Girl guides make progress

The Girl Guides of Canada have submitted a survey to their members to revise their “promise” (or pledge). The current one reads:

I promise to do my best,
To be true to myself, my God/faith* and Canada;
I will help others,
And accept the Guiding Law.

*Choose either the word God or the word faith according to your personal convictions.

They have proposed the following:

I promise to be true to myself, live the Guiding Law, and take action for a better world.

I promise to be true to myself, my community and Canada. I will help others and accept the Guiding Law.

Neither of the above.

Metro Toronto reports that:

Discussion began almost immediately on a Girl Guides Facebook page late last week after a survey on the promise arrived in the homes of Guiding leaders and families.

The debate, almost universally condemned the survey for containing no option to keep references to God or faith in the promise. [link added]

I wouldn’t say there’s a huge debate, or much about “universally condemning” anything. In fact their are only 26 posts by 12 people, of which eight are against the change, two would rather see the word belief instead of faith, one wants every Girl Guide to have their own Promise and one, the group’s creator and admin, is for the changes.

So good on the Guides for considering this change. Perhaps the next generation of Guides can be a bit more tolerant than their imposing parents.