Guide Leader concerns

[GuideParent]

My daughter is a Guide so I’ve been following what’s been happening after Girlguiding put out their statement last week.

I’m pretty concerned about the behaviour of some of the leaders. Obviously they are entitled to protest the policy, but surely there are limits about involving the girls in their units to do the same?

There’s a Facebook page I’ve had a look at and leaders seem to be doing things like ordering trans badges for the girls to wear.
I’ve attached a pic of someone in a thread about what to say to parents (I believe she is quoting what she has emailed out to parents) saying they are not allowed to be political, but they are being political

I think Girlguiding themselves have totally brought about this situation with their statement. Rather than it being politically neutral, about the law and recognising that there will be a range of views within the organisation, their statement has taken a clear political pov that this decision is basically wrong but their hands are tied. I feel that leaders have taken their cue from this and have assumed that the view that ‘this is wrong’ is universal among the organisation and among all members. The leaders also seem to have been provided with no further direction about how they should be handing the situation with girls and parents.

Obviously there will be lots of GC parents and prob Guides themselves. Surely leaders marshalling the children in their unit to support a particular political view risks potential lawsuits regarding belief discrimination?

If they.dont sort out their abject nonsense, I agree. A great shame for girls to lose out, but if the silent majority stays silent forever while others rend their garments in abeisance to cross dressing men, then that is what is likely to happen.

I’m quite heartened by this thread actually, that there are not loads of parents jumping on to say their guide leader has completely lost the plot on this.

There are something like 70,000 volunteers? The Facebook group mentioned downthread has maybe 1000 members and even that small number are clearly not all volunteers.

So there are a few extremists whose zealotry has impacted their ability to meet normal standards of behaviour when working with children. I hope they resign but if necessary I hope guiding can at least recognise the damage they are causing and do the right thing and remove them.

The others at least seem to understand the limitations of their role which is all I really care about. Their personal beliefs are none of my business and should be absolutely none of my child’s business. They are free to use whatever democratic means are available to them to register their opposition to guiding’s policy.

Then there are those that agree with the policy change. Hopefully that is the silent majority.

Silence is taken as acquiescence.

People need to speak up. Not necessarily publically, but the people at the top need to hear from those.who want GG to stay single sex.

As with the SP Kemp judgment this week: women who do not complain and invoke their protections are regarded as not existing at all.

If they do complain they have just announced they are a witch, and invited the unhinged to come and burn them. Although that particular judgment denies that a) this happens, b) it's a chilling effect on equality and c) there are really any women who want single sex provisions.

It's the same theory as having disposed of all non-consenting lesbians from a mixed sex lesbian group, and then polling the remaining consenting ones and announcing there are hardly any lesbians who are not open to mixed sex groups and dating. We seem to live in an age where illusions and deception is embraced and believed when it comes from the 'right' people.

The district leader for our area put a message about the petition in the chat… I was delighted to see radio silence on it. No thumbs up etc, everyone ignored it. I found that very reassuring. I’m honestly concerned about the position she holds, she runs a Brownies group and she doesn’t seem to understand safeguarding.

HQ should be doing investigations into women publicly sharing their lack of safeguarding awareness, disregard of girls etc and, they’re really not suitable for the role. They really need to make code of conduct clear to volunteers.
They need to make it clear they’re not excluding girls with a gender identity, only boys who have one, along with the rest of them. That is what an inclusive girls-only organisation should look like when it comes to gender identity. The way people are going on, you’d think they’d said if you have a gender identify you’re not welcome. But as far as I’m aware that’s not the case.