RuthOUTspoken
Reporting and ranting by Ruth Schneider
Support Girl Scouts’ diversity, buy cookies
I love Thin Mints. I love them a lot. It’s an addiction I picked up as a kid propelling myself door to door selling the cookies for my Girl Scout troop.
So, just as we are all recovering from the gluttony of the holidays, the Girl Scouts start tempting up with boxes of joy. Cookies stands should start popping up in the next week or so in most states.
This year, a teen girl from Southern California is gaining notoriety for her video endorsing a boycott of the cookies. The girl, only identified as Taylor, is an 8-year veteran of Girl Scouts, and she’s angry Girl Scouts welcomes transgender children. Essentially, her fight is against diversity and inclusiveness.
Back in October, a local troop in Colorado rejected a 7-year-old biological boy who lives as a girl. This prompted Girl Scouts of Colorado to clarify its stance in a statement.
“We accept all girls in kindergarten through 12th grade as members,” the statement said. “If a child identifies as a girl and the child’s family presents her as a girl, Girl Scouts of Colorado welcomes her as a Girl Scout.”
While that 7-year-old never joined his local troop, Girl Scouts said he is always welcome.
That’s what separates Girl Scouts from other groups. They welcome diversity and celebrate inclusiveness.
Sadly, these lessons did not make an impact on Taylor, the teen girl calling for a boycott. And she’s not alone in her fight to make Girl Scouts more selective. Three troops in Louisiana disbanded in December in protest of transgender inclusion.
Susan Bryant-Snure is one of the leaders who disbanded her troop called the inclusion of transgender children an “almost dangerous situation,” according to a story in The Baptist Press.
“This goes against what we [believe,” she said.
HonestGirlScouts.com, the website being promoted in Taylor’s YouTube video, posts its mission on its website.
“Our aim is to educate, enlighten, uncover facts and insist on a return to the traditional values listed in the Girl Scouts of USA Congressional Charter that includes the words: ‘…qualities of truth,… purity…’ ” the site states.
Yeah, the charter actually says purity. I checked.
But it also mentions friendliness, thriftiness and working to “inspire the rising generation with the highest ideals of character, patriotism, conduct, and attainment.”
Today, the Girls Scouts define those characteristics with inclusion of everyone who feels and acts like a girl. A Y-chromosome is not a deciding factor.
When I look back on my Girl Scout career — which was admittedly brief — I remember exploring my creative side through art projects. I remember chatting in the afternoon with other girls my age. I remember learning the Girl Scouts come in all shapes and sizes. But most of all I remember trekking through the neighborhood towing my Radio Flyer wagon filled with cookies while learning perseverance and determination.
And, of course, developing a lifelong love of Thin Mints. I plan to buy several boxes.
Girl Scouts provides young women with skills that last a lifetime and it deserves support for its open and inclusive policies. So go buy a box. Or three.
Find cookies near you.
