The Girl Scouts of America allows all girls to become scouts
— now including young transgender girls.
The stance was made public years ago but attracted controversy when it became
widely known this week.
When I reached out to the GSA, they stated in an email response to me that "if the child is
recognized by the family and school/community as a girl and lives culturally as
a girl and lives culturally as a girl, Girl Scouts is an organization that can serve her in a setting
that is both emotionally and physically safe."
The American Family Association created an online petition
on May 13th to ask the organization to restrict its membership to
"biological girls". It went on to allege that transgender girls,
incorrectly identified as "boys in skirts" and "transgender
boys" would "put young innocent girls at risk." when they said
that "Boys in skirts, boys in make-up and boys in tents will become a part
of the program. This change will put young innocent girls at risk."
The day after the AFA petition went live, GSA's Andrea
Bastiani Archibald reasserted the GSA's stance to include all girls when she
took the official GSA website to write,
"There is not one type of girl. Every girl's sense of self, path to
it, and how she is supported is unique....Our mission to build 'girls of
courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place' extends
to all members, and through our program, girls develop the necessary leadership
skills to advance diversity and promote tolerance." She continued, “As we
face a complex and rapidly changing 21st century, our nation needs all girls to
reach their full potential, which has been our focus for more than 103
years".
As for their critics? "Luckily, we don't serve our
critics," Archibald told CNN. "We are proud to serve all girls."
Labels:
Awareness
