Quo vadis, Girl Scouts of America?
After years of on-going concerns about the organization’s direction, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has taken up the question of whether its current program is at all good for girls.
The bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, chaired by Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., will address “possible problematic relationships with other organizations, the issue of problematic programmatic materials and resources and other matters of concern.”
Yesterday, we looked at how part of the problem may stem from the fact that councils are free to set their own agenda, rather than strictly follow a national policy.
The bishops’ apprehensions fall into three major groups, accompanied by a host of smaller issues.
There are concerns about Girl Scouts USA’s ties to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), the confederation of international Girl Scout groups that has exhibited pro-abortion and pro-homosexual agendas in many instances.
There is an ongoing question regarding the GSUSA’s connection to and involvement with Planned Parenthood and other groups that provide, promote or condone abortion and contraception.
And there is the issue of how GSUSA handles sexuality, sexual education and homosexuality.
Although the Girl Scouts claim to be neutral on the more political issues related to same-sex attraction, their leadership is larded with supporters of — and activities for — homosexual rights, and some of their educational material shows a clear bias in favor of homosexual issues.
As just one example, the current spokesman for the GSUSA is Joshua Ackley.
Under the name of Joshua Starr, he fronted the “homocore” (hardcore/punk music with homosexual lyrical themes) band the Dead Betties, which was founded in 2002 as part of the “queer punk” movement. The band’s lyrics and music videos are dominated by sexual content, violence and misogyny.
Ackley is in charge of media relations for the GSUSA and writes for the official Girl Scout blog.
In addition to Ackley, other members of the Girl Scouts’ leadership are active in homosexual-rights issues, including Lynn Cothern, the director of administration, and Timothy Higdon, chief of external affairs, who both worked with the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. Cothern recently resigned from GSUSA and, according to his Facebook page, now works as a "major gifts strategist: for Girl Scouts Cactus-Pine Council in Arizona.
In contrast to the Boy Scouts of America, the GSUSA has no official prohibition on homosexual persons in leadership positions or as members, saying there are “no membership policies on sexual preference.” Its official website links to numerous resources that promote abortion and the homosexual agenda, including same-sex “marriage.”
Same-sex issues are routinely included in Girl Scout materials about “diversity” and “tolerance.” Indeed, when the Boy Scouts were embroiled in a lawsuit about their right to refuse to allow homosexual men to be leaders, the GSUSA was quick to affirm its acceptance of homosexuals, saying, “Your sexuality has absolutely no bearing on your personal character. You can be a role model for a young man or woman regardless of your sexual inclination.”
Problematic Learning Material
Over the years, parents have encountered a variety of problematic educational materials and resources created for use by scouts and leaders.
The resource entitled “Your Voice, Your World: The Power of Advocacy” for the Advocate award includes a work page with which girls can complete the activity “Advocacy in My Own Life.” The example given is that of tennis player Martina Navrotilova, who “set a milestone for gay rights with her openness about her sexual orientation. She became an activist for gay rights and, in 1992, sued the state of Colorado over a ballot measure denying gays and lesbians protection from discrimination.”
“GIRLtopia,” for example, is a publication that “invites girls to consider how the world is far from perfect for girls around the globe. As girls take in this reality, they are invited to envision an ideal world — a society that consistently respects their needs, values and interests.”
On the page for “Utopias,” they begin with St. Thomas More (who coined the word) and then recommend Sherri Tepper’s novel, The Gate to Woman’s Country. Tepper’s book describes an “ideal” society in which men are subservient, procreation is managed in a twice yearly “festival,” and eugenics is the chosen path to perfection.
Aside from the thematic material that conflicts with the Catholic faith, there is a high degree of mature language and sexual content, notable even for a book recommended to high-school juniors and seniors.
Even worse is some content recommended for fourth-grade and fifth-grade girls. The book Agent of Change, billed as a book about “power,” has a profile of Marjane Satrapi and her graphic novel Persepolis, which includes page after page of extreme sexual content, drug use, Marxism and foul language. The book is intended for an adult audience, and much of the material is inappropriate for minors.
GSUSA recently made changes that will remove references to Persepolis and Gate to Women's Country in future printings, as well as to Martina Navrotalova's gay rights activities. In the meantime, girls can continue to use the materials, or the council will provide "stickers" for them to cover up the offensive content or replacement pages, available online. However, even after recent changes, some materials still refer girls to pro-abortion organizations like the ACLU, Amnesty International, and the National Organization for Women (NOW); role models like Betty Friedan, Margaret Mead, Gloria Steinam, Dolores Huerta (a pro-choice Catholic) and more; and sexually explicit websites like Jezebel.com, MarieClaire.com and others.
The 2011 “World Thinking Day” activity pack, aimed at ages 6-16, includes “sexual and reproductive rights.” The “AIDS Badge Curriculum” created by WAGGGS, and available to Girl Scouts, suggests having girls “role-play” negotiation for use of a condom during sex. One of the activities is to create a display to encourage use of condoms, instruct girls how to acquire them, demonstrate their correct use and distribute them.
Although GSUSA had said that it would not “take a stand on or advocate for or against any issue regarding a girl’s health and sexuality,” there continue to be problems with resources available to members. These are among the issues which the bishops hope to address, and GSUSA has already removed problematic links on its website and is revising some materials.
However, as recently as 2007, former CEO Kathy Cloninger said: “I feel like we cannot be the nation’s expert on girl issues without dealing with how issues of sexuality affect the girls of this nation. We believe parents are part of the discussion, but girl scouting needs to be part of education and discussion as well.”
Do the Girl Scouts no longer believe this?
Boys as Girl Scouts
In addition to these looming issues, the Girl Scouts are also now accepting boys who suffer from gender-identity disorders. The Colorado Council decided to accept 7-year-old boy Bobby Montoya because he “identifies” as a girl.
The Girl Scouts of Colorado said, “Girl Scouts is an inclusive organization, and we accept all girls in kindergarten through 12th grade as members. 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. Our requests for support of transgender kids have grown, and Girl Scouts of Colorado is working to best support these children, their families and the volunteers who serve them. … We are accelerating our support systems and training so that we’re better able to serve all girls, families and volunteers.”
This naturally raises the problem of boys being allowed to go on overnights with girls simply by “identifying” as girls. Mixed-gender overnights are normally forbidden.
GSUSA spokeswoman Michelle Tompkins says that “Girl Scouts of the USA is an inclusive organization focused on delivering a leadership experience for all girls in kindergarten through 12th grade. In situations involving transgender children, we handle each situation on a case-by-case basis so we can best handle the individual circumstances needed to address each issue. Of paramount importance to the Girl Scouts is the well-being of the child in question and the children in the troop (or the activity in question). We will take the steps we feel are necessary to ensure that all of the children involved have a safe environment in order to enjoy our programming.”
What the Church Is Doing
There are more than 3 million Girl Scouts in America. Some estimates suggest that perhaps 25% of them are Catholic or are in troops sponsored through a Catholic organization.
As concerns arose about the Girl Scouts, the U.S. bishops’ conference deferred to the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (NFCYM), which defends the Scouts. Its initial response was to debunk, rather than address, claims made against the GSUSA.
In its most recent position statement released in February 2012, NFCYM acknowledged that, beginning in 2010, parents began to raise concerns “that GSUSA had taken an intentional position contrary to the teachings of the Catholic Church on marriage, abortion, contraception and sexuality. In 2011 and 2012, the accusations continued. Our practice as an organization is to investigate, understand and then, if necessary, challenge such matters by going directly to the sources involved. As a result, NFCYM has been in direct contact with GSUSA leadership and has engaged in substantial conversation characterized by mutual respect and shared goals.”
NFCYM met with GSUSA and its new CEO, Anna Maria Chavez, “who has committed to continued dialogue.”
The GSUSA affirmed its “commitment to strengthening their relationship with faith communities and honoring the religious principles in their program resource material. Therefore, changes have recently been made to GSUSA’s print and Web program content as a result of the issues of concern raised by NFCYM and others. In addition, a thorough review of all GSUSA program resources is in process by GSUSA.”
Indeed, the GSUSA has been responsive to complaints in the past, removing some problematic links from its website and some offending material from learning resources.
Additionally, GSUSA and NFCYM will continue to work together to “more quickly and successfully address accusations and communicate factual information.”
Chavez, a Catholic, told Catholic News Service, “For nearly 100 years, we have partnered with the Catholic Church to support the growth and development of millions of girls. It is a wonderful legacy, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to participate in the process that will only enhance our partnership."
Following this meeting, Bishop Rhoades met with his Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth and consulted with Robert McCarty and Kathleen Carver of the NFCYM. Bishop Rhoades reaffirmed “the good service that so many of our Catholic Girl Scout troops have provided and continue to provide at the local level, both to the Church and to the community at large. In the spirit of Blessed John Paul II’s apostolic letter Mulieris Dignitatem (1988), the Church ever seeks to hold up activity that promotes and fosters the dignity and vocation of girls and of young women. Catholic Girl Scout troops have served girls and young women for many years, and the committee is grateful for this service.”
However, “important questions still remain and need to be examined” at both a local and national level. Bishop Rhoades has requested that the committee “provide a resource(s) for local-level use that bishops can share with priests, youth and young-adult ministry directors, pro-life directors, educational and catechetical leaders and others. Such a resource(s) may include considerations related to the identity of Catholic troops and considerations that may be helpful for parents.”
He has requested that USCCB staff work directly with GSUSA and NFCYM to “identify and address remaining questions and concerns,” and has also invited his brother bishops “to communicate questions or concerns with me or the USCCB Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth.”
Tess Volanski, one of the co-founders of SpeakNowGirlScouts.com, which tracks problems with the organization from a Catholic perspective, remains concerned.
“Catholic parents and families need to understand that GSUSA is not just an organization that has made a few mistakes with questionable material,” she said. “The group has shown repeatedly, through their curriculum, media use, staff and other sources, that they possess a set of values in direct conflict with the teachings of the Catholic Church.
“In my opinion, Girl Scouts changing appears highly improbable. The general mindset of the organization has shifted, and for it to shift back to a wholesome scouting group, free from any sort of political agenda, would be verging on a miracle.”
Register correspondent Thomas L. McDonald blogs about Catholicism, technology and culture.
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Why stick with Girl Guides if they have so many problems. There are other options out there.
Some are specifically Catholic and for girls - such as Challenge (for 10 to 18 year olds)
http://www.challengeclubs.com/
A similar option for younger girls (5-10) is Little Flower Girl’s Club
others are general christian and for girls - such as American Heritage Girls.
Finally some are specifically Catholic and can be only girls even though they can also be mixed such as K4J (Catholic Kids Net).
There is no reason to stick with Girl Guides.
A commenter for part 1 mentioned the difference between “sponsoring” and “chartering” organizations. There is a difference and the difference means that American Heritage Girls are a better fit for Catholic parishes. The parish charters the troop and the troop becomes part of the youth ministry. As such, the troop will better reflect Catholic values and identity than a GS troop. Our troop has a good relationship with the parish and we work closely with the staff to provide a solid program for the girls. We have to serve our mission as a troop at a Catholic parish. It means something that we are a Catholic troop.
Little Flower Clubs are very worthy, I am sure, but I don’t have any experience with them other than my daughter was not allowed to join and I have been told it is for homeschoolers. Our one contact with them was very disappointing. They are not a scouting organization like AHG so the suggestion that Little Flower is an alternative to scouts doesn’t make sense. If you want your daughter to have a scouting experience AHG is the way to go. Little Flower is different enough that you could do both. I know families that do participate in both.
AHG has a Memorandum of Understanding with the Boy Scouts so they can take advantage of BS training, programs and facitilies. This is a huge advantage over GS even without all the other issues. My family has done GS and AHG; AHG is a better organization and experience by far.
Ya, know- I don’t have a problem being concerned with the GS promoting sexual ethics in contrast with our beliefs. BUT- I do have an issue with this headline which presents transgendered children as the great “bugaboo”. Oh, no…they are going to let those people in?!” Come on NCR- these children are created in the image of a loving God and need our love. Whatever the causes,if a young boy indentifies as a girl, through no fault of his own how can we turn him away? I don’t believe Jesus would say “Sorry, your disordered, go away”. This condition is real and our daughters are going to have to enccounter it. Open up you hearts!
Consider that in the GSUSA “Leader Magazine” GSUSA confirms all American Girl Scouts are members of WAGGGS: “GSUSA, and every member of it, automatically belongs to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).” http://www.speaknowgirlscouts.com/web_documents/gsusa_wagggs_global_scouting.pdf Then, watch this video of a WAGGGS delegate advocate for sexual rights for youth, and comprehensive sex-ed under the guise of Climate Change. The delegate states she represents 10 million girls (aka, all the girls in WAGGGS). If you are an American Girl Scouts—she is representing YOU. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxbOdZVnJOE&feature=plcp (Note the WAGGGS delegate is participating in an event sponsored by “Population Action International”)
Thank you for this article! I was in the Girl Scouts through 8th grade. I learned to balance a checkbook as troop treasurer. I have many wonderful memories of my scouting years. As a mother, I became a Brownie leader for the first of our three daughters, but became a Little Flowers leader with our second daughter when I could no longer reconcile Girl Scouting with Catholicism. We probably should have left the organization even earlier, but I think I wanted to be in denial. This entire discussion feels personal, because I care about Girl Scouting. I was invested in it, and it pains me that the organization has become what it has, but we need to stand up for the Truth of our faith. What the Girl Scouts are doing is harmful because they’re spreading their secular propaganda to young people who are less equipped to know how to speak out against it, and they’re disguising it by saying that they’re teaching girls to be strong women. I will continue to pray for all involved.
I am a Girl Scout troop leader working with younger children. Many of the materials are unfamiliar to me as we do not have high school-age girls in our troop. The ones I have seen are alarming. I am observing this situation intently.
If the accusations are confirmed, which seems likely, this will affect more than the 25% of Girl Scouts who are Catholic or in a Catholic-sponsored troop. The other churches will have to take notice, if they have not already.
Many troops are also sponsored through other Christian churches, notably the United Methodist Church, which I have been told over and over “has a special relationship with the Girl Scouts of America”. Many troops meet in churches as Girl Scout policy discourages meeting in private homes or in places that charge. We currently meet in a Methodist church.
I will also admit that I have been told that the “Girl Scouts support Planned Parenthood”, it was difficult to find objective information on the matter. I even asked a local council representative, with the response being one of firm denial.
I read the first part of this article and the comments after it. Now, I have to put in my 2 cents. As a Brownie/Girl Scout from the sixties, a Brownie leader for my own 5 daughters I WAS wholeheartedly in support of Girl Scouts - all through our Catholic parish, btw. Then, when they were in junior high, I read the handbook - AND PULLED THEM OUT, IMMEDIATELY.
There is no justification for Catholic parents to continue to allow their daughters to be brainwashed, covertly and overtly, by this pro-contraception, pro-promiscuity, pro-SSA, essentially anti-female organization.
It would help all of us to understand who is encouraging a young boy to think he is a girl. I played with dolls when I was a young boy. I don’t remember other girly issues. But my example was a manly father who got up and went to work each day to support a family. How do these young boys get encouraged to develop feminine traits? Is it the fault of the parents? Or, the media? It is appearing more in TV and movies. I was not aware of same-sex attraction until college when it was discussed among my peers. It can be controlled. Why do we sit on our hands and do nothing? The country is on a slippery slope to destruction. Has anyone read the history of the great empires - Greek and Roman? Does anyone accept the cause of their fall and the adage ‘HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF’? Consider the acts of our current president!
S Cundiff: Are you a Catholic? If so, do you think the teachings of the Church encourage us to allow a confused 7 year old to advance living “his” life as a girl, or should we offer help, love and support, to help him and his parents to see that God created him a male? Endorsing his participation as a “Girl” Scout only complicates the issue. It’s not like NCR said we shouldn’t allow him in Faith Formation classes—- we’re talking about allowing a 7 year old boy to join a girls’ organization and pretend he is a girl. You think that’s helpful to this child?
“Of paramount importance to the Girl Scouts is the well-being of the child in question and the children in the troop (or the activity in question)” is not a satisfactory response to parents who want(ed) to send their daughters to Summer Camps. Now, because there is no guarantee that girls will not end up sleeping next to a teenage boy, I cannot in good conscience know my girls will be safe under GSUSA’s “inclusion” policy. Once a boy is given membership, what is to prevent his parents signing him up to a week-long overnight camp anywhere in the USA? I have written to Girl Scouts asking them to tell me otherwise. It has been two weeks of deafening silence.
Up until 5 yrs ago, I was a GS troop leader. Juggling a full time job, parenting, PTA, etc., I regretfully failed to see what was happening at GSUSA headquarters and the “problematic material” that had crept into our scouts reading materials. Three enraged parents ( 1 Jewish, 2 Christian) came to me with this horrifying info.
We immediately disbanded the troop and our daughters turned to volunteer work at food pantries and homeless shelters. 5 yrs later, some of these fine young women are still working as volunteers at the food banks and shelters. One of them set up a special outreach for homeless teens.
Poor catechism in the Church has led to tremendous problems. I don’t see why you would put your children (especially teens) in a group that would directly contradict church teaching. It’s not worth the risk. If they are not responsible enough to catch offensive material from getting in their literature (repeatedly), they aren’t trying very hard.
As an aside, I know nothing of the NCYFM, but with quotes like, “As a result, NFCYM has been in direct contact with GSUSA leadership and has engaged in substantial conversation characterized by mutual respect and shared goals.”, they don’t seem to be worried about Catholic teens getting to Heaven!
As you stated, “Councils are free to set their own agendas.” This is then true for the leaders of the troops, under no dictation from national policy to promote or suppress the issues you have raised in the aforementioned article. The agenda and goals for any Troop are determined by the girls, and supported then by their leaders and Council and its staff. Any organization will have both extremes arise, but in my experience as a scout and with my children over the last ten years with GSA, the modicum of values, character, spirituality and service are what have been emphasized. There are always going to be those with political agendas trying to take down big organizations, but the history and mission of scouting is not about teaching condoms at WTD, but exposing children to cultures, lives and foods that are different then their own, growing them as students in an inter-connected world. As a catholic mother of 7, it is disheartening to be told that an organzation will supercede my parenting style and my spiritual beliefs by sheer association. I would love to see more badges available to my girls that help them delve deeper into their faith and show them successful businesswomen who contribute to society and give back to their community in the Church. It would be great to see people focus on how to make things better if it is going “in the wrong direction”. Be blessed.
I have to respond to S. Cundiff’s glibly stating that allowing transgender boy-girls in Girl Scouts is what Jesus would support. You couldn’t possibly know a thing about Girl Scouts or have children to want to expose other people’s girls to such a risk. Whenever you have to lie to get what you want, that is an act of selfishness—and therefore a sin—especially when it involves the privilege of sleeping with girls, watching them change clothes and using girls bathrooms. I have been a Girl Scout leader for several years, so I know what I’m talking about. When we earned the Swimming badge, the girls all crammed into one bathroom and changed together. When we camped, they all changed clothes in one tent. They share their menstruation problems with each other. And, at Girl Scout Council camping events, I have seen 2,000 girls squish in tent-to-tent, not knowing who the other girls are, where they are from, their ages, etc. to be together in Girl Scout fellowship. To think a single troop could be hiding a boy up through the 12th Grade at one of these events or at a week-long Summer Camp is outrageously dangerous and Girl Scouts should be sued for misrepresenting itself as an “all-girl” experience.
My problem with Girl Scouts is that in its effort to be “relevant” it offers girls nothing unique. I loved Girl Scouts because I learned skills I wouldn’t have learned anywhere else. But now, Girl Scouts is just another organization throwing the same old pop culture junk at girls. Two summers ago I looked into the local G.S. day camp offering because I remembered the camping skills that were taught when I was young. The title of the 2010 program? “Glitter and Unicorns.” Seriously? I signed my daughter up for Girl Scouts to get them away from that crap.
The whole focus on “leadership” training is mistaken. The focus needs to be on building character. If you don’t have virtue, you are not going to be a good leader.
RE: Keith Flanner
I remember the Jesus being asked whose fault it was that a man was born blind- who committed the sin? No ONE issue can be blamed for a young boy feeling he is a girl. As a counselor I have worked with children who struggle with this- and struggle they do- painfully. This isnt about whether is dad his “man enough”. This is about complex issues that come together: developmental; societal; and possbibly genetic (if a person can be born with Down Syndrome, why they can’t they be born with an altered sexuality?). In the end, this is not about blame, its about what a loving Jesus would have us do. I say, open wide the door to children and don;t make them suffer any more than they already have.
@S. Cundiff
I think it is interesting that you focused in on the transgender issue as the one that should be supported. Catholic doctrine teaches us that we should be compassionate and we should be open to truth.
However transgender is an area where I find adults to both lack real compassion and an area where adults are denying the truth.
1) There is no such thing as transgender as the word implies. In fact this is the lie that we need to shine a light on.
2) Self identifying as the wrong gender is a disorder and the child or adult needs love and understanding.
3) That love and understanding should never be to take the easy route and say, well because you think you are a girl, you can be a girl. This is a lie, it adds more confusion for the child and is destructive.
4) Supporting the transgender lie is also destructive to the people who support it. We know what gender is. It is nature/science and based on the xx/xy chromosome. Telling girls to pretend or accept a lie that an xy chromosomed boy is somehow a girl is a lie and is immoral. Teaching children to deny the truth and accept a lie is corruption.
5) God reveals these truths to us though his creation and our study of creation, science. Bending the truth, confusing the truth, rationalizing the truth, hiding the truth or denying the truth is corruption.
Finally, I think this is important and fundamental. Like gay marriage, transgender is a redefining of terms - it is a lie that assaults truth itself and which therefore assaults faith and assaults our relationship with God. God Bless You.
S. Cundiff: So, you would sacrifice all our daughters’ safety to push your argument of transgender inclusion? I have read many articles on this issue and warn parents of this simple fact: the LGBTQI lobby ALWAYS reserves the right for a person to choose their sexual orientation. So, you can have a male-sex teenage boy, fully developed with raging hormones who has the “gender choice” of being a girl and also chooses to be lesbian or bisexual. This “trans-girl” will have all the equipment to impregnate with all the desires of “straight” boy, and S. Cundiff has no problem offering up our children to this social experiment in the name of “inclusion”. Is THAT what Jesus wants? To change the English understanding of “girl” from the common-use dictionary definition of “female child” to the obscure gay-lobby term of “gender identity”? We are in a cultural battle, and the Girl Scouts problem is just the tip of the iceberg. The sooner Catholics leave Girl Scouts, the better.
Keith Flanner, No one wants boys who think they are girls to suffer more. But admitting a young boy to a girl scout group is not going to relieve him of suffering. I would think it would cause more. To deem a boy to really be a girl in a boy’s body, long before he’s even developed a man’s body, is INSANE. Any adult accommodating such insanity is hardly relieving suffering. Parents are role models who can affect their kids to one degree or another. To quote Jesus healing a blind man and compare that with a child having sexual identity issues, is comparing apples and oranges. I think it is twisted to say a loving Jesus would admit a sexually confused boy to girl scouts.
Dear Mr. McDonald and Readers,
I have 2 daughters in Girl Scouts. My 17-year-old just earned her Gold Award for making 24 foot altar for the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcure (see spockabeth on YouTube for entertaining details) and my 10 year old (and a Girl Scout friend)just helped 21 Brownie/Daisys to earn the local Our Lady of Guadalupe Award as part of her Bronze Award. (They also collected donations for religious articles for the local archdiocesan teenage girl prenancy shelter.) Girl Scouts have given them these great opportunities to share their faith they would not have had otherwise. American Heritage and Little Flowers are fine organizations but I want my girls (who attend Catholic parochial schools) to share with Jewish, Protestant and Muslim girls—to know and love them as sisters. I sincerely believe that this is our way to peace in our communities and our world. Neither American Heritage or Little Flowers allow Jewish girls which seems sad to me—-could the Blessed Mother as a girl belong to them?—-and this seems way too narrow for me. I know that Girl Scouts is not perfect but I believe it is moving in the right direction with the appointment of Anna Maria Chavez and deleting a lot of objectionable programing. I pray for the Holy Spirit to guide our beloved Bishops as they continue to oversee the situation and dialogue with Girl Scouts and hope that they see the opportunities for evangelization and catachesis that Girl Scouts is. (Note: my elder daughter was part of the troop that created the Divine Mercy Award that has been earned by over 200 Girl Scouts throughout the United States. For more information, see the Marianist article in the 2009 spring Marian Helper “Girl Scouts Discover Divine Mercy”, http://www.marian.org) Ultimately, Girl Scouts allows the girls to be as Catholic as they want to be and stongly encourages community service. As with any group, parental oversight is a must. Ultimately, strong Catholics are needed to keep Girl Scouts on the right track—-abandoning it seems like letting evil win to me and I am not prepared to surrender just yet. All of good will, please pray for Girl Scouts to carry the truth and model it to all they touch.
Thank you Bishops for addressing this issue. As Catholics we are taught that the end never justifies the means. Of course the GS look good with program material. They sure should they made $760 MILLION off of the cookies that their girls were made to sell. This does not account for badges, books, uniforms and trinkets. As a Lifetime Mbr. and being part of 4 generations of GS I can only say that the GIRL SCOUTS have betrayed their members and many now are saddened by knowing after 100 years that they now must end as they have no right asking for support from parishes and schools while they promote the sexualization and agenda of abortion. It is clear that they have become a liberal, progressive, feminist org. and not in keeping with the morals of the majority of people. Parents are the vicars of their families and must be role models. Not easy…just necessary. Get your facts and pray for courage.
Like others, and even being a trainer and involved with the local Council on a frequent basis… we did not know of many of the changes that started back around 1998. At least at the corporate levels. By the time it had filtered to the then 336+ councils it “seemed” benign. By 2005, with the mega council mergers many TRADITIONAL GIRL SCOUTING ADULTS, employees, and volunteers were told in so many words, “We were a barrier to change; we had an unhealthy devotion to tradition.”
Employees were either fired, or not considered for rehiring, volunteers found that they were not wanted, the corps of trainers, many with decades of Girl Scouting experience, were not notified, or told that they were no needed any more.
And the girls? Activities planned “FOR THEM” by the employees, and their leaders and parents told, “You are not invited; this is for the girls only.” I’m sorry, if parents cannot at least observe, maybe there is a reason, and the parents would not want their girls there.
I thought about trying to “change from the inside” maybe it time to just get out. :(
I’ve been a Girl Scout leader for 6 years and let me tell all you moms how it really is in Girl Scouts. They pushed the new programming on us this past year. It’s all about the 3 Journeys. These “Leadership Journeys” are basically in three areas: environmentalism, social justice, and ultra-feminism. Most of the roll models presented in these books are women leaders in these three areas and have sordid backgrounds like the founder of planned parenthood. These books are incredibly self centered as well… all about me, my power, etc. etc. They often have website recommendations like using media matters to “fact check”. Many of these organizations are supporters of the super feminist agenda, planned parenthood and the like. Don’t assume. Go to a girl scout store and seriously study the Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador Journey books for yourselves. Look up the people they refer to as roll models. Don’t just sit back and buy cookies. Also, they have made badges meaningless. They count for nothing and do not apply to the main awards. Their requirements are a joke as well. They have taken the “scout” out of scouting. Amazingly, at the Cadette level, there is no longer a horse badge. Juliette Low is flipping in her grave over that one I’m sure. The complaints are real. I’m not even Catholic (a protestant) and I don’t want this training for my daughter. Soon, the old school leaders like myself will be gone and all that will be left is a scouting organization that trains your daughter to be a community activist and not think for herself (much less be able to pitch a tent, sew, or tie a knot). Also, they have replaced the Catholic Religious medal with their own My Promise/My Faith medal. The girls are supposed to see how their faith, whatever it may be, fits in with the Girl Scout law. We have now joined a nearby American Heritage Girls troop.
The conflicted gender issue is not the main point. The major point is are they tied with P-P as was the Komen cancer group ( yes, no, yes again) and then decide firmly. As to the Methodist, Presbyterian, Anglican, Disciples of Christ (Christian Church) and UCC and ECLA in their main expressions, not breakaway groups they are so far from biblical values in their sexual ethics they are untrustworthy. To use Paul’s image, the trunpet has to sound a certain note, not a muted here come on y’all note
Clearly the Girl Scouts is morally bankrupt. It would seem that no lengthy inquiry is required. Nor should we trust them to change. We should just stop hosting these groups in our parishes and encourage all parents to pull their girls out of the group.
They’re only claiming now that they “have no position” to avoid criticism and keep from losing money… Pull out of the groups, tell them why, and IF they change, consider going back.
But anyway, why can’t we start our own groups, faithful to the Church and natural law? Why do we feel compelled to look to the world for entertainment and activities for our children? Somewhere out there an energetic, creative group of moms is reading this…why not start your own Catholic organization?
If I had a daughter, I wouldn’t let her be a girl scout for any reason. First, because it exposes, or could expose, your daughter to danger and confusion. Secondly, on principle, so as not to support the evil they are doing. As it is, I haven’t bought their cookies since I heard about this a few years ago.
There can be no doubt that the lesbocracy targets the youthful mind and seeks to convert the society at large into deplorable values using a confusion of disordered, androgynous dogma. By associating with the largest national provider of abortion death for the poor the Girl Scouts are actually inviting the big bad wolf to have lunch with young girls, grooming them to accept the immorality they will find in the “modern” culture.
In addition to the problematic materials and positions on moral issues, it really offers so little of value to my daughter. I have my mother’s old handbook, which is full of real-world experiences & activities, versus what GS is offering today. We stuck with Little Flowers and K4J(Catholic Kids Net) when she was younger and participate in 4H as a family now. There are AHG groups in our area, but we prefer the family option, since we have boys as well as a girl.
I findthe arguement that the experience of the girls can be controlled by the leaders seriously flawed. No matter how wonderful, how faith filled a troop chooses to be, each girl contributes to GSUSA’s and WAGGGS’s numbers and finances. And yes, this is true even if the MILLIONS of dollars EVERY YEAR that is paid to WAGGGS from GSUSA is not directly paid from membership dues and cookie sales. WAGGGS assessment to GSUSA flucuates yearly, based on the number of registered GSUSA members, so, the more Girl Scouts there are, the more money goes to WAGGGS. Unlike GSUSA, WAGGGS makes no attempt to cover up their pro choice agenda—they make this platform part of every major curriculum. WAGGGS’ curriculum is a extensively intertwined with GSUSA’s curriculum—look on their website, look in their books—all encourage girls to go to multiple WAGGGS websites and valibate these websites as helpful resources. Look at your daughter’s vest—if you’ve sewn a Thinking Day patch onto her vest (or 3 as I did), you’ve participated in WAGGGS’ curriculum, and most probably contributed to the World Thinking Day Fund through the heavily encouraged financial donations to the Juliette Low World Friendship Fund. EVERY council collects donations from their local troops to make a financial contribution to this fund every year, of which the vast majority of the money goes to WAGGGS’ World Thinking Day Fund and other WAGGGS related expenditures. My oldest daughter was a member of the most wonderful Brownie troop for 3 years, but while the parents and the troop leader may have been able to keep these decidely uncatholic issues from being a part of the girls’ first hand scouting experience, we cannot keep our daughters from contributing in number and finances to the national and international girl scouting organizations. Next week I meet my priest, and then other moms in my parish, as we begin the paperwork to charter our parish’s new American Heritage Girl troop. My daughter will once again wear a vest, work on badges, go camping, and complete many service hours and Catholic scouting awards like the Family of God and Marian awards within an organization that does not contradict my faith on ANY level, and where Christ is intregal, not optional.
My past experiences with girl scouts was wonderful for myself, and as a leader in my daughter’s troop. In the last ten years I have written four books about enforced diversity education and their main premise is that all ideas, values, morals, ethics, and religions hold equal value. In two of my books I mention the girl scouts and how they have compromised their original principles. They are now a secular orgainzation,a and one that supports Planned Parenthood and homosexuality.
This is very sad for me, but the compromise which I write extensively about has taken place even within the Catholic church in our Catholic universities. Yet the church is still strong enough to research such matter and then act on it. For this I am thankful for if more churches did this, we would not be in the mess that America is now in. I am proud of the church’s stand on such issues.
Tragically the truth is at the end of this wonderful article. I believe that unless we STOP the compromise on a daily basis by speaking the truth that we will never stop the mess we are in. Groups that have gone over already such as the girl scouts, are most likely gone forever. Thus we must start anew and reject them and move on to better things and organizations. http://www.stopthecompromise.com
This is now typical of many youth organizations. Chicago sponsors a summer arts program for teens called Gallery 37. Two of my kids had great experiences in that, working on projects that are later auctioned for charity. They get paid and are held to a high standard of professionalism: conduct, tardiness, appearance, etc. Yet the application allows the student one of three gender choices: male, female, transgender. As a city-sponsored entity, G37 has no religious affiliation.If gender identification is becoming such a complicated issue, why even ask the kid’s sex at all? Clearly, just to push an agenda and brainwash young people into finding this normal. When I commented on the application, neither of my sons found it odd.They’ve already bought into this as the “new normal.”
Imagine getting a merit badge with a picture of a big old rubber on it.
Get our girls and parishes out of the Girl Scouts!!!! There are alternitives. The Campfire girls are not safe either. But there are good ones.
I was a GS for about 6 years as a child and I have been a GS Leader for the past 14 years for 3+ troops in addition to being the service area coordinator in charge of all GS and GS volunteers in two cities for the past three years. I am deeply saddened by the direction GS has taken. In our service area, the only parochial schools that allow GS to come into the schools and, not only recruit girls, but actually set up troops within the schools is the Catholic churches and schools. As a mother of three daughters who have/are attending Catholic School, I have always assumed that the organizations that the church and school are allowing to be set up within the school/church are within the Catholic teachings. After all, the first and foremost reason why we send our children to the Catholic School is to foster the Catholic faith. It is my opinion that the very least the Bishops should do is tell the Catholic churches and schools that they can no longer allow GS troops to be formed within their schools and parishes and to no longer allow GS events to happen on parish grounds.
Persepolis does not contain extreme sexual content; it is not an “adult” comic. The cartoon based on the comic was rated pg-13, and the comic is similarly appropriate for a teen readership.
@JJ—GSUSA promoted Persepolis to 4th and 5th grade girls (ages 9-10). Have you even seen Persepolis? Persepolis is not appropriate. This GSUSA recommended book contains scenes of sexual encounters with multiple partners, blasphemy against Our Lord, prostitution, the f-word, I could go on ... It is in no way compatible with Catholic teachings or even compatible with many Christian religions. There is no excuse for GSUSA promoting this to young girls—or any girl. And to top if off, the book promoting Persepolis is STILL on the shelves in GS Council Bookstores.
We Americans hear “sexual rights for girls” and our thoughts turn to promiscuity. All around the world, “sexual rights” means that girls should have control over their own bodies, and should be allowed to remain innocent and unmolested. Instead, many of them live in societies that treat girls as commodities, and they are prostituted or married at very young ages. While we worry that our girls are being exposed to unwholesome things, girls of 10 or 12 years old around the world are suffering rape, sexually transmitted diseases, and genital mutilation. This is what WAGGGS is trying to combat. American Girl Scouts usually know very little about WAGGGS, and do not routinely see any of their program materials.
Marie Ehlers: Your statements are false, WAGGGS advocacy is not only about molestation and innocence. WAGGGS advocates for contraception, emergency contraception and access to abortion—- google WAGGGS+day 6 to see it for yourself. In addition, WAGGGS is right now working with International Planned Parenthood Federation and Planned Parenthood of Indonesia on the steering committee of the ICPD Youth Forum (to be held in December 2012) which will again focus on sexual rights.
Regarding girls not being exposed to WAGGGS: WAGGGS is in almost EVERY GSUSA program book for girls (in every GS Journeys book)—many times American Girl Scouts are told to go to the WAGGGS website. What do you think World Thinking Day is about?? Annual GSUSA celebration of WAGGGS where girls are encouraged to fund WAGGGS and also to learn more about WAGGGS, many times through WAGGGS program materials.
You are very mis-informed if you don’t think WAGGGS program materials are promoted by GSUSA.
@Marie Ehlers: You’re right about American Girl Scouts knowing very little about their representing 1/3 of WAGGGS power (3.3 of 10 million members)in promoting abortion and promiscuity worldwide. WAGGGS just honored United Nations Sec. General Ban Ki Moon with its highest honor, elevating his stature to girls everywhere. WAGGGS has been working with the UN on “sexual rights” for decades, ever since radical feminist Betty Friedan (founder of NOW and NARAL, National ABORTION and REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS Action League) was on its National Board of Directors in 1970. Ban Ki Moon has been pushing for “sexual rights” as explicit sex ed for children as young as 5, and contraception and abortion without parental knowledge for children as young as 10, and Girl Scouts hold him up as a role model? Girl Scouts of the USA is the largest funding WAGGGS associate (between 1/3 to 2/3 of their funds) out of the 145 member orgs. American Girl Scouts are disproportionately providing WAGGGS with the money to spread the evil message that little children have a right to sex, a right to hide their sexual conduct from parents and a right to kill babies in the womb. How do they justify it? Environmental “sustainability” = “green” = smaller carbon footprint = less people = contraception/abortion = sexual rights for kids. Just follow the conversation and Google “WAGGGS delegate sexual rights” and watch the YouTube video.
Well, I know that my voice will not reach most of you; we cannot even agree on the essential meanings of words.When you think of feminism, you see women acting outside their assigned roles; I think of how rapes have declined by 80% in America since feminism began. When I talk about the direct influence of local volunteers on how GS program is delivered, you will talk about abortion and promiscuity. (Yes, World Thinking Day encourages the girls to think about Scouts around the world—pretty radical stuff!) There are many Catholics who are able to use GS program materials without feeling in conflict with Church dogma. Unlike the Church, GS volunteers have influence within the organization, and the flexibility to adapt program materials. I do, however, understand how some cannot work within a program that is essentially good, because of the biased efforts of the authorities. That’s the same reason I left the Catholic Church years ago.
@Maria Ehlers: If you left the Catholic Church, then why are you lurking here, trying to persuade Catholic families to stick with Girl Scouts? HERE IS THE TRUTH ABOUT GIRL SCOUTS from the YouTube video of WAGGGS delegate Julie Fink speaking at COP16 (Global warming alarmist conference) on Dec 1, 2010:
JULIE FINK, WAGGGS DELEGATE:
“I hope one day, all girls throughout the world will be as free to talk about sex and contraception as these girls [child prostitutes in Zambia]... as a part of the WAGGGS delegation, that is, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, and I represent 10 million members in 145 countries, all females of all ages… Our mission is to empower girls and young women around the world. That is one way to make them be Agents of Change, um, in terms of also climate change. We realize that sexual and reproductive health rights play an important role in this. We need to provide a safe space for girls to only discuss the issues of STIs and contraception to give them the possibility of choosing their own lifestyle. Therefore, we are carrying out a range of projects around the world with the aim of educating the girls on these topics through non-formal education… In this way, they can act as role models to their peers. At the same time, it is so much easier to discuss these issues with one of your own age… One project we, uh, have in Peru is called You Decide. This program encourages adult adolescent girls to delay the start of their sexual activity, emphasizing the impact that early pregnancy would have on their lives, promoting sexual education through peer education and thereby reducing the number of adolescent pregnancy…”
MODERATOR:
“Thanks very much Julie, uh, lots of great stories, particularly like the story of the use of the condoms as balloons. And I have two teenage boys and I’m trying to make sure they use condoms not just as balloons, but for other purposes…
Julie, I was particularly struck by your mentioning of the collaboration between the Girl Guides of Denmark and Zambia, and I wondered whether you could offer any reflections on ways and, and differences between, um, how you, you think girls in developed countries and developing countries look at the linkages: between this is you, gender, woman’s empowerment, sexuality and climate change…”
JULIE FINK:
“...I think that a lot of people don’t see this link between gender and climate change, em, and I think we have to keep talking about this topic to make people understand that the link’s there, that is important…”
THIS IS WHAT GIRL SCOUT COOKIES FUND. BOYCOTT GIRL SCOUTS and their cursed cookies.
Maria Ehlers, we shouldn’t have to “adapt Girl Scout materials.” GS printed and online curriculum should not contain recommendation of pro-abortion entities and role models. Those “biased efforts of the authorities” that you mention are our Shepherds ensuring that what is presented to our Catholic daughters on parish grounds adheres to the teachings of the Church. If Girl Scouts wants to praise abortion rights advocates/organizations, go do it somewhere else. Don’t complain when the Church objects.
Regarding World Thinking Day, I have no problem with girls being encouraged to think about Scouts around the world. The issue lies in the fact that WTD is WAGGGS largest fundraiser - and these fund go specifically to girls being used as WAGGGS’ delegates to promote abortion, emergency contraception for youth on the global stage. And yes, that’s radical.
Girl Scouts are sponsored by organizations. The troops are just allowed to meet in their building. The troop may have a leader that may belong to that Catholic Church but the GS Council holds the Charter. In Bsa and AHG the organization holds the Charter. This is a huge misconception. I was a leader in GS for 3 years. We met at my Parish but we never belonged to the Parish.I have an American Girls troop now and my Priest says NO to GS.
Good for your priest Kathleen!
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