The Boy Scouts of America have become so “inclusive” that they have basically become the Girl Scouts.
An all-female troop of ten attended a ceremony on Tuesday to be sworn-in as Boy Scouts in Arkansas.
According to Texarkana Gazette, the ten girls of Troop 19, ranging from 11-17 years old, were sworn-in alongside Boy Scouts of Troop 17 at a Methodist church in Bryant, Arkansas. “The group became the first all-girls troop chartered by the Quapaw Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. The Quapaw Area Council is the largest council in the state, representing 39 counties in central and northeast Arkansas,” reported the paper.
Although there is already a space for females at the Girl Scouts, the Boy Scouts have been hit with declining numbers and pressure from the political Left to open their troops up to females. Girls were “fully incorporated” into the Boy Scouts ranks as of February 1, according to The Chronicle.
Apparently, all-female Boy Scout troops are trending in Arkansas: “All-girls troops have formed in Conway, White Hall and Cabot since the Bryant troop’s induction, and the council plans to add 10 or 12 more all-girls troops in the next month, according to Marcal Young, Scouts executive and CEO of the Quapaw Area Council.”
And Elyria, Ohio’s first all-female troop gained some traction on Monday night, as Jesse Grabowski, scoutmaster for Scouts BSA Troop 122, recruited girls and young women.
“The girls we’ve noticed wanting to sign up are looking for a program other than what they’ve already been exposed to,” said Grabowski. “They heard about our program and they’ve seen their brothers, cousins, friends go through the BSA program, and they like what they saw and are curious about what we have to offer.”
As noted by The Chronicle, the Boy Scouts of America have suffered a decline in scout attendance, and helped to further torpedo their intake with their decision to lift bans on transgender scouts and gay troop leaders. Last year, the Mormon Church withdrew support from the Boy Scouts, “effectively cutting off about one-fifth of the BSA’s scouting base.”
Troop 19 Scoutmaster Tim McEuen told the Texarkana Gazette that all-female troops like theirs should serve as a model for other states. “We want other states to look at us and think, ‘wow,'” he said.
But not everyone is so thrilled. Leaders at the Girl Scouts of the USA blasted the Boy Scouts for opening their troops to females, accusing them of turning their backs on single-gender environments and essentially siphoning off their scouts instead of handling various scandals appropriately.
“The Boy Scouts’ house is on fire,” the Girl Scouts told ABC News in a statement October, 2017. “Instead of addressing systemic issues of continuing sexual assault, financial mismanagement and deficient programming, BSA’s senior management wants to add an accelerant to the house fire by recruiting girls.”
In a blog post, the Girl Scouts highlighted the value of “single-gender environments.”
“Girl Scouts is the best girl leadership organization in the world, created with and for girls,” the blog post said. “We believe strongly in the importance of the all-girl, girl-led, and girl-friendly environment that Girl Scouts provides, which creates a free space for girls to learn and thrive.”
“The benefit of the single-gender environment has been well-documented by educators, scholars, other girl- and youth-serving organizations, and Girl Scouts and their families. Girl Scouts offers a one-of-a-kind experience for girls with a program tailored specifically to their unique developmental needs,” the post continued. “At Girl Scouts, we are the girl experts, and for more than a century we have provided millions of girls opportunities for adventure, inspiration, and valuable mentoring. … The Girl Scout Leadership Experience pairs girls with strong, caring female role models and mentors who prepare them to take the lead from age 5 to 18 and into adulthood.”