A Girl Scout Troop in Anderson Township, just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, has decided to make gun control the leading issue for their group.
The girls are using funds from annual cookie sales to go to Washington, D.C. to meet with Ohio Senators Sherrod Brown (D) and Rob Portman (R) about the issue of gun control.
"We're going to ask him why he voted the way he did. And we are going to talk to him about having tougher background checks and raising the age from 18 to 21," Claire Wagner told WLWT-TV.
Changing the Girl Scout Meaning
When I was in elementary school I was part of a Girl Scout Troop, along with several of my friends. We used the time to do arts and crafts, volunteer in our community and promote meaningful relationships with
To this day, I still remember the Girl Scout oath:
On my honor, I will try:
To serve God and my country,
To help people at all times
And to live by the Girl Scout Law.
The Girl Scout Law says:
I will do my best to be
honest and fair,
friendly and helpful,
considerate and caring,
courageous and strong, and
responsible for what I say and do,
and to
respect myself and others,
respect authority,
use resources wisely,
make the world a better place, and
be a sister to every Girl Scout.
What happened to encouraging young girls to learn how to be independent and do things like sewing, arts and crafts and even community-related events? What happened to encouraging young girls to build deeper relationships with people their age?
When I was in Girl Scouts, our focus was on learning how to acquire new skills and appreciate other cultures. We participated in Christmas parades, sold cookies at the grocery store and learned things like First Aid, how to care for pets and how to be philanthrophic.
I can honestly say that in elementary school I had no idea about guns. I knew my dad, who was in law enforcement at the time, owned firearms for his job. I knew not to touch them and that if I ever saw one laying around, to find an adult and let them know right away.
When I was in Girl Scouts, my focus, and the focus of my troop, was not on being twelve-year-old political activists. Our focus was on learning how to be upstanding citizens who could make a positive contribution to society. You can't honestly tell me that these girls, who are going to Washington, D.C. to lobby their Senators, honestly know a thing or two about guns.
Elementary school-aged kids do not have the mental capacity to fully grasp the Second Amendment, how a firearm functions and what different gun control laws in place. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule. But considering most adults have a hard time comprehending gun laws and the difference between semi-automatic and full automatic rifles, it's safe to assume these elementary school girls don't know the difference.
These troop leaders (moms) should really be ashamed of themselves. They're using their kids as political pawns to push for their own personal political agenda. If they feel strongly about gun control and gun reform then they should be the only ones going to Washington, D.C. to meet with their local legislators.
There's nothing wrong with teaching kids the civic process and explaining to them the different branches of government, how they function and how the average citizen can get involved. Pushing them to pick such a divisive topic to pursue, especially at such a young age, is not only dangerous but it's down right wrong.
