Komen Founder Raising Money for Gay Rights With Son

Eric and Nancy Brinker

Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast cancer foundation's founder Nancy Brinker has added gay rights to the number of causes she is actively campaigning for. She and her gay son, Eric Brinker, cohosted a reception for gay legal advocacy organization Lambda Legal last week in Washington, D.C. 

Last year, Komen publicly ended its partnership with Planned Parenthood, taking away funding for Planned Parenthood's breast health initiatives in underfunded areas. The break was mainly due to Planned Parenthood's offering of abortions, but Brinker later announced that the partnership would be restored. Still, Komen saw a significant drop in donations, and several members of Komen's board resigned, including Eric, who had been involved with the organization since age 5 when his mother established it in honor of her sister who died of breast cancer.

Now the pair are together hosting a fund-raiser for Lambda Legal, which is part of the legal team tasked with arguing in favor of marriage equality before the Supreme Court later this year.

"Having the most supportive mom in the world, I didn't have to twist her arm very hard to get her involved," Eric Brinker told The Washington Post.