To the Editor:

Sydney Ireland, a girl from New York, in the Cub Scout program [Boy Scouts of America], was denied earlier this year the permission to join the Boy Scouts in order to be with her brother.

To me, it makes sense she was denied permission to join. She said she wanted to do what her brothers were doing and there is nothing wrong with that; however, there is no reason she had to participate in the Boy Scouts when there is already an organization for girls called the Girl Scouts.

Especially with the co-ed program called Venturing [Boy Scouts of America] and not to mention the Girl Scouts, it doesn’t make sense that she would say she, “does not understand why the Boy Scouts are so backwards when they refused to let her join.”

How are the Boy Scouts backwards for not letting her join because she is not a boy? It goes against the original charter of the Boy Scouts made in 1916 that clearly says, “The Boy Scouts of America was chartered by Congress in 1916 to serve boys and young men across the nation through the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts programs.”

To me, it is clearly stated the Boy Scouts is a program for boys and boys only. I think it is quite clear why the Boy Scouts didn’t let Sydney Ireland join the club!

Rainer Santee

Salisbury Middle School