A Missouri mom claims the Girl Scouts organization threatened her with legal action for helping to raise funds for Palestinians. The woman claims they warned her after her daughter’s troop sold bracelets to help Palestinian children at a fundraiser for the war-ridden country.
Nawal Abuhamdeh said her daughter’s troop decided to make enough bracelets to sell at the event. She said they planned to donate the money from the bracelet sales rather than participate in the Girl Scouts’ annual cookie sale. Abuhamdeh, a Palestinian, has led her daughter’s troop’s cookie fundraising event since 2019.
However, due to the Israel-Hamas war, the Missouri mom said the troop couldn’t sell the cookies. She said they didn’t have the “energy to sell cookies to a community, especially in a time of crisis.” In a phone interview, Abuhamdeh said, “We were debating whether we had the energy to put into a cookie season as we were grieving.”
She added, “And not only that, but also our community was grieving.” Furthermore, Abuhamdeh noted that the troop that led the project was an eight-member team. She said the troop includes girls from Indian, Pakistani, Somali, Palestinian, Syrian and Jordanian backgrounds.
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They started making plans after deciding on making bracelets instead of cookies for the fundraising event. The troop held meetings about what material to use and where to place the beads. In addition, the girls decided to sell beaded bracelets for $5 and clay designs for $10.
Also, they agreed to donate the money to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. After deciding on the initial plans, the troop set up a pre-order form to gauge interest from the community. Hence, they received over 100 pre-orders online. Afterward, the girls posted about the bracelets on social media.
Then, Abuhamdeh claims she received an email from Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri almost immediately. She said they told her to remove anything that associated Girl Scouts with the bracelets.
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“It felt very cold and full of reprimand and demand,” Abuhamdeh said. “Demanding that I remove Girl Scout’s logo, disassociate ourselves from the organization, and continue this on our time.”
“They deemed it as political and partisan,” she added. “Claiming that they must be inclusive to all members and neutral on all sides.” After receiving the email, the Missouri mom said she sent an email back explaining why the girls planned it.
Moreover, she asked how the fundraiser differed from Girl Scouts’ fundraisers in Ukraine. However, she claims the organization responded by threatening to take legal action. Following Abuhamdeh’s accusations, Girl Scouts of the USA debunked threatening legal action.
A spokesperson for Girl Scouts said that its policies state that Girl Scouts and volunteers should not fundraise “for purposes other than Girl Scouting.” However, the spokesperson noted that they lift fundraising restrictions in rare cases.
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Such cases include a brief period in late 2023 and early 2024 when the organization allowed fundraisers related to the Israel-Hamas war. While speaking in an interview, Abuhamdeh said she was disappointed in the Girl Scouts’ response to the troop’s bracelet fundraiser.
However, she noted that the troop disbanded after meeting with the other parents. “It triggered the emotions I felt growing up,” she said. Furthermore, the Missouri mom notes that she felt disappointed with how the organization handled it.
Despite the troop’s disbandment, the girls continued to sell bracelets. However, Abuhamdeh said they briefly stopped after reaching 600 orders nationwide. She further noted that the girls plan to begin selling them again soon.
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