{"id":259045,"date":"2021-12-16T12:46:12","date_gmt":"2021-12-16T18:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=259045"},"modified":"2021-12-15T18:42:03","modified_gmt":"2021-12-16T00:42:03","slug":"seattle-planned-parenthood-affiliate-fires-ceo-racism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/seattle-planned-parenthood-affiliate-fires-ceo-racism\/","title":{"rendered":"Seattle Planned Parenthood affiliate fires CEO on accusations of racism"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Chris Charbonneau, the CEO of a Seattle-based Planned Parenthood affiliate spread across six states, has been fired following accusations of racism, after working for the abortion giant for almost 40 years.<\/p>\n

According to the Seattle Times<\/a>, a donor for Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky used a racist term for Black people, which Charbonneau then repeated while speaking to another staffer. Charbonneau allegedly<\/a> did not correct the donor, board members Jeff Sprung and Colleen Foster said.<\/p>\n

Two staff members also quit, allegedly due to Charbonneau’s behavior. \u201cI cannot in good conscience continue to be part of an organization that fails to seriously respond to this degree of racism,\u201d Erika Croxton, then the vice president of external affairs, wrote in a resignation letter. Chief Learning Officer Anna Kashner also resigned, saying Charbonneau’s behavior \u201cis inexcusable and unforgivable.”<\/p>\n

According to Charbonneau, however, she was shocked and horrified at what the donor said. In her version of the story, she and a Planned Parenthood \u201cmajor gifts officer\u201d were thanking the donor and began discussing pro-life laws in Texas. The donor allegedly said, \u201cThey\u2019re trying to make women the new N-word,\u201d which Charbonneau then repeated several days later in a conversation with Croxton. Charbonneau claimed she simply wanted to make sure it was clear what the donor said, though she now says she knows she shouldn’t have repeated the word.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I had to do it over again, I would not have used that actual term,\u201d she told KNKX Public Radio. \u201cI was astonished at the sort of cavalier disregard with which my 40-year commitment was being treated.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, this is not the first time a Planned Parenthood representative has failed to respond appropriately to racist remarks from donors. In 2015, a Live Action undercover investigation<\/a> revealed a phone call between a Planned Parenthood rep and a potential donor, who made it clear that he wished to donate to ensure that there were fewer Black babies being born. The staffer responded with awkward laughter, calling his sentiment “understandable.” Other staffers in the investigation stated that for whatever the reason, they would accept the donor’s money:<\/p>\n