Current Events > Girl Scouts sue Boy Scouts over name change

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/07/us/girl-boy-scouts-scli-intl/index.html

A long-running dispute between scouts has now ended up in a Manhattan court.
The Girl Scouts of the USA has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America after it announced that it would drop "boy" from the name of a program in 2019. The boys' group has already begun to welcome older girls.
The Girl Scouts said in the complaint filed in Manhattan federal court Tuesday that the Boy Scouts do not have the right to use "scouts" or "scouting."
It also alleged that the Girl Scouts brand and activities will be marginalized by the Boy Scouts rebranded program, Scouts BSA.

The Girl Scouts said the change has caused confusion among the public, causing them to think the Girl Scouts did not exist or had merged with the Boy Scouts, Reuters reported.
"Only GSUSA has the right to use the Girl Scouts and Scouts trademarks with leadership development services for girls," according to the complaint.
Boy Scouts of America told CNN that it was reviewing the lawsuit.
"We applaud every organization that builds character and leadership in children, including the Girl Scouts of the USA, and believe that there is an opportunity for both organizations to serve girls and boys in our communities," it said in a statement
The lawsuit seeks monetary damages and a permanent injunction against trademark infringement.
It comes months after the Boy Scouts announced in May the name change of its namesake program for teens ages 11-17, called the Boy Scouts, to Scouts BSA.
In 2017, the 108-year-old organization decided to open its highest rank, Eagle Scout, to girls and allowed younger girls to join Cub Scouts. The move was seen as both a reflection of growing progressive attitudes as well as a business decision.

The Boy Scouts told CNN they widened their program offerings for girls after "years of request from families."
"We believe that we owe it to our current and future members to offer families the options they want," the organization said.

They just mad Scouts are picking off their free cookie selling labor.
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So it's okay when females steal male franchises and make girl versions with the same name, but when the boy scouts call themselves scouts they suddenly lose their minds?

suing people feels like the Opposite of scouts honor
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boo gender equality

btw, do the Girl Scouts have the trademark for "Scouts"? If not, they will lose

My niece just merged her troupe with a boy's to form a coed one. The stories I hear out of it are unsettling. The boys are mad their 'boy's club' has been compromised and they're actively bullying the girls in an attempt to drive them out. It's insane.

It sounds like the basis of their suit is that any organization that calles itself scouts and includes girls infringes on Girl Scout copyright.

Feels like a bit of a reach.
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ocelot51 posted...

My niece just merged her troupe with a boy's to form a coed one. The stories I hear out of it are unsettling. The boys are mad their 'boy's club' has been compromised and they're actively bullying the girls in an attempt to drive them out. It's insane.

The bullying is a bit much, sure, but there is nothing wrong with boys wanting an environment that is just with other boys.
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Also, this is probably because fewer girls are going to sign up to be free cookie merchants for the organization if they can do boy scout stuff instead.
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tl;dr:

"Let's give this 'equality' thing a try..."
"NOOOOO!!! muh SAFE SPACE!!!"

I understand that at the end of the day these are both businesses, and the Girl Scouts rightly see this as direct competition to their brand, however I think it would make a lot more sense to merge into one company instead of fighting each other over trademarks and membership.
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eston posted...

I understand that at the end of the day these are both businesses, and the Girl Scouts rightly see this as direct competition to their brand, however I think it would make a lot more sense to merge into one company instead of fighting each other over trademarks and membership.

Despite having similar names, they offer completely different services to their members. There really isn't a point in merging the two.
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ocelot51 posted...

My niece just merged her troupe with a boy's to form a coed one. The stories I hear out of it are unsettling. The boys are mad their 'boy's club' has been compromised and they're actively bullying the girls in an attempt to drive them out. It's insane.

Sounds like a shitty troop to me. The troop my daughter is in is excited that girls are joining, most of the girls that have joined were recruited by a boy.
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is it the boy scouts or girl scouts which was the corporate front to sell cookies

sounds like girl scouts
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FreshSushi posted...

is it the boy scouts or girl scouts which was the corporate front to sell cookies

sounds like girl scouts

I'd rather buy overpriced cookies than overpriced generic chocolate bars or popcorn.

FreshSushi posted...

is it the boy scouts or girl scouts which was the corporate front to sell cookies

sounds like girl scouts

Girls scouts sell cookies.
Boy scouts sell popcorn but no one cares.
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Gheb posted...

It sounds like the basis of their suit is that any organization that calles itself scouts and includes girls infringes on Girl Scout copyright.

Feels like a bit of a reach.

Seems reasonable enough to try with this injunction at least
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Basically GS are pist because BS dropped the "Boy" and allowed girls to join. Why not merge the two organizations instead of suing each other?

Thatuser posted...

Why not merge the two organizations instead of suing each other?

Other than the name "scouts" and receiving badges for random shit, the two companies have nothing in common.
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voldothegr8 posted...

Thatuser posted...

Why not merge the two organizations instead of suing each other?

Other than the name "scouts" and receiving badges for random shit, the two companies have nothing in common.

Those are pretty major components to have in common for you to insinuate they are different enough to not consider a merger.

Thatuser posted...

voldothegr8 posted...

Thatuser posted...

Why not merge the two organizations instead of suing each other?

Other than the name "scouts" and receiving badges for random shit, the two companies have nothing in common.

Those are pretty major components to have in common for you to insinuate they are different enough to not consider a merger.

BlazinBlue88 posted...

Despite having similar names, they offer completely different services to their members.

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BlazinBlue88 posted...

Despite having similar names, they offer completely different services to their members.

Ok. So, free market should allow the consumer to pick which organization they choose to join/support.

The White Sox don't sue the Red Sox for the use of Sox and those organizations do the exact same thing. Play baseball.

Thatuser posted...

Ok. So, free market should allow the consumer to pick which organization they choose to join/support.

In theory, but the Girl Scouts are still being exclusionary based on sex (well, gender).

Getting sued for being inclusive

What a time to be alive
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ocelot51 posted...

My niece just merged her troupe with a boy's to form a coed one. The stories I hear out of it are unsettling. The boys are mad their 'boy's club' has been compromised and they're actively bullying the girls in an attempt to drive them out. It's insane.

Fuck that troop. I haven't stayed particularly active with my old Boy Scout troop, but from everything I've heard they are really excited about girls joining. They are mostly annoyed that few seem to be interested.
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tbh the girl scouts is a much more shady organization which is why girls are actively joining boy scouts. girl scouts is basically a pyramid scheme/free labor
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Reminder that that Boy Scouts approached Girl Scouts with a proposition for a merger, despite the fact that it would cost them a great deal of money, and require a lot of work to incorporate the different structure. Girl Scouts refused to consider it (which is fair, as female empowerment is the central component of their mission statement).
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Rename Boy Scouts to Eagle Scouts. Problem solved.
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As long as I get Tagalongs, I'm good.
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UnfairRepresent posted...

suing people feels like the Opposite of scouts honour

Gotta submit to the overriding US identity after all.
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Blue_Thunder posted...

Rename Boy Scouts to Eagle Scouts. Problem solved.

Eagle Scout is a rank. Changing the name kind of devalues that.
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DarkChozoGhost posted...

Reminder that that Boy Scouts approached Girl Scouts with a proposition for a merger, despite the fact that it would cost them a great deal of money, and require a lot of work to incorporate the different structure. Girl Scouts refused to consider it (which is fair, as female empowerment is the central component of their mission statement).

tl;dr
Boy Scouts being exclusionary: bad
Girl Scouts being exclusionary: good
Boy Scouts being inclusive: catastrophic

Gheb posted...

Blue_Thunder posted...

Rename Boy Scouts to Eagle Scouts. Problem solved.

Eagle Scout is a rank. Changing the name kind of devalues that.

And not an easy one to get from what I understand.
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Questionmarktarius posted...

DarkChozoGhost posted...

Reminder that that Boy Scouts approached Girl Scouts with a proposition for a merger, despite the fact that it would cost them a great deal of money, and require a lot of work to incorporate the different structure. Girl Scouts refused to consider it (which is fair, as female empowerment is the central component of their mission statement).

tl;dr
Boy Scouts being exclusionary: Unprofitable for Boy Scouts
Girl Scouts being exclusionary: good
Boy Scouts being inclusive: Unprofitable for Girl Scouts

Fixed it. The Boy Scouts aren't letting girls join because the historically conservative organization suddenly decided to be progressive. They did it because of their consistently falling membership numbers despite all their non-inclusion attempts to bolster numbers.
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Gheb posted...

They did it because of their consistently falling membership numbers despite all their non-inclusion attempts to bolster numbers.

If anything, videogames screwed over the boyscouts far more than lingering bigotry and exclusion

Gheb posted...

Fixed it. The Boy Scouts aren't letting girls join because the historically conservative organization suddenly decided to be progressive. They did it because of their consistently falling membership numbers despite all their non-inclusion attempts to bolster numbers.

This is the problem with gender specific organizations in our day and age. Well, lots of civic organizations, and religious institutions as well. Young people, and adults, don't just join organizations like the scouts in the numbers they used to. Freemasonry is facing this problem as well. 60 years ago one in four men was a Mason. Now we're struggling to remain relevant. Civic organizations just don't have the relevance they did in a pre-internet, constantly social and connected world.

BlazinBlue88 posted...

Despite having similar names, they offer completely different services to their members. There really isn't a point in merging the two.

Yeah, the Scouts teach real life skills and host fun activities, and the Girl Scouts are a glorified child labour door-to-door cookie cartel.
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I honestly can't tell if people are being serious with the cookie labor comments. While Girl Scouts is a very different organization than Boy Scouts, it's still a perfectly fine organization. It just has a different mission than Boy Scouts. The cookies are just a small part of it, no different than Boy Scouts selling popcorn, chocolate, or whatever. The Girl Scouts just have a much better product so people care about it more.
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Gheb posted...

I honestly can't tell if people are being serious with the cookie labor comments. While Girl Scouts is a very different organization than Boy Scouts, it's still a perfectly fine organization. It just has a different mission than Boy Scouts.

That mission being?

Gheb posted...

The cookies are just a small part of it

Girl Scouts wouldn't exist without the cookies.
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Gheb posted...

Blue_Thunder posted...

Rename Boy Scouts to Eagle Scouts. Problem solved.

Eagle Scout is a rank. Changing the name kind of devalues that.

Animal Scouts.
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voldothegr8 posted...

They just mad Scouts are picking off their free cookie selling labor.

"STOP STEALING OUR COOKIE SLAVES DAMMIT! THOSE ARE OUR SLAVES! DAMMMMMIT!"
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voldothegr8 posted...

Gheb posted...

I honestly can't tell if people are being serious with the cookie labor comments. While Girl Scouts is a very different organization than Boy Scouts, it's still a perfectly fine organization. It just has a different mission than Boy Scouts.

That mission being?

Gheb posted...

The cookies are just a small part of it

Girl Scouts wouldn't exist without the cookies.

To provide an environment for girls to explore areas like STEM, outdoors, entrepreneurship, and civics, with other girls and lead by girls. Since many of the other outlets for these areas are often dominated by boys. The organization is very big on girl empowerment.

And Boy Scouts wouldn't exist without its fundraising efforts either. This seems like such an odd point to get in a tizzy over.
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>Doesn't know how to attract girl members

>Sues The other gender

Sounds typical of 2018
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