With spring break lurking around the corner, students all over campus are hitting the gym and laying off the sweets. It seems as if only one thing can make their commitments falter: Girl Scout Cookies.
As I’m sure many have noticed, the tasty cookies are popping up all over campus and the country. The little morsels of deliciousness are hard to resist. Yet for one group of activists, the thought of buying a single box from this group of young girls is far-fetched.
According to a recent article, at the end of 2013 the official Girl Scout Twitter accounted posted a tweet listing women nominated as their 2013 woman of the year.
In the tweet was the name of a politician, Wendy Davis, who happens to be a strong proponent for abortion and a 2014 candidate for the governor of Texas.
Groups of anti-choice activists are now reaching out to find support in boycotting the purchase of Girl Scout cookies by saying they are endorsing abortion via Wendy Davis.
The groups are spreading word of the CookieCott through the use of flyers which state all the ways in which the Girl Scouts promote abortion and various liberal ideals.
But with $700 million in annual sales, would the boycotting of cookies by a few even make a difference?
The money goes to various places, from the bakery, to the troop that sells the cookies and the national organization.
The sales' purpose is to raise money for their troop, while the girls learn to set goals, manage money and gain teamwork skills.
Regardless of your stance on abortion, I find the boycott to be ridiculous. These girls are trying to be a part of an organization that gives them an opportunity to learn personal and life skills.
It seems as if the groups trying to boycott the cookies and organization as a whole are doing nothing more than trying to find an issue out of nothing.
When looking at the other women listed for their woman of the year, Wendy Davis was next to Beyoncé. Obviously, the Girl Scouts don’t even truly understand the influence that their nomination has to create news. This list simply contains influential women and in no way, shape or form endorsed any of Davis’s beliefs or values.
It is sad to see that the Girl Scouts are the ones facing the brunt of this controversy. When it comes down to it, these girls are too young to understand the issue, and their only goal is to sell cookies to raise money for charity.
They don’t deserve to be shunned by people, especially people who are focusing on an issue in which they have no involvement or control. There are a lot worse things that children could be doing than selling cookies.
Reach the columnist at Lauren.Klenda@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @laurenklenda
