Girl Scouts Allows 7-Year-Old Boy to Join

[Kyriakos]

Without starting a huge debate I will just say that I think the girl scouts should be for girls and boy scouts should be for boys.

If they are going to start mixing the genders then they should just call it "Scouts" and let the kids choose what activities they want to participate in, like mentioned previously.

[xbbx]

now, we're just one step away from dropping the gender part from the name and just say it's scouts.

I was in scouts of Canada, i had friends join girl guides.. whats the difference between the two? The only thing I remembered was girl guides did more arts and crafts things while scouts did "masculine" things like buidling a bridge from wood?

[nadiabreckon]

They did do the right thing and accepted the child into the troop, or whatever it's called these days...

Does this mean girls will now be accepted into Beavers, or Cubs, or any other "boy" clubs around? If boys are allowed into girl activities, I think it's only fair to have the opposite happen...IMHO...

[Chantel]

As far as I can tell, all scouts/beavers/cubs programs are open to both genders.

[caroman]

Scouts Canada and Girl Scouts of the U.S.A are similar programs with many different aspects. Remember this is a case in the U.S. so we can't compare Scouts Canada with is a boy/girl organization.
The real story here is of a child with gender dysphoria. Who are we to judge.

[cmontario]

when our son was in the cubs they had girls also now he's in the scouts and they have about 4 girls

[dch]

Penis, vagina, both or neither this should never affect the childs chances in participating in such a thing.

I think the program really should be for both sexes - either way you look at it it's a great opportunity for young children to learn new things that they may even use later in life. My little girl plays with trucks and tools - if I had a little boy who played with dolls etc it wouldn't bother me one bit. Children shouldn't have to adhere to societys standards of what is "right & wrong".

[save_girl]

While this little boy may identify as a girl, the quotes from the mother don't indicate that - she says he likes 'girl stuff'. Playing with dolls and wearing dresses doesn't automatically make a boy not a boy. If girls can wear pants and play in tree forts and like the colour blue and still be girls... boys should have the same privilege of wearing dresses and playing with dolls and liking pink and still being boys.

I'm not meaning to say that he doesn't have gender identity issues, I'm just saying based on the quotes relating specifically to the boy in this article, that is jumping to conclusions.

And I hope we aren't pushing kids into gender issues just because of their likes and dislikes not fitting into the girl stuff/boy stuff categories that society arbitrarily defined.

[peachblush]

either way, if it's a case of gender identity issues or simply a boy who enjoys doing more "girly" things (i hate these stereotypes) he should be able to join where he would enjoy doing the activities. in this day & age the whole "boy"/"girl" thing should be dropped & it just be scouts/guides etc. & have it open to anyone who is interested.

[Kalmel]

While this little boy may identify as a girl, the quotes from the mother don't indicate that - she says he likes 'girl stuff'. Playing with dolls and wearing dresses doesn't automatically make a boy not a boy. If girls can wear pants and play in tree forts and like the colour blue and still be girls... boys should have the same privilege of wearing dresses and playing with dolls and liking pink and still being boys.

I'm not meaning to say that he doesn't have gender identity issues, I'm just saying based on the quotes relating specifically to the boy in this article, that is jumping to conclusions.

And I hope we aren't pushing kids into gender issues just because of their likes and dislikes not fitting into the girl stuff/boy stuff categories that society arbitrarily defined.

That's exactly what i was going to say... people are jumping to a conclusion way to fast.

The mother said he liked playing with dolls and wearing dresses..one might assume but still. My brother used to play with my dolls also ..so? doesnt mean i wanted him in the jeannettes! that's a name for the girls scout i used too belong too. I didnt love him any less..just didnt want him with my girly friends and talking about boys and the guy i was gonna marry when i was 8 ...

[Brandy Hunter]

That's exactly what i was going to say... people are jumping to a conclusion way to fast.

The mother said he liked playing with dolls and wearing dresses..one might assume but still. My brother used to play with my dolls also ..so? doesnt mean i wanted him in the jeannettes! that's a name for the girls scout i used too belong too. I didnt love him any less..just didnt want him with my girly friends and talking about boys and the guy i was gonna marry when i was 8 ...

^ what I meant by girl time..

[Kalmel]

^ what I meant by girl time..

I remember back then, being with my girlfriends was so awsome! We talked about weddings and what kind of house we would all have and the guys we love to hate!. Being with only girls at times is so much different than being with boys..it's a special treat that only girls understand..with exceptions of coarse. I remember when i was young and going to school and being teased by boys that i couldnt wait to go to the jeannettes and not having to deal with those little monsters.. even if it was only 2 hours.. was the best 2 hours in my whole darn week

[Sally888]

when our son was in the cubs they had girls also now he's in the scouts and they have about 4 girls

Ya, thats what I was trying to say. Girls have been joining Scouts for over 15 years, so it shouldn't of been a big deal for the boy to join girl guides. Its not like girls just started joining scouts yesterday, its been going on for years.

As for the boys true "identity" that doesn't even matter to me.

[Castle]

Your kidding me right? How can you judge people YOU DO NOT KNOW!

I truly believe that parents are free to parent however they want to. I'm a libertarian. However, that doesn't mean that I, or anyone else can't give their honest opinion on any given subject.

The boy is 7. My issue isn't there being an organization that accepts both boys and girls, my issue is that bringing such transformational gender issues into a child's life when they are 7 years old, seems reprehensible to me.

My son wanted to play with a knife. He isn't old enough to understand or handle that kind of responsibility yet, so I said no. When he's old enough to be able to fully understand and handle that responsibility, I will let him, but I will teach and explain things to him first.

[Darth Penguin]

That's exactly what i was going to say... people are jumping to a conclusion way to fast.

The mother said he liked playing with dolls and wearing dresses..one might assume but still. My brother used to play with my dolls also ..so? doesnt mean i wanted him in the jeannettes! that's a name for the girls scout i used too belong too. I didnt love him any less..just didnt want him with my girly friends and talking about boys and the guy i was gonna marry when i was 8 ...

Now, talking about marriage even in the abstract at 8 squicked me out. Even discussing who the "hottest" pop-star was...David Cassidy or Donny Osmond?* wasn't for me at that age. hanging around with boys would have been so much better.

* it was Alice Cooper BTW.