On Wednesday, May 2, The Boy Scouts of America announced that they will soon be changing their name to "Scouts BSA," a name reflecting their earlier decision to allow young girls into the program beginning in February 2019. Though many saw these changes as positive steps towards inclusion and equality between the sexes, there are also those who think decisions like these could have catastrophic consequences. Georgia Republican and gubernatorial candidate Michael Williams, for instance, believes taking the word "boy" out of "boy scouts" would have lost us World War II.
Williams believes the Scouts were forced to allow girls in by "left-wing social engineers who want to remove the concept of male masculinity from society."
He then told Huffpost:
Liberals tell us that masculinity is 'toxic' and that girls can be boys and boys should no longer be boys. Imagine the outcome of World War II if the Greatest Generation had been raised by these politically correct bedwetters. You'd be reading this in German.
Williams is a long-time supporter of President Trump, and often refers to himself as Georgia's first elected official to endorse Trump way back in 2015. It's easy to understand why they get along—the pair see eye-to-eye when it comes to hyperbolic campaign rhetoric and healthy doses of fear-stoking.
Though they didn't have a direct response to Williams' WWII theories, The Boy Scouts of America haven't mentioned "left-wing social engineers" as part of their motivations for changing their name. The organization believes they are "entering a new era of inclusion for both boys and girls." Michael Surbaugh, Chief Scout Executive of the BSA, said in a statement:
As we enter a new era for our organization, it is important that all youth can see themselves in Scouting in every way possible.
Over the past several years, the Scouts have made a series of moves towards inclusion and diversity. In 2014, the organization allowed LGBTQ youths into the program, and 2015 the Scouts began to allow LGBTQ adults to serve as Scout Masters. 3 years later, the 108-year-old organization is still going strong!
Michael Williams will be competing in this month's Republican Primary for Governor. If he wins, it's likely Georgia residents will be learning a lot more about history and how the Boy Scouts changing their name would have destroyed it. Hooray!
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