Additional Coverage:
- Pete Hegseth says Scouts should be ‘boys only’ as he begrudgingly strikes deal for girls (themirror.com)
Scouting America Undergoes Major Policy Shift to Retain Military Ties
In a significant development, Scouting America, formerly known as the Boy Scouts, has agreed to a new set of rules from the Pentagon to maintain its long-standing relationship with the U.S. military. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced the changes on Friday, emphasizing a return to traditional values for the youth organization.
Under the new agreement, Scouting America will implement several key concessions. This includes the elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and a policy shift to limit participation based on biological sex at birth. Despite these changes, the organization will retain its name, and girls will continue to be allowed to join.
Secretary Hegseth stated that the Department of Defense will scrutinize Scouting America’s adherence to these new policies for a six-month period. Following this review, officials will “vigorously review progress and decide whether or not to continue our support.”
The new directives directly address the organization’s membership policies, particularly concerning transgender children. Hegseth explicitly stated that Scouting America “modify its policy to make clear that membership will be based solely on biological sex at birth and not gender identity.” He further criticized the organization for having “welcomed the destructive myth of gender fluidity and transgenderism to infiltrate their membership.”
According to Hegseth, all applications will now feature only two sex designations, male and female, which must align with the applicant’s birth certificate. Additionally, he emphasized that “biological boys and girls will not be allowed to occupy or share intimate spaces together – toilets, showers, tents, anywhere like that.”
In a statement to The Washington Post, Scouting America asserted that its members have always joined according to their biological gender and that no modification was necessary on that particular issue. The organization also stated, “Scouting has accepted transgender youth since 2017 and will continue to work with families to ensure transgender youth feel welcome in Scouting.” They also highlighted their “extensive safeguarding policies and procedures in place to ensure the safety and comfort of youth members in all situations.”
This move comes after previous threats from Hegseth to withdraw all military support from Scouting America, including removing Scout troops from military bases, if the organization did not align its policies with the Trump administration’s views.
In a social media post, Hegseth expressed his personal sentiment, writing, “Ideally, I believe the Boy Scouts should go back to being the Boy Scouts, as originally founded, a group that develops boys into men. Maybe someday.”