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I think that the only people who say that this subject is much ado about nothing are those who did not grow up with Scouting, extreme liberals, and those who are pushing some kind of "agenda". The Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts have been part of the U.S. "culture" for over 100 years, and I don't think almost everyone who is now over the age of 50 was either either a Scout (or a Campfire Girl) or wanted to be one. In my elementary school until about the sixth grade (when many kids decided it was not "cool" to be a Boy Scout or Girl Scout, at least 75% of my classmates would be in uniform on meeting days. I'm 70, but this is just one more way that the U.S. has changed so much in just 40 years (or so). And 40 years ago, it wasn't even suggested that boys might not really be boys or that girls might not really be girls. Although that might not have always been fair or right, boys and girls were often divided according to sex, whether in various kinds of boys against girls contests, or whether it was simply taken for granted that in eighth grade, girls took Home Ec and boys took Shop. (Note that I am not saying that this was fair or right, but I am just explaining how things were and that virtually everyone just accepted it.)
I think that anyone who does not recognize that there has been a fundamental change in the U.S. in many significant and major ways is either very young, very uneducated, or just blind.
It is true that I did not grow up with Scouting. For some reason it never resonated in my peer group back in the 1970s.
However, my son joined Cub Scouts as soon as he was old enough. I was Den Leader for most of that time. He is on the cusp of Eagle Scout and I have been Advancement Chair for 5 years.
In sum: I know a great deal about Scouting.
I can speak with experience and confidence that gender integration has not been a negative. Frankly, it has barely been noticed as the two halves of the Troop function independantly.
It is true that I did not grow up with Scouting. For some reason it never resonated in my peer group back in the 1970s.
However, my son joined Cub Scouts as soon as he was old enough. I was Den Leader for most of that time. He is on the cusp of Eagle Scout and I have been Advancement Chair for 5 years.
In sum: I know a great deal about Scouting.
I can speak with experience and confidence that gender integration has not been a negative. Frankly, it has barely been noticed as the two halves of the Troop function independantly.
Scouting is what you make of it.
Thanks for your post, and I think this illustrates how much can change in a just a VERY short time.
The late 60's, as you know, was a time of HUGE change -- almost as drastic as what is going on now. There was a huge difference between 1963 and 1973, which anyone can see by just comparing the TV shows of those periods. (Compare The Andy Griffith Show or The Donna Reed Show to The Brady Bunch or The Partridge Family, for example.) In 1963, to give just one example, girls wore dresses to school and children sat in rows and did not even speak in class unless they raised their hands and were allowed to speak. It was taken for granted that even public school Christmas pageants were just that, Christmas pageants (or at least that was how it was in my mid-sized Ohio town, YMMV.) Just ten years later, almost all of that had changed.
The Boy Scouts aren't gone. They just have a different name. Stop with the hysteria.
The traditional Boy Scouts are gone, and the name change helps to symbolize that. After all, why change the name if they are the same?
Also why are the Girl Scouts still in existence name wise?
But the troops are still gender-specific. This seems like a massive stretch.
Coed activities are not an example of hatred for men. This is preposterous, even for this site.
how can they be gender specific if a girl wants to join she cannot be denied without the mainstream media getting involved and before long, you’ll have people with pitchforks, screaming death threats in front of the troop leaders house
I was in the boys scouts. There was no Girl Scouts in our Parrish and this was 1963? Around then. We moved , so was not there long. We had meetings in the church halls and there were 5 girls.
how can they be gender specific if a girl wants to join she cannot be denied without the mainstream media getting involved and before long, you’ll have people with pitchforks, screaming death threats in front of the troop leaders house
Lay off the Fox News. There are girls troops and there are boys troops, just as there are girls soccer teams and boys soccer teams.
The traditional Boy Scouts are gone, and the name change helps to symbolize that. After all, why change the name if they are the same?
Also why are the Girl Scouts still in existence name wise?
I didn't say they are the same. I said the organization still exists. They aren't suddenly a different organization just because they also have girls' troops, just as your local soccer league wouldn't suddenly be "gone" if they added girls teams to the mix.
The Girl Scouts have no affiliation whatsoever with the Boy Scouts. This is like asking why Pepsi still exists if Coke exists.
If you're going to roll your eyes, you should have a better argument.
Lay off the Fox News. There are girls troops and there are boys troops, just as there are girls soccer teams and boys soccer teams.
are you trying to personally attack me by saying I watch Fox News when you clearly do not know anything about me? I thought it was the tolerant who said that Generalizations are bad.
So if there is a town with only one troop and only one girl wants to join she obviously can’t join a girls troop if it doesn’t exist. she could join the Girl Scouts, but that’s not what this is about.
I was a scout several decades ago. Even back then, their numbers were dwindling as the youth of this country started to loose interest. Then there were some lawsuits. Then bankruptcy as numbers continue to decline. Personally, I enjoyed my time as a child with the Scouts.... I was somewhat a teen in trouble and it was a learning experience. Personal events resulted kept me from really putting the effort and time to progress from Life to Eagle.
I honestly don't really see a problem with this effort to rebrand. I see it as more of a way to attract more interest to keep the organization alive. At least in my troop, there were plenty of female siblings and mothers that would tag along on trips.
There seems to be a lot of baseless statements being made in this thread from people who have zero experience nor knowledge of the topic... not really worth of responding to.
If their effort sparks new interest in scouting, irregardless of the individual, then I say go for it.
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