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The National Multiple Sclerosis Society is maintaining its decision to remove a 90-year-old volunteer because she “did not understand [preferred] pronouns.”<\/p>\n
\u201cRecently, a volunteer, Fran Itkoff, was asked to step away from her role because of statements that were viewed as not aligning with our policy of inclusion,\u201d the nonprofit explained in a statement<\/a>. \u201cFran has been a valued member of our volunteer team for more than 60 years.”<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe that our staff acted with the best of intentions and did their best to navigate a challenging issue. As an organization, we are in a continued conversation about assuring that our diversity, equity, and inclusion policies evolve in service of our mission, and will reach out to Fran in service of this goal,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n As reported by The National Desk<\/a>, Itkoff spent the past 60 years of her life volunteering for the MS Society because her late husband suffered from multiple sclerosis. However, she noted that the problem came when she realized people were listing their \u201cpreferred pronouns\u201d on correspondence for the nonprofit, but she didn\u2019t understand what it meant at the time.<\/p>\n \u201cFinally, I was talking to [an MS Society representative] and thought I would ask, \u2018What does it mean?\u2019 and let her tell me. She said that it meant \u2018they were all-inclusive,\u2019 which didn\u2019t make sense to me.\u201d<\/p>\n She later received a follow-up response to her inquiry, where she received \u201can email from [a representative] saying that they were sorry but had to ask me to step down as a volunteer for the MS Society.\u201d<\/p>\n Itkoff\u2019s case went viral after she was interviewed<\/a> by Chaya Raichick of Libs of TikTok<\/a>.<\/p>\n The MS Society’s X account has since been flooded with responses by people who were upset by the organization\u2019s motive in letting Itkoff go, Faithwire<\/a> reports.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve had MS for 10 years, and I am grateful for people like Fran, who has volunteered for 60 years to help end MS in our time,\u201d entrepreneur Spike Cohen wrote. \u201cWhy did you ask a 90-year-old volunteer, who has helped with events and fundraising to cure our disease for decades, to stop helping us?\u201d<\/p>\n Although the MS Society stands by its decision, the organization plans to contact Itkoff, even though it is unclear whether she will be invited back to volunteer.<\/p>\n RELATED PODCAST:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n