The official Girl Scouts Twitter and Facebook account posted a message on their feed Wednesday evening congratulating Amy Coney Barrett on her appointment to the Supreme Court. It has since been deleted following criticism, Fox News reports.
The Girl Scouts congratulated Amy Coney Barrett, and the comments weren’t having it. @girlscouts deleted the tweet, so here it is: pic.twitter.com/2k3Mh7HHIv
— Jason Calvi (@JasonCalvi) October 28, 2020
A screenshot of the now-deleted tweet was captured and reposted by a Fox 6 Milwaukee political reporter Jason Calvi. The caption of the initial tweet read: “Congratulations Amy Coney Barrett on becoming the 5th woman appointed to the Supreme Court since its inception in 1789,” ending with an emoji of hands raised up.
The post featured head shots of Barrett, who was confirmed Monday and sworn in at the court on Tuesday, alongside her colleagues, Associate Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, former Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, and the late associate justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The post quickly faced backlash from critics and lawmakers characterizing the jurist’s right-leaning stance as a threat to Obamacare and to abortion rights. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., tweeted, “What kind of patch does one earn for uplifting a woman who is the antithesis of justice?”
What kind of patch does one earn for uplifting a woman who is the antithesis of justice? https://t.co/Z7TfkymPfL
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) October 28, 2020
In response to over 4000 replies to the post, the Girl Scouts published a thread of tweets explaining why they removed the original post. “It was quickly viewed as a political and partisan statement which was not our intent and we have removed the post,” the account wrote.
“Girl Scouts of the USA is a nonpolitical, nonpartisan organization,” the statement added. “We are neither red nor blue, but Girl Scout GREEN. We are here to lift up girls and women.”
Girl Scouts of the USA is a nonpolitical, nonpartisan organization. We are neither red nor blue, but Girl Scout GREEN. We are here to lift up girls and women.
— Girl Scouts (@girlscouts) October 28, 2020
Some Twitter users said they would be boycotting the annual Girl Scouts cookie sales this year due to the post.
“I’m going to spend my $100 Girl Scout Cookie budget on ingredients to make my own next year.”
Noah Michelson, editorial director of HuffPost Personal, argued in a Facebook post that there was “no requirement that we celebrate someone as a hero to women simply because she identifies as a woman, especially when the thing she did was actually done for her by a gang of disgraceful goons and when she is poised to destroy the lives of so many people.”
However, one of Barrett’s critics saw no issue.
“As much as I dislike this particular woman and deplore the political hypocrisy that allowed her to be in such respected company, GSUSA is completely right to recognize her,” the commenter wrote. “Well done. It could not have been easy.”
A spokesperson for the Girl Scouts told FOX News that the organization has “a legacy of highlighting women who have risen to the top of their fields including leaders of both political parties and our judicial branch.”
The Girl Scouts spokesperson said the post was removed to “minimize negative conversation” after being construed as a political statement.
“For over 100 years we have worked and we will continue to work for equality and to break down barriers for girls everywhere and support increasing the presence of women across all levels of government,” the Girl Scouts added.