24 March 2010
WAGGGS Responds to Girl Scout Sex Brochure Story
Posted by admin under: policies .
Well, LauraB might be right according to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS). I just received a response from the WAGGGS Communications and Advocacy Director. The first point that struck me is that she said the seminar being held was sponsored by the Girl Scouts of the USA. This contradicts the statement made by the Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute (C-FAM) story saying the event was sponsored by WAGGGS. There was another panel sponsored by WAGGGS, but according to them the event in question was not that one. In the response, WAGGGS notes the talking points that C-FAM sent to me which I have not found on the GSUSA national web site, but now appears on the San Diego-Imperial County Council site in addition to the e-mail that was sent to C-FAM. I don’t know why the national organization has failed to respond to this story. Well, actually I know full well. They want it to go away. And they’re right. Most of these things do go away by themselves if ignored. We’ll see how that works as a strategy in the months ahead.
Here is the response from WAGGGs to the accusation of the brochure being given out.
Dear Joshua,
Thank you for your enquiry. The articles you refer to are factually incorrect.
On 3 March, one of our Member Organizations, the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA), held a Girls Only Workshop in conjunction with UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls, Girls Learn International and The Grail. This session was facilitated by adults and involved Girl Scouts from the states. It was designed to formulate a Girls’ Statement to present to the United Nations, drawing their attention to the plight of girls around the world. There was no material distributed at this session and no other organizations apart from those hosting it attended the event or were involved in its planning or facilitation.
The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts very public mission is to enable girls and young women to develop their fullest potential as responsible citizens of the world. We see the fruits of our, and our Member Organizations’, labour everyday. For example, at the CSW there were six young women representing WAGGGS. They ran a panel discussion on the importance of non-formal education, they spoke as keynote speakers at UNIFEM’s say no to violence against women’s event, they encouraged their country delegations to invest in girls programmes at the national level and they in general personified the ethos of Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting to serve their communities, in this case as the voice of the many girls and young women around the world who maybe don’t have as many opportunities as they do.
If you would like further clarification, Girl Scouts USA have also posted a statement on their website, which you can find here
Update: The CEO Blog for the Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania had a recent post which obliquely refers to this matter and reads in part…
•Our members know first-hand what materials we distribute to girls and what we stand for in terms of our actions, words and deeds.
•Every Girl Scout knows the Girl Scout Promise; and takes service to God and her country to heart.
•Our volunteers, our families, our donors, and community partners understand that the council spends 100% of our resources on empowering girls through our mission. We do not financially support other organizations.
- Somewhat Bogus Sex Brochure Story
- Girl Scouts Training and Information by San Gorgonio Council
- Girl Scouts Grill Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice
- WAGGGS Wants to Talk About Sex
- When Worlds Collide
One Comment so far...
LauraB Says:
25 March 2010 at 11:55 pm.
I also don’t see the statement on GSUSA’s website, but I can tell you that what is on that Council’s site is an excerpt from a letter sent to GSUSA staff and National Board Members about March 19. It also reads, in part, “Let’s be very clear: GSUSA did not provide girls with any materials from any third party at the Girls’ Only workshop conducted on March 1 at the United Nations. While we are happy to share the facts, our approach in addressing this issue is to refrain from fueling speculation about a situation that factually never happened.”
So you’re right, they’re trying to make it go away by just not acknowledging it, unless asked. GSUSA doesn’t really want to get in a fight about this ridiculousness. The letter also seems to indicate that they won’t make a big deal out of this until/unless it reaches main-stream media.
