After leading Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) for about 5 months, Feminist Patricia Ireland was dismissed last week as chief executive of the YWCA because of her feminist background supporting pro-choice and gay rights.
Besides being supportive of pro-choice and gay rights as a president of the National Organization for Women, some conservatives had strongly opposed Ireland's appointment to the position criticizing the period of her life when she was living with a woman in the early 1990s while she was married They agreed she was not a suitable person to lead YWCA.
Accoding to the New York Times, members of YWCA's National Coordinating Board had first asked for Ireland's resignation but she declined because she did not want to imply that she had "jumped ship."
Accoring to the Times, Audrey Peeples, chairwoman of the National Coordinating Board, said that the YWCA and Ireland were committed to the same goals – the economic empowerment of females and racial equality – but that "the YWCA was really just not the best place for her platform."
Dorris Daniel-Parkes, who was with YWCA for 15 years and served as as a former director of human resources, appointed as a new chief executive.
Ireland said she felt no animosity toward the calling YWCA a "wonderful organization with a lot of potential." and showed the willingness to cooperate with its new chief executive.
