The Department of Defense warned Scouting America, formerly the Boy Scouts of America, that it risks losing U.S. military support if it does not implement changes that align with the Trump administration.
In a statement posted to social media late Monday, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the Irving, Texas-based organization must initiate “common-sense, core value reforms” to continue its partnership with the federal government.
Scouting America and the Pentagon are close to reaching an agreement, Parnell said. He mentioned measures that promote diversity, equity and inclusion, commonly called DEI, but he did not outline specific changes the department seeks.
“For more than a decade now, Scouting America’s leadership has made decisions that run counter to the values of this administration and this Department of War, including an embrace of DEl and other social justice, gender-fluid ideological stances,” he wrote. “This is unacceptable.”
The warning comes four months before the Scouts’ National Jamboree, a once-every-four-years camping trip that draws thousands of Scouts to West Virginia. The 10-day event relies heavily on military personnel for medical care, security and logistics.
Scouting America did not respond to an email or phone call Tuesday from The Dallas Morning News. In a statement to The Washington Post, the organization said it was encouraged by the Pentagon’s social media post and looks “forward to providing more details as we move ahead.”
In 2024, the Boy Scouts changed its name to Scouting America as part of a rebranding campaign to focus on inclusion following years of turmoil.
The organization filed for bankruptcy in 2020 after spending millions of dollars to settle lawsuits with the roughly 80,000 men who say they were sexually abused as children while scouting.
In 2013, the Scouts began allowing gay youth, and it ended a blanket ban on gay adult leaders in 2015. In 2018, it began admitting girls, angering some people.
Measures to promote diversity and inclusion have come under fire in the past year. Shortly after his inauguration, President Donald Trump issued an executive order threatening to withhold money from cities and states and end government contracts with companies with such programs. A slew of companies, including Fort Worth-based Lockheed Martin, Amazon and Meta, ended diversity initiatives to comply with the executive order.
Diversity initiatives date back to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, signed by then-President Lyndon B. Johnson. Measures grew after the 2020 murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, and companies pledged to do more for Black workers.
Republican lawmakers in Texas have long derided the measures as “woke” and say DEI favors race and ideology over merit.
In his statement, Parnell called the Scouts a “great organization” that has “lost its way.”
“Scouting America remains far from perfect, but they have firmly committed to a return to core principles,” he said. “Back to God and country — immediately!”