Co-ed scouting beneficial to children’s life development

Recently, the Boy Scouts of America, or BSA, made an announcement that they will be allowing girls to join their programs. Between this and the change in the summer of 2015 lifting the ban on openly gay scout leaders, the BSA has been getting more progressive. However, it is still outdated. Boy Scouts is unnecessary and damaging to developing boys, as is the Girl Scouts of America. These organizations encourage gender separation during childhood which leads to discrimination, misogyny and the promotion of rape culture. Being is any scouting program, boy, girl or coed, doesn’t guarantee good morals for life, but mixing may allow young boys and girls alike to have a clearer idea of how to deal with the opposite sex.

Firstly, the opportunities Girl Scouts offers don’t even compare to what Boy Scouts does. Boy Scouts get to camp, hike and do generally adventurous activities. Girl Scouts, on the other hand, do crafts, sell cookies and the most exotic place they “camp” is the shark tunnel at the aquarium. Boy Scouts earn merit badges like Automotive Maintenance, Fly Fishing, Rifle Shooting and Welding, all very masculine hobbies. Girl Scout badges promote different values; girls are able to earn Babysitting, Room Makeover, Social Butterfly, Dinner Party and Flowers. Even from a young age, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America promotes gender roles and encourages children to only do activities deemed appropriate for their gender.

When boys grow up without having sufficient interactions with girls, they are more likely to commit an act of sexual harassment in the future. 18 out of every 100 Boy Scouts goes on to be a Troop or Pack Leader. These leaders have been found to commit some acts that are not as honorable as the BSA wishes all Boy Scouts to be. There are 1,900 files that were uncovered by Los Angeles Times reporters, locked away by the BSA describing 3,100 cases of sexual abuse within the scouting organization. Case documents and court records are available from the year 1949 through 2005 all across the US. While most of the adults involved in these incidents were

expelled from the organization, many cases were disregarded until there was irrefutable evidence, such was the case of Troop Leader James Schmidt and many others who sexually abused boys in the 70s and 80s. The Idaho-based troops, which were sponsored by the Mormon church, covered up dozens of sexual abuse cases, sometimes even dismissing leaders who reported the cases.

Of course, the Girl Scouts of America aren’t without fault. While the organization puts on a mask saying they want to help girls grow up to be strong and independent, they have a hard time living up to those promises. Sure, it teaches girls how to grow in business and marketing, but any former Girl Scout will say that once a girl turns about 12, she has to sell with one of the younger girls because it’s really a cute face that draws buyers. In fact, Girl Scouts’ seemingly feminist agenda doesn’t even begin to show until the Brownie level at grades two and three. Girl Scout meetings are rarely truly about bettering oneself or the community; meetings are rife with crafts and ice breaker games.

It is for all of these reasons America desperately needs a co-ed scouting organization. Such a thing does exist already, but it is not as beneficial as it could be. Venturing is a co-ed program run through the BSA for teenagers. It is basically Boy Scouts for everyone; there’s rock climbing, camping and many other outings the groups go on. However, one can only become a Venture Scout when they finish the 8th grade. This is too late for people to truly learn how to behave around each other. Many Venture Scouts were Boy or Girl Scouts and a handful of them most likely went to an all-girls or all-boys school prior to joining Venturing. When this is the case, those young people haven’t adapted to those different from them.

Gender mixing should be an integral part of a child’s development. Those who oppose this will claim there is a sort of comradery that comes with being a Boy Scout or Girl Scout. That

doesn’t matter. Children can find comradery with their own gender on the playground. There is no other reason for there to be separate scouting organizations for boys and girls. Letting girls join the BSA won’t help either. They’ll feel left out and as though they don’t belong. The only way to truly accomplish a more equal and accepting next generation is for the scouts to band together as one. After all, they want the same things: to help others, to serve God and their country and to live by the Scout law.