Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
The decision of 75 Girl Scouts to march in the Inaugural Parade today in Washington DC has touched off a firestorm of hate on social media from the very people with whom it has been aligning itself on “politically correct” issues for the last decade.
Writing for TIME, Sylvia Acevedo, interim CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA, defended the organization’s decision to allow 75 girls to march in today’s parade. Acevedo says the girls have been planning for this event since September and should be allowed to participate as they have done throughout history for presidents of both parties.
She goes on to claim that the Girls Scouts is a “nonpartisan organization” that “takes no position on political matters” although this didn’t stop them from engaging in highly partisan activities such as marching in Gay Pride parades and partnering with Planned Parenthood. In fact, these activities have caused at least one diocese in the U.S. to toss the scouts out of their parishes. Even the pope spoke up during a 2015 audience, asking Scout leaders to respect God’s design for marriage and family.
Acevedo claims people are misinterpreting the Girl Scouts’ participation in the inauguration and are feeling “shocked and even betrayed . . . as if those actions were directed against them personally, rather than supporting girls eager to participate in a peaceful transition of power.”
What Acevedo is learning the hard way, this is how the “tolerant” crowd always reacts toward those who disagree with them – with venom.
Her explanations aren’t cutting it with the anti-Trump crowd who happens to be comprised of the same people with whom they’ve aligned themselves on so many social issues.
As the Daily Mail reports, a war has erupted on social media. Sarah Kendzior wrote on Twitter: “I’m the mother of a Girl Scout and I hope you reconsider you participation. Trump does not honor your values.”
Nicole Chung said: “As a lifelong Girl Scout and the co-leader of a troop, I’m extremely unhappy about this.”
Jessica Valenti commented: “Trump has sexualized young girls again and again. How can you defend sending children to the inauguration?”
Another Twitter user said: “I was a Girl Scout I am ashamed and dumbfounded that the Girl Scouts are participating in this inauguration for a misogynist.”
This latest dust-up concerning the Girl Scouts merely proves why this organization has been floundering in recent years. Instead of standing firm in its foundational beliefs to “serve God and country” it has given way to a politically correct culture that has not only stripped them of their former dignity but now appears to be turning on them.
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