Do the Girl Scouts Really Help Girls?

By Stacy Trasancos
6/17/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

A mommy convert contemplates why not to sign her girls up

It has been said that severing ties with Girl Scouts might be a sacrifice for some Catholic families, but I do not agree that it is a sacrifice to forego a social institution with flawed messages for girls. I think our girls might be better prepared for true leadership if they are at home learning to serve their family by doing kind little things like baking cookies, rather than out selling them as little future-activist fund-raisers.

1912 Founder Juliette 'Daisy' Gordon Low with two Girl Scouts

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WASHINGTON,DC (Catholic Online) - With the bishops in the United States investigating the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) this question seems to be on a lot of people's minds. Do the Girl Scouts really help girls? In many ways, what they teach goes against how I want to raise my own girls, but I never really thought about why. The Girl Scouts have this whole attitude about them that is just, frankly, not feminine.

I grew up with the "you can be anything a man can be" cultural message, and I took it seriously. As a child, I tried to run faster, climb higher, and make better grades than the boys in my classes. Heck, I even hauled hay and shot rifles (still can) as a teen. When Hillary Clinton made her comment about staying home and baking cookies and having teas, I even remember thinking how proud I was that I was just like that in my twenties.

Nope, no standin' by my man like Tammy Wynette. At that point I was a single mother, and an unstoppable force as a scientist on a career path of success (so I stupidly told myself). Older, wiser, and full of regrets, I have come to regard such messages to young women as dangerous to the institution of the family - and to a young woman's own sense of happiness and fulfillment.

Enough of the trip down memory lane. Do Girl Scouts help girls now?

Rather than base my opinion only on my personal experiences though, I decided to ask my friend Mary Rice Hasson about it. She is also a mother of seven and a lawyer who serves as a Fellow in Catholic studies at the conservative think tank in Washington D.C., Ethics and Public Policy Center. She is an expert on these issues, particularly on Catholic women's views of faith, conscience and family. A LifeNews article cites her as agreeing that the bishop investigation is needed, and then quotes her.

"A collision course is probably a good description of where things are headed," she said. "The leadership of the Girl Scouts is reflexively liberal. Their board is dominated by people whose views are antithetical to the teachings of the Catholic Church."

That got my attention. I asked her about the Girl Scouts, and for advice about raising girls in general. I am more interested in guiding principles than details. I was struck by this advice: "My parents raised us girls (7 of us) to believe we could do anything---but to value motherhood and to retain the sense of femininity that flourishes by embracing womanhood, not aping masculinity." Bingo!

Value motherhood. Be feminine. Embrace womanhood. Do not ape masculinity.

At her suggestion, I took a look at the current Girl Scout campaign, TogetherThere, and winced. No, I do not want my girls exposed to such career-oriented myopic hubris; it is all too familiar.

"A girl who doesn't believe she has what it takes to be a leader isn't likely to run for mayor one day. A girl who is laughed at by peers for being outspoken in the classroom isn't dreaming of sitting at the head of the table, running a board meeting. A girl who hides her abilities in science and math won't find the cure to illnesses that affect us all."

It almost sounds good, but think about it. The end goal of developing character is not to run for office, be a corporate officer, or become famous for discovering cures. That turns you into an object held up for scrutiny based on what you accomplish professionally, and it sets unreasonable expectations. It is anything but feminine. What about all the girls who do not become those things? What about all the girls who do not even want to become those things? The Get the Facts page is all about becoming a high-profile leader in government, industry, or academia, and how those areas are dominated by men.

There is no mention of the natural leadership position for women - Motherhood.

The slogan for the TogetherThere campaign is "When girls succeed, so does society." The text goes on to say that the status of women in society is a direct measure of that society's success. But hang on! Define success. Is a woman only successful if she ...

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1 - 7 of 7 Comments

Terri K
11 months ago
In response to Kayo whose comment is too long to keep my interest (unfortunately)...

Staying home is not about what's good for us moms. It's all about self-sacrifice. I stay home and part of me longs for a paycheck, professional accolades, conferences and stellar work reviews. I don't partake of those things because it's what's best for my children. It's about them, not me. I'm 41 now and my two oldest are grown. I still have seven at home. The older I get and the more I look at the lives of women around me who have tried to "balance" work and motherhood, the more deeply grateful I continue to become that I have spent my adulthood investing myself in my family. All those other things pass away.

"If you bungle raising your children, I don't think whatever else you do well matters very much." -Jackie Kennedy

Personally, I think the paid mother substitution (day care), which is motivated by gain and not self sacrifice, is one of the fundamental problems in our society.

Yes, it's a sacrifice to mother, but doing it well is an elite achievement of which few are both capable and willing.
Kayo Tilner
11 months ago
Stacy,
What a brilliant, well-written and intelligent article. While I cannot whole heartily agree with all your points, but I do respect them all.

I'd like to add to the discussion, though, and I'd like to do so as a young, Christian woman. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak.

If education and a driven-spirit do not matter to a woman, if dreams of life outside of the home and even outside of motherhood do not matter to women, then why did you write:

"the sacrifices you make to raise your children"

What sacrifices are you speaking of, Stacy, if education and careers do not matter to womanhood. If all that matters is finding a good man (which, if we are realistic, is not as easy as you make it sound) and having children then there is NO sacrifice.

I believe you know that when a woman devotes her entire life to raising a home, then she does indeed give something away: the chance to be an independent person who focuses on a career or field of study that she loves.

I agree that the corporate boardroom or lab are not my personal dreams of success, but then again neither is staying home to raise a family. The though of my entire life revolving around a confined space, feeding, clothing, cooking, cleaning. Period. That frightens me.

I realized these debates are really senseless when taken to the extreme: the liberals all shout that you NEED to have a high-powered career to be happy. The conservatives all scream that you NEED to be a wife/mother to be happy. Why don't we be honest? Each woman is different, just as each man is different. Some women loves staying home to be mothers and have never wished to be a corporate lawyer. Then again, some women dream of being corporate lawyers and have no interest in raising a family.

I wish everyone would stop telling each other what they NEED to do in order to feel complete. I do what makes me happy: I went to university, studied two fields that I loved, then got a job -- not a "power" career, but a career at a non-profit.

And I love my work. I love coming in each day to make the world a better place by giving young people the tools to choose their own destiny. Empowerment is choice. It's not narrow, but wide open for many types of dreams.

That non-profit I work for? The Girl Scouts. Just locally (and I even live in a liberal state) our girls completed their Gold Award projects (the highest honor in Girl Scouting) which takes willpower and dedication and hard work. But what did the projects consist of? One Girl Scout worked with her church to redo their hymnals (she make large-print editions for seniors and created editions especially for the kid's camp). Another Catholic Girl Scout put on a stage play that discussed abortion (she was against it) and how life is too precious to take lightly.

The reality of Girl Scouts is just like life. It's versatile, complicated and cannot be summarized in vague terms. I wish you hadn't spoken so ill of them. The photo chosen for this article show the first Girl Scouts in khaki camping gear. Of course that's not "feminine." If you saw the photos for our Gold Award girls, they are wearing soft, flowing dresses, have their hair curled and their cheeks blushed -- but on top? They proudly display their achievements with a Girl Scout vest or sash.

I apologize for this ramble; just, we need to keep open minds and not buy into dirty media campaigns. Please don't hate the Girl Scouts, they have so much to offer young girls -- the ability to be empowered and make their own choices in life.
John
11 months ago
What an excellent article, thumbs up for such a clear and well presented perspective on what Girl Scouts are all about. I have a daughter and I am so glad I read your article, I will be looking for the American Heritage Girls local group.
" Come to think of it, yes, we will definitely be foregoing the green uniforms and sashes for something a little more mysterious and lacy - like chapel veils. [Did she just say that out loud?] Sure did. "
I LOVE IT!
Susan E Webb
11 months ago
Haven't bought girl scout cookies, ever! No matter how great the local "catholic" group was...I became aware of the national organization's agenda and could not support, in any way, that anti-Catholic, anti-traditional family, anti-authentic Christian femeninity, man-hating agenda. The majority of $ from each box goes to the national org....might as well just cut a check to planned parenthood and save the middleman some work. The American Heritage Girls didn't do for us because it focused too much on the purchasing of expensive fad items to participate. A truly authentic Catholic girls organization that uses a different saint each month to promote building of virtues is St. Therese's Little Flowers...excellent opportunity to get all that a traditional girl scout mom (60 years ago) would like for her girls steeped in total Catholic-Faith based curriculum. There is also a boys group, St. Joseph's squires, i think is what they are called.
C Alfred
11 months ago

As a mother, Catholic, and Girl Scout leader, I believe that Girl Scouts is an opportunity for girls to do things and learn things that in other circumstances they might not be able to. It's not just for girls to be leaders, such as in political office or in the sciences or math, but for grls to gain confidence in themselves. To learn to work in teams, to gain other important life skills, such as cooking, and outdoor skills, and just plain having fun. I think in Girl Scouts trying to reinvent themselves, some of the language they use may make people see them differently, but for those of us working with the girls it's not about those words---the words that get them funding. It's about seeing girls of different faiths and backgrounds work together, it's about seeing girls learn a new skill and the pride they have, it's about seeing girls problem solve when something doesn't work out the way they expected it to. It's about a girl growing up and learning who she is and being proud of that. As for lesbianism, abortion, and all that---that's not what we discuss in my troop, that has no place in a troop, and not what Girl Scouts is about. As part of leader training if the topics come up, girls are referred back to their families for such discussions.
Candace Mack
11 months ago
We are winding down our last year as Girl Scouts. I have finally come to realize all that this article has mentioned is true. We instead signed up for American Heritage Girls, which embraces faith and traditional femininity. It is an awesome organization and much more in line with our values. It only makes me sad that I feel betrayed by the organization that has been beloved to me for most of my life. It's almost like going through a divorce after being cheated on. We are going to Savannah in a couple of weeks to see where Girl Scouts began, as a last "good-bye" to the organization which has changed so much in the past 100 years since Juliette Low's day. What would Daisy think of all of this?
DR
11 months ago
Any man who doesn't stand by a woman as wise as Stacy is like the man who builds his house on sand! As a man I am very saddened by the constant misandry the news media has been procuring. Just today there was a big splash on Yahoo news how women are better than men at just about everything. It was totally one sided and quoted several "scientific" studies to back up their claims. The studies were flawed at best. They claim men don't care about their health and eat badly but women eat good. I'd like to know what age group they surveyed and what their marital status is. Over 80% of men are married so if women eat well so does the husband. I doubt they are each preparing their own lunches and dinners. Of coarse they never mention this information. I think the media is trying to discourage men because we typically vote conservative. Perhaps its time someone call the liberal "war on men." God bless you Stacy and thank you being a public sign than women still care about men! Once you get past all the roughness all a man really wants is to be loved by his wife and kids if any!

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