I recently received a call from a mother who said "my daughter wants to be a Brownie. Well that's an understatement." She went on to say that her daughter primarily was interested in two things, wearing a uniform and doing good deeds.

For a six year old, this child easily figured out two of the important aspects of Girl Scouting. Although "doing good deeds" is easily one of the most important things we do as Girl Scouts, for the moment, I'd like to focus on her other desire.

Let me first make it clear that a Girl Scout is considered in full uniform if she is wearing her Girl Scout USA pin. Beyond that, however, there are a wide variety of options for girls and adults to wear. See the link on Buying Girl Scout Uniforms for advice on that score.

The question at hand though is why wear a uniform at all. My six-year-old recruit provides the first important reason and that is identity. This child saw others in her school wearing their uniforms and wanted to be a part of the group that so proudly wears the uniform. She recognized that owning and wearing the uniform is a privilege.

Uniforms were part of the original "package" of Girl Scouts. Juliette Low viewed them as equalizers, which was a point she viewed as important enough that it was enshrined in the original law as point four, " A Girl Scout is a Friend to All, and a Sister to every other Girl Scout no matter to what Social Class she May Belong."

This idea hearkens back to Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts and friend to Juliette Low who said, "The uniform was an important item, not merely as an attraction, as it undoubtedly was to the girls, but because under it all differences of social standing were hidden and forgotten." Girls of all shapes and sizes and all socioeconomic levels are simply "Girl Scouts"-- part of the larger organization when they don the uniform.

One final note concerns the changing look of uniforms over time. Juliette Low designed the first uniforms to allow girls freedom of movement in a time when women's dress did anything but that. Those long brown uniforms have changed and evolved many times since then. All variations of Girl Scout uniforms, no matter how old, are considered "official" when worn, or you can always just put on your GSUSA pin.