Komen's national didn't really reverse anything; they said they'd look at it. The damage to Komen is permanent; they are exposed as a right-wing front group that has nothing to do with breast-cancer research or helping women in any way.

The local Komen organization needs to find a way to deal with that new reality. Maybe they should change their name?

On the other hand, Occupy don't know anything about anything, and can be counted on to pick up the shitty end of the stick no matter how carefully you explain things to them. The sensible thing to do is stay the hell away from the whole clusterfuck.

Komen is as dead to us as the NBA is.

Just dont donate money to their cause and thats all you need to do. Harassing a bunch of (misguided) women raising money for breast cancer, wow. Real brave of them, they going to follow it up by kicking some K9 dogs?

Yesterday they marched to protest the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation because they give Monsanto GM seeds to poor villages in Africa. Some well spoken rep walks out, speaks to the crowd and pacifies them all, naturally the leaders of the march were all pissed off because of that, because they had angry demands to issue and they didnt get a chance because once again, Occupy was out smarted again.

They really have lost it, nobody is going to pay attention to them if they keep protesting everything under the sun. The whole purpose of the movement was to expose the tax inequalities, the corporate personhood, the money in politics, you know the things that almost everyone agrees is a problem in America. But the original message of OWS is gone, all thats left is a bunch of attention seekers.

Occupy has become our version of Westboro Baptist Church.

A bunch of dumbass zealots.

Everything Fnarf said, and also this:

Because of the recent choices made by Komen National, I can totally understand why this was/continues to be a galvanizing subject.

This protest could be used as a way to harness that momentum and educate people about the SGK organization, Planned Parenthood, etc. I guess more in the spirit of a rally for reproductive rights, as it were, than a protest against a (horrible) decision that SGK backed down from.

Not that I think that's what will happen here, but I think that would be a positive way to use this scheduled event, as well as all that pent up energy and anger from the SGK grant mishap!

What I've heard is that the plan is to encourage people arriving for the Komen event to make a donation on-the-spot to Planned Parenthood or to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

I would suggest a candle light vigil for women still suffering the ravages of this disease and in support of Planned Parenthood instead of anything negative or antagonistic. Sigh.

As long as Komen national is a functional arm of the right wing and is running cover for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, then no matter how benign the local Komen is, it is still helping the national organization to achieve its far more influential overall goals.

Yeh, being all positive and non-confrontational ALWAYS gets better results...

@10 At least not worse...

Now, remember, this does not mean you shouldn't donate money to good groups that are positive, as @7 suggested.

@9 Yup.

If you live in Puget Sound and want to help with cancer research, and also want to help with women's health too, just donate directly to Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and Planned Parenthood, screw the middlemen. Similarly, I'll never donate to the United Way, rather to the individual organizations directly.

As previous commenters have already noted, there are better places to donate locally if Gala attendees want to support Seattle women and better organizations to support in funding cancer research.

As a co-organizer of this event, I was glad that Cienna had finally decided make a comment on this action despite having the information several weeks. She certainly didn't make any attempts to contact OS or organizers until today. My confusion turned quickly to dismay when I see she is extolling the virtues of SGK local. Her lack of research on Komen affiliates is clear, however, as it states clearly that local affiliates donate 10-15% back to SGK national.

If SGK local wanted to make a statement that would set them apart from the national decision, they missed that boat. She must have recently gotten the green light from national to make this kind of statement which shows their lack of autonomy. But I suspect this local SGK spokesperson is merely using the same fuzzy math that is pervasive in the organization to hide the truth of their mission.

This demonstration is moving forward specifically because of recent attacks on women's health with the focus on supporting LOCAL organizations. Please add more additional comments about your favorite local organizations that support women, low cost healthcare and cancer research!

Thanks!

I think that those bashing Occupy for not being "on point" to what Occupy (anything) is all about have been severly misguided in their research on the subject. It's not just about Money in Politics or Inequity in taxes. It's about the privatization and profiteering off of miserable conditions of the people. Yesterday's action at the Gates Foundation was a day of action in support of education. That Monsanto's questionable practices also came to light is not suprising considering the Gates Foundation is a supporter of the company. On that note, how many of you know how many countries have outright BANNED the seeds due to health risks and threats to the bio-diversity of their countries. The Komen Foundation has a very questionable history above and beyond the recent PP debacle. I support these women in their desire to be vocal about the transgressions of a supposedly altruistic charity. No doubt, they will also be asking that people donate elsewhere. For many of us, it is realized that just because a charity (which are defined as corporations btw) says that they are concerned for the people, doesn't make them any less corrupt.

@18 - It's too bad all that won't fit on a sign, because maybe then the protest would make sense to passers by.

Maybe you should carry signs that say, "We're protesting because..." and then list a URL so they can go home and read a 500-word treatise on how this protest relates to OS's ever-shifting mission statement.

@15 thank you pragmatic for posting those great places to donate to. For instance, here is the link for Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. http://www.seattlecca.org/
They also focus on helping the patient and families get through the hardship, in addition to research and treatment. They aren't just funneling money to research to make a buck for big corporations while fighting to get people to ignore environmental effects.

As someone whose mother has been through two bouts with breast cancer (the second metastatic), SCCA has been a tremendously helpful organization for both her and for our family. I donate to them whenever I have the extra $$.

You people are lame. SGK local does not contribute to the national organization. Y'all are paranoid that they fuel big business. Well excuse me... but big business finds cures for diseases and keeps America's middle class employed. Provides jobs to the lower class too. Like you.
You had less than 12 ppl show up for the protest.... y'all chanted for a while... and got your adrenaline rush. Night over.

The goal certainly wasn't to overwhelm the guests at Saturday's Gala with a bunch of angry protesters. We smiled and waved, did a few MicChecks, offered attendees pink flowers and handed out nearly 200 flyers with the information about alternative places to donate and facts on the Komen Foundation with URL's to research for themselves. Many guests were supportive and passerby's honked and waved in support as well. Goal accomplished.

@22 While it may have been true at some point in the past that big businesses were the major employers of America, large corporations have shipped so many of their jobs overseas that more people in this country work for the public sector and small businesses these days. Welcome to 2012, Ron!

A relatively small number of demonstrators were able to ensure that almost everyone who attended that event (i.e., those who arrived via automobile between about 5:15 and about 7:15) were thinking about the controversy surrounding the Komen Foundation when they walked in the front door. Those who could read fast enough also had on their minds a list of alternative organizations that support breast cancer research. Good job.