenthood staff members do not perform mammograms. Their centers only provide basic screenings. The same employees that perform, assist with, and make referrals for abortion, are the same employees in charge of doing these screenings. There is no way to completely separate the money to one particular service or employee since they are all connected.
- Second, Susan G. Komen is listed as a “matching gift” employer. In this case, the donation is “up for grabs” to any particular cause. Planned Parenthood could use the donation any way they see fit, which ultimately could mean funding for abortions.
- Third, there are resources now that show the link between breast cancer and abortion. If Susan G. Komen continues to support Planned Parenthood, they will be going against their original mission to stop the spread of breast cancer and to save lives.
- Fourth, Susan G. Komen’s 2018 tax form states that they donated to multiple universities, programs, and medical centers, including $149,510 to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Massachusetts. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has a partnership with Planned Parenthood and provides first and second trimester abortion procedures in their facilities. So even if Susan G. Komen stopped donating to Planned Parenthood altogether, a portion of their donations still went towards an abortion provider.
Lastly, Susan G. Komen released a statement on their potential support for embryonic stem cell research. The 2ndVote team opposes embryonic stem cell research because this may result in the destruction of viable, living human embryos after conception, but before the implantation stage.
In summary, even though Susan G. Komen expressed their desire to only promote breast health through their donations to Planned Parenthood and other organizations, we recognize that there is no way to guarantee that actually happened. Even if they could have been sure or even if Planned Parenthood was out of the picture entirely, their support for other pro-abortion causes and embryonic stem cell research is still support for the potential destruction of innocent human life. For these reasons, Susan G. Komen still receives a 1.00 score in the Life stance.
At 2ndVote, we believe that all human beings have intrinsic value and inherent dignity no matter what stage of development. The Life stance is even weighted in a different way compared to the other stances in our scoring system because we recognize this as the backbone of all the other categories. The recognition of human dignity is part of the foundation of our country and the driving force of the Christian conservative movement today.
Even though 2ndVote is still researching better options for breast cancer awareness organizations, in the meantime, we recommend four ways you can take action today.
- Support genuinely pro-life organizations instead of Susan G. Komen. For example, Family Research Council is an excellent pro-life alternative with a perfect 5.00 score. Family Research Council focuses on upholding human dignity and the sacredness of marriage and family life. Their organization supports legislation, scientific studies, and healthcare that promote a culture of life rather than a culture of death.
- Contact Susan G. Komen through the 2ndVote website. Urge them to stop donating to Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion causes.
- Spread the word and share this article with family, friends, and on social media. The more opportunities we offer for others to discover the truth, the greater impact we are able to make.
- Lastly, continue to pray for a greater recognition of human dignity in our culture. Pray for companies to take a stand against abortion by supporting pro-life causes.
“How can you say there are too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers.” -Mother Teresa