Listening. Learning. Standing in Solidarity. These are the
words that have resonated with me over the last couple of weeks as I
have struggled with the realities of racism and injustice across our
country. I am deeply saddened and troubled by recent events and, like
many of you, I want to influence positive change in our community and
be part of the solution. To the Black members of our Girl Scouts of
Southeast Florida Community, I want you to know that I see you. And I
care.
The other word that keeps coming to me is
Hope. I am filled with hope as I see people of all ages and
races come together and be united against racism and injustice. I am
filled with hope when I see children and teenagers finding their
voices and becoming advocates for themselves and for others. And I am
filled with hope knowing that this generation of changemakers won’t
stop until they live in a society that is equal for all people.
At Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida, we are committed to an
anti-racist environment where all girls feel welcome, encouraged, and
empowered. We recognize that there is work to be done and we will do
that work. This is a time for honesty and for action. Whether it is
raising our own awareness, showing compassion and empathy, condemning
racial inequality and violence, or advocating for change, it will take
all of us working together to make a true and lasting impact.
The works starts with us. With the full support of our Board of
Directors, my team and I are committed to the work ahead. We will need
your help as we work to figure out exactly what that looks like and
how we will work together and hold one another accountable. We are
ready to listen and learn. And we are ready to use our collective
values and voices to make this world a better place.
As
always, I welcome your thoughts and ideas as we navigate this
together. We are exploring options for our Girl Scout community to
come together to start the conversation and will be sharing that on
our Social Media platforms. You can always reach me via email, at the office (561-815-1805) or on
my cell (561-722-8000).
Sincerely,
Lisa Y. Johnson
Chief Executive Officer
Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion
Just a few months ago, I shared my thoughts about what was happening in our society and our commitment at Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida to be a positive force for change and progress when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion. I also shared the optimism and hope that I feel watching our young people work tirelessly to build a society that is truly equal for all people.
Over these months, much has happened. Nationally, Girl Scouts of the USA pledged to take a stand against racism. You can read and sign the pledge here. They have assembled leaders from across our Movement to work at the national level to help shape Girl Scouts’ commitment to DEI at all operational levels. I have raised my hand to be part of this work and look forward to being able to contribute in a meaningful way. They have formed a DEI/racial justice board advisory committee made up of members of the national board, council board chairs, GSUSA staff, and National Gold Award Girl Scouts to establish the vision, strategy, and accountability for the Girl Scout Movement. And they are partnering with external consultants to guide these efforts.
Locally, I am very proud of the work that has been done to date. In August, members of our GSSEF staff formed an Equity Team. This team spent the first several weeks talking about why this work was important and why each of us wanted to be part of it. We each committed to our own personal journey of learning. And we created a vision for DEI at GSSEF and developed a purpose statement and guiding principles for our work. I wanted to share those with you today.
Our Vision
Our vision for Girl Scouts of Southeast
Florida is to be just, fair, and inclusive; acting as a catalyst to
drive equitable decision-making, resource allocation, and development
of policies and practices across the Council.
Our Purpose
The purpose of the Girl Scouts of Southeast
Florida Equity Team is to introduce and implement ideas, information,
and experiences that uphold our Council’s unwavering commitment to
diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Our Guiding Principles
- We are committed to diversity and to a global and multicultural perspective.
- We actively seek to understand the complex and rich identities of self and others, and to lean into difficult topics related to diversity and inclusion.
- Racism has no place in Girl Scouts. We adhere to and advance an anti-racist approach to the leadership of the girls within our membership.
- We are an inclusive organization. We listen to, learn from, and support all members regardless of race, color, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, creed, national origin, socioeconomic status, or disability.
- We are an ever-evolving team who prioritizes listening and learning in all that we do.
Our work has only just begun. We have done a preliminary audit at GSSEF to identify some gaps and develop strategies to address those gaps. We have begun conversations with our colleagues about how we will collaboratively work toward our purpose.
Our Girl Experience Team has also been hard at work introducing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion experiences for girls. In August, we partnered with the Racial Equity Institute on a series of conversations with girls on this important topic. And in October, we launched a patch program that provided age-appropriate live experiences as well as activity packs for girls to do throughout the month. Both of these programs were very well received, and we look forward to providing more experiences for girls moving forward.
So what’s next? Well, we would love to invite our members into this important conversation. We want to hear from girls and their families, and from our volunteers, about their own experiences in Girl Scouts and what you would like to see from GSSEF as we work to ensure that all girls and volunteers feel welcome, encouraged, and empowered.
Joining us is easy! Simply register for one of the following sessions. You will receive an email link to participate once you have registered. Here are the details:
Monday, January 4, 6-7:30 p.m. – Registered Girl Scouts and
Caregivers (Girls of all grade levels are welcome). Register
here
Tuesday, January 5, 6-7:30 p.m. – Registered Girl Scouts ONLY –
Open to Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors.
Register
here
Wednesday, January 6-7:30 p.m. – Registered Girl Scout ADULT Volunteers ONLY. Register here
Can’t make it, but want to share your thoughts and ideas? Please feel free to email me at ljohnson@gssef.org. If you prefer to schedule time to talk with me personally, you can email Anna Laoretti at alaoretti@gssef.org and she will coordinate scheduling.
We look forward to sharing more with you in 2021!
Sincerely,
Lisa Y. Johnson
Chief Executive Officer
Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida
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DEI Message from Lisa Johson 6.9.20
