First, hat tip to The Good Reverend.
For those who don’t know, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts are essentially the same thing. The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts recognizes at most one guiding organization per country, although some have several organizations that come together as one governing federation. With that bit of background, here’s the news:
The Guides in Europe, according to Times Online, want to earn some new badges based on what they see as life skills needed for living in the 21st Century. The information came from a survey of more than 1,000 Guides by Girlguiding UK.
The results of the survey showed that senior Guides — those over 16 — wanted to learn how to manage money and practice safe sex. Guides aged 10 to 15 wanted to learn how to pitch a ten, cook a healthy meal and stand up to boys.
Just as there was an uproar when girls first began learning camping and survival techniques, I’ve little doubt there is soon going to be a massive din from across the big pond. Yet, I still find myself asking: Why isn’t this being discussed here?
As both a Girl Scout leader and especially as a mother, I know what I’ve heard from the girls. The things they worry about are everyday things that, in many instances, are the same things girls have worried about from the beginning of time. They worry about eating disorders, parents getting ill, parents breaking up, managing stress, sexual health, bullying, maintaining friendships and being good citizens. Why shouldn’t all those fears be addressed?
I think there remains in this country a belief that everything related to sex and “private parts” should only be discussed in the dead of night, behind closed doors and in whispers. There is a belief in our nation that anything sexually-related is inherently “dirty.”
It really wasn’t that long ago since I was a young woman and discussing sex with friends who knew little more than I did on the subject. My stomach hurts when I consider all the disinformation we swallowed as fact. The good news is back then the worst thing that might happen to a girl who had sex in the backseat of a car was getting pregnant and dealing with whatever aftermath befell her. When I was young, we did not have to approach sex as a potential death sentence.
As soon as our children are moving around and understanding language, we begin to teach them how to best protect themselves. We explain about proper hand washing to fend against disease. We pass them tissues when their nose runs and, then, show them the wastebasket for disposal. From crossing the street to buckling up in the car, society as a whole — across economic, religious and social lines — has agreed that it is in our best interest to teach our youngest citizens safety. Not to mention, our hearts and souls would shatter if we didn’t take time and one of our children was hurt because of it.
Last session when the legislature debated the beer keg identification law, I protested on the grounds that doing so wouldn’t stop underage drinking. I also pointed to society’s relationship with alcohol. I wrote, “Our society will not be able to overcome the ‘mystification’ of sex, alcohol and drugs until we stop putting them on pedestals in front of our children.”
Sex is and should be private. Sex is and should be sacred. Sex is and should be something we discuss easily with our children, especially now that it is a life and death decision. For us not to discuss and protect our children is the largest negligence we could ever commit.
I look forward to seeing how the Girl Guides handle their member’s requests for safe sex education.
