Guiding Principles
I never thought while I was filling out the dozens of forms tonight that Brownie registration would turn into a lesson on equal rights. But you seize your teachable moments when they come, and Sabrina asking why she was enrolled in Guiding and not Scouts was nothing if not a teachable moment.
I thought long and hard before I decided to sign my daughter up for Sparks three years ago. First off, I had reservations about signing her up for any sort of structured group activity like this; it’s just really not who I am. Once I made the decision, I could have gone with Beavers; it certainly would have made sense since Emmett was a Beaver that year. But for me, and therefore Bree, the Boy Scouts were never really an option.
Part of it was the co-ed aspect. I agree with the Guiding philopsphy that girls need a place where they can be encouraged to shine. I’m not ready to send the Diva to an all girls school, but an all girls club? I think that’s a great idea. It might not be important to her self esteem now, but I’m hoping that in her pre-teen and teen years Guiding gives my daughter a place that encourages her to be a strong, positive woman, and to take that confidence out into the co-ed world.
That was only a part of the equation for me, though. And not even the deal breaker. The deal breaker was the different attitudes the Scouts and Guides have towards diversity and equality. I’m not comfortable with the Boy Scouts’ approach to “values based education.” While I respect the fact that the Boy Scouts and their supporters believe that they are acting in the very best interests of their children and society at large, when a group actively declares that members who, for whatever reason, are unwilling to conform to a specific, narrow view of the world are unwelcome, what they are doing is preaching exclusion and intolerance. And those are values I do not want my daughter internalizing.
So, on our walk home Sabrina and I talked about how people are different. They believe different things about the universe, they love different people, and they are all entitled to a place in this world regardless of their differences. I think that in light of Sabrina’s recent difficulties at school, this was a particularly timely conversation to have. As Sabrina put it, “everybody should be allowed to play. That’s why I’m in Guides.”