The National MS Society released a statement backtracking its decision to oust a 90-year-old volunteer because she asked questions about “preferred pronouns.”
To recap, last week, Townhall covered how Fran Itkoff was forced to step down from her volunteer position after she asked for clarity on the use of “preferred pronouns” in her email signature. Itkoff volunteered with the National MS Society for over 60 years and won multiple awards for her work with the organization, including her own Volunteer Lifetime Achievement award in 2008.
Itkoff’s story was circulated by Libs of TikTok and sparked intense backlash.
BREAKING EXCLUSIVE: National MS Society makes a 90-year-old volunteer step down because she wasn’t “inclusive” enough. Her crime was asking what pronouns are after she was required to start using them.
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) February 8, 2024
Fran was a volunteer for 60 years and her late husband had MS.
Full… pic.twitter.com/6y25svZ9du
In a statement shared by Libs of TikTok on Wednesday, the organization wrote that they apologize to Itkoff for asking her to step down.
“We realize now that we made a mistake, and we should have had more conversations with Fran before making this decision,” the organization’s statement read.
“Over her 60 years of volunteer service, Fran has been a committed champion for our cause,” it continued. “While we acted at the time with the best intentions, we did not have clear protocols in place. We should have spent more time with Fran to help her understand why, as an organization, we are dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive movement where everyone has equal access to the care, connections, and support they need to live their best lives.”
BREAKING: National Ms Society just released a statement backtracking on the entire story saying they were WRONG and APOLOGIZE to the 90-year-old volunteer who they forced to step down over pronouns.
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) February 21, 2024
“We realize now that we made a mistake.” “As an organization, we fell short.”… https://t.co/rhNSSPKQxo pic.twitter.com/5XJJjgdamm
The organization added that it reached out to Itkoff directly to “find a way to continue to work together.”