You won’t be seeing Girl Scout troops setting up booths outside of grocery stores until Feb. 25, but in the meantime, you can start pre-ordering America’s favorite fundraiser dessert products. That’s right: It’s Girl Scout cookie season.
There’s a twist this year, though: An organization called Honest Girl Scouts is calling for a boycott of the cookies in protest against the fact that transgender girls are allowed to join Girl Scout troops. A 14-year-old Girl Scout with impeccable diction posted this video explaining the boycott, with text flashing on the screen including “Transgender Girl Scout = boy who wants to be a girl” and “Is it safe to hide boys in Girl Scouts?”
Mary Erskine, marketing and communications director for Girl Scouts of Eastern South Carolina, had this to say in an e-mail response to the boycott:
The official statement from our national organization and local council is that as a beloved American institution, the Girl Scout cookie program is a natural target for those seeking to draw attention to themselves or their cause. It’s important for everyone to know that nearly 100 percent of the proceeds from these sales stay in the local market and are used to fund programs for girls.
Our official position on transgender Girl Scouts is one of inclusion. Transgender girls are welcome in Girl Scouts. Any person who identifies themselves as a girl, is age 5-17, who makes the Girl Scout Promise and accepts the Girl Scout Law and pays the annual membership dues is eligible to be a member.
The cookie lineup this year includes Caramel deLites, Peanut Butter Sandwich, Peanut Butter Patty, Shortbread, Lemonades, Thanks-A-Lots, Shout Outs, and the the top-selling Thin Mints. All pre-orders have to be done through a troop or an individual Girl Scout. If you don’t know any, give the regional Girl Scouts office a call at (843) 626-5190.
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