By now I’m sure you’ve heard that the Boy Scouts of America will admit girls into the Cub Scouts starting next year and establish a new program for older girls that enables them to aspire to the coveted Eagle Scout rank.
A birdbrained move, to be sure.
First off, I greatly admire both the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts, especially the hundreds of thousands of unheralded volunteers who have helped mold strong, confident men and women for 107 years. But this change is not about empowerment. It reeks of a panicked decision fueled by falling membership, financial problems and political correctness run amuck.
Boy Scouts should be for boys. Girl Scouts should be for girls. Period. Do girls still have to join the “boys club” to succeed and thrive? Doesn’t it make more sense that if an organization lacks a program that youngsters and parents want — such as the Eagle rank — that the organization should fill that need?
My two sisters, both successful in all aspects of their lives, benefited greatly from Brownies and Girl Scouts. They learned about citizenship, community service and life skills. They hiked and swam, embraced the arts and learned what to do in emergency situations. They were actually good at these things.
Truth be told, I was a horrible Scout. I was an embarrassment to scouting. Eagle Scout? A Pigeon Scout designation was beyond my capabilities.
But, encouraged by my dad, an otherwise lovely man, to join Troop 25 in Beverly Farms with my buddies, I dutifully showed up once a week at St. John’s Church Hall where Scoutmasters Robert Chapman, Dick Martell and John Clark and their junior leaders tried in vain to whip me into shape.
Heck, I wore penny loafers until 11th grade, because I couldn’t tie my shoes, let alone master a bowline or clove hitch.
Camping wasn’t a strong suit either. Every summer, during the week of the Major League All-Star baseball game, my folks would drop me off at Camp Norshoco in Alfred, Maine. Skeet shooting and archery were fun. I loved to hike and explore. The Monkey Bridge crossing was too intimidating. Unable to swim, I even braved a canoe trip to a small island across Bunganut Pond, where we would pitch tents and sleep under the stars. I lived in fear that I’d fall out of the canoe, drown and the headline in the Times would announce “Beverly’s Bill Brotherton bungles BSA’s’ Bunganut Pond Peregrination.”
Every July I would enjoy my time doing boy things with other boys: no girls allowed. Boy Scouts offered a safe haven from the distraction of girls, a place to foster brotherhood. Girls deserve the same opportunity; a safe space to learn and lead.
Despite my ineptness, all these years later I still remember the Scout Oath: “On my honor, I will do my best: To help the Girl Scouts get undressed.” Wait, something’s amiss there. But the values of scouting — trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent — will always be relevant and important for all young men and young women. Bet it was my irreverence that stopped me from earning a single merit badge …
I can certainly see how kids and especially busy parents, already overextended with sports and after-school activities, would welcome the Boy Scouts’ change. After all, scouting in most parts of the world is already coed and the BSA coed Venturing and Sea Scouting programs here are successful.
Cub Scout dens — the smallest unit — will be either all-boys or all-girls. The larger Cub Scout packs will have the option to remain single gender or welcome both genders. The program for older girls is expected to start in 2019 and will enable girls to earn the Eagle Scout rank. There would continue to be a ban on mixed-gender overnight outings for scouts ages 11 to 14.
January’s announcement that transgender boys could join scouting, and the 2013 end to the ban on gay members didn’t bother me a bit.
This goes too far.
Before my first Boy Scouts meeting in 1965, my dad played Tom Lehrer’s satirical “Be Prepared” for his tenderfoot son:
“Be prepared! That’s the Boy Scouts’ marching song,
Be prepared! As through life you march along.
Be prepared to hold your liquor pretty well,
Don’t write naughty words on walls if you can’t spell.
Be prepared! And be careful not to do
Your good deeds when there’s no one watching you.
If you’re looking for adventure of a
new and different kind,
And you come across a Girl Scout who is
similarly inclined,
Don’t be nervous, don’t be flustered, don’t be scared.
Be prepared!”
America should “Be Prepared” to reject this cockamamie plan.
