Ties with Scouting America will be severed if we do not return to “core values” and realign ourselves in service of “God and countryIt is the Pentagon that thunders against Scouting America, the good old Boy Scouts, “guilty” of giving too much weight to the “woke” movement and the values of diversity, equity and inclusion.
After Harvard, in short, it is the turn of one of the largest and most popular youth organizations in the United States.
A warning to put an end to the long collaboration between the US military and the Scouts came in recent days in a post written by the spokesperson of the Department of Defense, Sean Parnell, convinced that the scout movement “has lost its way” by promoting inclusivity and even including girls and LGBTQ+ members.
Return immediately to God and country – warned Parnell. For years, Scouting America leaders have been making decisions that are contrary to the values of this administration and the War Department, including the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion. This is unacceptable.
STATEMENT:
From Day One at the War Department, we have made it very clear: No more DEI at DoW. Zero tolerance.
As a result, over the past several months, the Department of War has been reviewing its relationship with Scouting America—formerly known as the Boy Scouts of America.…
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellASW) February 3, 2026
In fact, after having extended participation to girls and changed its name to express greater openness, the association has become one of the main targets of strong criticism from the United States Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth. In November, the head of the Pentagon released a document to Congress in which he proposed to stop supporting the Scouts, who have always been considered an important recruitment channel for the US armed forces. On that occasion he accused them of “generate gender confusion” and to question one “space traditionally reserved for children”, statements that surprised Scouting America and triggered a clash with the Department of Defense.
The organization, for its part, has chosen not to raise its tone, committing itself to providing clarifications on its policies and maintaining openness to dialogue, but the stakes remain high: on the one hand there is a vision of patriotism linked to roles and values considered “traditional”, on the other an inclusive reality that for years has welcomed girls and young people of all identities, with practical implications also for events such as the National Jamboree and for the historic logistical cooperation with the armed forces.
In fact, the story reflects a broader political orientation, linked to the vision promoted by Donald Trump, which favors rigidly traditional social models and looks with suspicion at the paths of inclusion initiated by many civil institutions. The possible rupture between the Pentagon and Scouting America would, therefore, be yet another sign of an increasingly closed cultural line, in which pluralism and openness are perceived as a threat rather than an evolution of society.
