So, as of the release of the Inauguration Itinerary, it’s been made official that the Girl Scouts of the United States are marching for Trump. As a lifelong GSUSA member, I’m obviously not happy about this; the official Girl Scout line of reasoning on twitter so far has been that GSUSA has always participated in these events, they are not a political organization and do not make political statements, and girls are free to participate or not if they choose.
I do not accept that. I don’t think you do either. This is not a “normal” presidential inauguration and the decision to not attend is an ethical one, not a political one. The Girls Scouts official number can be reached at (800) GSUSA 4 U [(800) 478-7248]. They can also be contacted via email on their site, but I urge you to call. Also, if you are a troop leader or have a child in a troop, I would consider rounding up the girls and parents/guardians and seeing if you’d like to email a letter or call as a troop as a whole, which might carry some weight.
Some points you may want to bring up:
-Trump has not only been caught admitting to sexual assault, but has also made inappropriate remarks about dating underage women “in a few years,” along with making remarks about the attractiveness of his own teenage daughter. This is unnerving. This inauguration is not safe, healthy environment for young women and girls, nor is it a safe environment for the adult leaders and chaperones who will accompany them. Standing against sexual assault is also not a “political” issue, it is an ethical one and one GSUSA has stood for in the past and must continue to stand for.
-Girl Scouting is international. GSUSA is a member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girls Scouts which connects scouts all over the world, including is predominantly Muslim regions and Mexico. In fact, one of the five WAGGGS World Centers is in Mexico (Our Cabaña). PEOTUS has made racist, inflammatory statements about the very girls that make up our international organization. He proposes a “Muslim Registry” that would be a facist, ant-American imposition on many of our GSUSA member scouts, as well as the families of many of our international sisters who have immigrated to the US. To my mind, attending any event in support of a president, inauguration or otherwise, IS political. The organization is stating to our international sisters that we stand with a man who is a threat to them. Our founder, Juliet Gordon Low, founded scouting on the basis of uplifting girls and promoting sisterhood, both within our communities and internationally. There is even a fund in her name for promoting projects internationally. This is not in her vision.
-Trump’s appointed Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon, via his website Breitbart, has regularly made disparaging comments about our organization solely because we believe Planned Parenthood, a women’s health organization, should exist. Why are we standing for this man’s puppet? Why are we standing for anyone who is so openly opposed to a woman’s rights to her health, her choice, and her bodily autonomy when that is something we stand for ourselves?
-President Barack Obama posthumously awarded our founder, Juliet Gordon Low, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. Donald Trump spent the entire Obama presidency questioning his nationality, his religion and his legitimacy. There is absolutely no need to support him.
I’m sure I could go on forever. The Girl Scouts of the USA stand for and promote many ideals in line with human rights, basic human decency, and freedom which Trump and his cabinet are blatantly opposing. Please feel free to add reasons as you share, but PLEASE call. Thank you.
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