Boy Scouts Destroyed Itself By Accepting Girls

The Boy Scouts of America announced Tuesday that it will be rolling out a new name: Scouting America. The change was made in the name of making girls feel included. “This will be a simple but very important evolution as we seek to ensure that everyone feels welcome in Scouting,” said the organization’s CEO in announcing the change. “We are an organization for all. It’s time our name reflects that,” he said.

Back in 2019, the Boy Scouts announced that it would accept girls into its programs and would change the name of its flagship program to Scouts BSA to reflect that change. Ever since, the organization has been in total freefall.

In 2018, the last year that only boys were allowed in Boy Scouts, the organization counted over 2 million boys among its members. Immediately upon the rollout of the co-ed policy, membership plunged, falling to 1,123,651 in 2020. The organization claimed that the pandemic was primarily responsible and that membership would quickly recover. That was not to be. The organization counted 1,042,000 members at the end of 2022 and now says membership hovers just over 1 million.

Boy Scouts of America says that it currently counts 176,234 girls among its members, meaning that the organization sacrificed half its membership in the name of embracing wokeness and welcoming a group that now constitutes less than 10 percent of its 2018 membership totals.

The primary appeal of Boy Scouts had been that it was a dedicated place for boys to do activities specifically geared toward their interests — with only other boys. It was one of the few places boys had to themselves. Boys were given a structured, adventurous environment to camp, hike, learn survival skills, and engage in other outdoor activities with men to lead them. This male-only setting fostered self-reliance and responsibility in a manner specific to boys.

In 2010, when Boy Scouts celebrated its 100th anniversary, 17-year-old Eagle Scout Trevor Wentling described the organization in this way: “Boy Scouts is supposed to teach character and teach a boy how to become a man. Not all boys get the most out of [B]oy [S]couts and understand every single aspect that it teaches, but myself, I’ve learned so much about leadership and I’ve changed so much due to Boy Scouts.”

With Boy Scouts of America’s rejection of the distinct paths to manhood and womanhood, it has lost this mission. It has now embraced a desexed, generalized aim to “prepare young people for lives of impact and purpose.” Attention to the specific developmental trajectory of boys that was fundamental to the organization’s purpose has been lost.

While Boy Scouts of America’s disavowal of its central mission and removal of its central attraction (a boys-only environment) have been the main reasons for its utter collapse, its embrace of wokeness has also contributed to its decline. The organization centers its embrace of “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” For example, the first requirement a scout must complete in order to earn the Boy Scouts’ “Citizenship in Society” badge is that he or she must research the terms “identity,” “diversity,” “equity,” “equality,” and “inclusion.” The organization has a chief diversity officer who is also a vice president, Lisa Schuchart, as well as a DEI manager, Xaviera Henderson. In 2017, ahead of its decision to admit girls, the Boy Scouts allowed girls who identify as boys to join the organization. The organization has also faced scandal and bankruptcy owing to allegations of sexual abuse.

The Boy Scouts’ embrace of wokeness has alienated the religious groups that once provided a large portion of the organization’s membership. The organization was hit particularly hard when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that it would break off their relationship; Mormons had previously constituted nearly half a million of the Boy Scouts’ members. As the Boy Scouts have declined, Christian-specific scouting groups have grown in number. For example, Trail Life USA, which only includes boys and describes itself as “Christ-Centered,” has experienced an explosion in membership.

The Boy Scouts have come a long way from a group for boys to go camping with their dads and learn how to build fires and tie knots. Last year, when the Washington Post dispatched Anne Branigin to cover the organization’s National Jamboree, she reported: “The third day of the Jamboree featured a Muslim religious service; an LGBTQ+ affinity tent offered Scouts a safe and supportive space; and disabled scoutmasters led activities promoting mental health, diversity and inclusivity. A bronze statue was dedicated to the first class of female Eagle Scouts, and a little more than 1 in 5 Scouts at the Jamboree were girls.”

Left abandoned: America’s boys.

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