boy scouts

Can ‘Scouting America’ Be Trusted?

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced last week a negotiated agreement with “Scouting America” — the organization once known as the “Boy Scouts of America.” 

In a video sharing the development, Secretary Hegseth pulled no punches in describing just how far the legendary non-profit has fallen over the years. Over the last few decades, the Boy Scouts have abandoned their Judeo-Christian roots.

“The focus on God as the ruler of the universe was watered down to include openness to humanism and earth-centered pagan religions,” said the secretary.

“Scouting became an organization that no longer supported and celebrated boys. They even welcomed the destructive myth of gender fluidity and transgenderism to infiltrate their membership. Along the way, standards were lowered and merit destroyed in favor of an insidious, radical, woke ideology that is anti-America and anti-American.”

According to Secretary Hegseth, the Scouts have agreed to pull back from their increasingly woke agenda. 

But is it too little, too late? 

In a video posted online, Secretary Hegseth identified five main concessions from the once storied group.

1. “Scouting America has agreed to comply immediately with the provisions of Executive Order 14173. This includes reviewing and replacing politicized, divisive, and discriminatory language throughout the organization, programs, and all publications. No more DEI. Zero. 

2. “The ‘Citizen in Society Merit Badge’ that encouraged Scouts to explore diversity, equity, inclusion, and identity … That badge has been discontinued.

3. “Scouting America will modify its policy to make clear that membership will be based solely on biological sex at birth and not gender identity. That means that the application, any application, will have only two sex designations, male and female. The application must match the applicant’s birth certificate.

The secretary noted, “Scouting will also make clear that biological boys and girls will not be allowed to occupy or share intimate spaces together. Toilets, showers, tents, anywhere like that.”

4. “Scouting America will honor those who serve by waiving the registration fees for children of active duty, guard, and reserve families.

5. “In partnership with the War Department, Scouting America will introduce a new military service merit badge.”

As an indication of just how tenuous and fragile the agreement is, Roger Krone, Scouting America’s president and CEO, immediately pushed back over the weekend, appearing to contradict the spirit of the agreement.

“We have transgender people in our program, and we’ll have transgender people in our program, going forward,” he told the Associated Press.

Clearly anticipating the tension, Secretary Hegseth warned the agreement “is contingent on them making substantial progress toward reaching these and many other positive changes in the next six months.” 

He then added, “At that time, we’ll vigorously review progress and decide whether or not to continue our support. The onus is squarely on Scouting America to deliver. If we’re unsatisfied with Scouting America’s progress toward and commitment to the agreed upon reforms, we will find them in violation of the President’s executive order and cease our support.”

At the conclusion of his address, Secretary Hegseth highlighted both Trail Life USA and AWANA — two Christian non-profit groups that parents can trust to properly and help positively disciple their young children.

Focus on the Family enthusiastically and wholeheartedly endorses both of these fine organizations, as well as American Heritage Girls — a Christian scouting group for young women. We appreciate Secretary Hegseth’s good faith efforts with Scouting America, especially his wisdom and embracing of a “trust but verify” posture going forward.

‘Young Men Need Your Help’ — Focus on the Family and Trail Life USA Offer Free Resource Following Boy Scout’s ‘Inclusive’ Rebrand

Focus on the Family and Trail Life USA, a church-based, Christ-centered alternative to the Boy Scouts, are partnering up to bring families a free resource breaking down the cultural challenges facing young men.

“By just about every measure of social well-being, young males are in crisis,” the organizations wrote in a joint statement, referring to statistics showing young men are:

  • Significantly less likely to enroll in or graduate from college than women.
  • Four-times more likely to commit suicide than women.
  • Far more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol than women.

Young men’s social interaction has steadily decreased over three decades. Nearly half of surveyed teen males say they’ve never dated. Most report having three friends, half of what their peers reported three decades ago.

Male participation in the work force has also decreased. In 2022, economist Nicholas Eberstadt conducted a post-pandemic follow-up to his book Men Without Work, finding:

In terms of work rates for the United States today for guys, we’re at about a 1937 level, even though we’ve got over 10 million unfilled jobs in the country.
The problem is that over the past half century in the United States, the fastest growing group of guys has been workforce dropouts — prime age men neither working nor looking for work.

It’s a bleak picture — but parents are not powerless. In “Young Men Need Your Help,” Dr. Anthony Bradley, a research fellow at The Acton Institute specializing in fatherhood, youth and family, and the crisis amongst men and boys, equips parents to combat the obstacles arrayed against their sons.

The seven-part video series is particularly poignant given the Boy Scouts of America became “Scouting America” over the weekend — the logical next step in a series of moves distancing the organization from its Christian roots.

“This is about more than a name chance,” Trail Life USA wrote on Facebook. “It reflects a broader cultural shift that leaves boys unguided, ungrounded and uninspired. It denies their uniqueness and fails to provide the clarity and mentorship they need on their journey to manhood.”

And manhood, writes social research analyst Glenn T. Stanton, is not something men are born with. It must be carefully and intentionally shaped.

A boy’s transition into manhood is not…predetermined. It must be created with significant intentionality. In other words, manhood is a behavior that must be taught, and an identity that must be bestowed by a boy’s family and the larger community of men — his parents, extended family and surrounding community.

Like Focus on the Family, Trail Life USA believes — and social science proves — young boys benefit from learning and developing in single-sex spaces. Scouting America deprived boys of this opportunity by making its organization co-ed.

“The reality is that males and females are fundamentally different in many ways — physically, emotionally, and in their relationships,” Trail Life wrote on Facebook, continuing:

Pretending otherwise in the name of progress or permissiveness might be culturally acceptable, but it does both sexes a disservice. Boys and girls deserve unique programs created with their specific needs in mind.”

Trail Life endeavors to fill the gap Scouting America leaves behind, offering Boy Scout refugees boys-only opportunities to bond with their families, learn from the example of godly men, and develop a Christ-like character.

To access Dr. Bradley’s videos, and learn more about the crisis facing young men, check out the resources below.

Additional Articles and Resources

To access Dr. Bradley’s video series, click here.

To learn more about Trail Life USA, click here.

For a Christian alternative to the girl scouts, read about American Heritage Girls.

For a young women’s perspective on making boy scouts co-ed, read Girls Don’t Need to Be in the Boy Scouts

For more on the crisis facing young men, read the articles below:

The Unique Matter of Manhood

The War on Masculinity is Toxic: Exclusive Interview with Prof. Nancy Pearcy

Superman and a Culture in Need of Masculinity

Mike Rowe Unveils Cataclysmic Decline in Men’s Workforce Participation