Girl Scouts reap benefits after donor refuses to support transgender girls
- Published
Girl scouts with President Obama at the very first White House Campout on 30 June
The Girl Scouts of Western Washington returned a $100,000 (£64,000) donation after the donor said transgender girls couldn't benefit. In response, the organization's leaders launched an online fundraiser that far outpaced the original contribution.
When Girl Scouts of Western Washington CEO Megan Ferland received $100,000 from a donor to help send scouts to summer camp, she was thrilled. Several weeks later, however, the same donor sent a letter insisting that none of the funds benefit transgender girls. The national Girl Scouts office had recently released a statement welcoming transgender girls, external, saying that, "if a girl is recognized by her family, school and community as a girl and lives culturally as a girl, Girl Scouts is an organization that can serve her in a setting that is both emotionally and physically safe."
After Ferland read the donor's letter, she decided to return the money immediately.
"It was not a long thought process," she says.
Unfortunately, the loss of the financial aid meant roughly 200 girls would miss out on the chance to go to camp. So Ferland launched the "Girl Scouts is #ForEVERYGirl, external" campaign on June 29, an Indiegogo fundraiser with accompanying YouTube video. Within 24 hours the group had recouped the $100,000. The money has continued to pour in ever since, thus far almost tripling the original donation.
Thousands have tweeted using the hashtag in support of the group.
"Cheering Girl Scouts who returned $100K donation that discriminated against transgender kids," wrote actress Mia Farrow on Twitter, external.
"Out and proud Girl Scout forever!" reads another tweet, external. "Boy Scouts lesson here. #inclusion"
"The @girlscouts exemplify Smart Girls standing with + #ForEVERYGirl! Congrats on surpassing your goal, @GirlScoutsWW," tweeted Amy Poehler's Smart Girls, external.
The money will benefit all girls in the Western Washington area who need financial assistance to attend camp. The group says 2,000 girls each year request assistance.
Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality says that even though the funds aren't being directed specifically to trans issues, the scouts have proven themselves as important allies.
"This girl scout council has shown itself to be an institution that trans people can trust to do good trans work," she says. "I'm happy as a Brownie, external for them to be having increased funding for their programming."
Ferland says that there are transgender girls in troops in Western Washington, a fact she says she knows only because the parents chose to share the information.
"We're just so unbelievably grateful and we want people to understand that, and to know that there are more girls to serve," she says. "So keep going!"
Blog by Jessica Lussenhop, external
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