Boy Scouts of America announced May 7 it will change its name to Scouting America on Feb. 8, 115 years after BSA was established.
The organization began to to allow girls to join Cub Scouts in 2018 and Boy Scouts as a whole 2019. Since then, more than 6,000 girls have reached the rank of Eagle Scout.
“I feel like having an organization called ‘Boy Scouts’ that has a significant number of girls involved is a bad idea,” senior Eagle Scout Trajan Falk said. “I still call it Boy Scouts, but Scouts is really a much more fitting name considering the recent changes.”
Opponents to the change believe it is detrimental to the organization as a whole and defeats the original purpose.
“Boy Scouts have been around for over 100 years,” junior Samuel Wirtjes said. “In my opinion, it’s just erasing the history of the organization and making it fit other people’s narrative.”
However, senior Eagle Scout Pierce Loveless said the name change will have a positive impact.
“The integration of girls into Boy Scouts has been beneficial,” Loveless said. “It promotes inclusivity, allowing young girls to access the same opportunities for personal growth, leadership and outdoor skills that were traditionally reserved for boys.”
Some scouts believe that, although the inclusion of girls in scouts was a relatively good step forward to inclusivity, the name “Boy Scouts” should not have been replaced.
“I know that this is kind of a controversial topic, but I honestly don’t really think the name change was necessary,” senior Eagle Scout Reese Anderson said. “I believe that anyone who wants to be involved in scouting, then they should be allowed to do so, but the name has such a history and reputation behind it that I don’t think it really needed replacement.”
Comments on social media claim the organization has been “destroyed by wokeness”, but according to Roger A. Krone, chief executive officer and president of Scouting America, that is not the case
“Though our name will be new, our mission remains unchanged,” Krone told abcnews.go.com. “We are still committed to teaching young people to be prepared for life.”
Scouts, including Loveless, believe the change will help break down stereotypes and will allow girls to excel in traditionally male-dominated activities
“It enriches the scouting experience by diversifying perspectives and fostering teamwork among all members,” Loveless said. “Overall this integration promotes a more inclusive and equitable scouting community.”
