Boy Scouts Upholds Ban on Gays After Confidential Two-Year Review
The Boy Scouts of America has upheld its ban on gays after a "confidential two-year review" and says it will stand strong in the face of protest, the AP reports:
An 11-member special committee, formed discreetly by top Scout leaders in 2010, "came to the conclusion that this policy is absolutely the best policy for the Boy Scouts," the organization' national spokesman, Deron Smith, told The Associated Press.
Smith said the committee, comprised of professional scout executives and adult volunteers, was unanimous in its conclusion — preserving a long-standing policy that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2000 and has remained controversial ever since.
As a result of the committee's decision, the Scouts' national executive board will take no further action on a recently submitted resolution asking for reconsideration of the membership policy.
Longer statement:
"Scouting believes that good people can personally disagree on this topic and still work together to achieve the life-changing benefits to youth through Scouting. While not all board members may personally agree with this policy, and may choose a different direction for their own organizations, BSA leadership agrees this is the best policy for the organization."
The statement is referring to Ernst & Young CEO James Turley and AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, both of whom recently said that they object to the BSA's anti-gay policies.
The statement from the Scouts follows news this morning that Eric Jones, an Eagle Scout, was fired from his job as a BSA campa counselor over the weekend after telling the camp director he's gay.
The Boy Scouts had recently announced it would review its policy on gays but promised no solutions after a petition campaign from GLAAD inspired by the ousting of Ohio den mother Jennifer Tyrrell, one that Eagle Scout Zach Wahls has also been heavily involved in. Given the information provided by the AP this morning, a "confidential" review was already underway.
According to a notice from Change.org, Tyrrell will deliver 300,000 petition signatures in support of her reinstatement to the Boy Scouts of America’s headquarters in Dallas, Texas on Wednesday. Video may take a few seconds to load...
Developing...
Why don't we form our own "scout" group? (OMG, I can just see the uniforms now...and the badges you can earn!)
Aside from this snide piece of sarcasm, screw the scouts. They never did anything for me!
Posted by: Joey | Jul 17, 2012 2:19:15 PM
After being informed that the Catholic and Mormon churches are the largest contributors to the BSA, I am sure they were told by the former that they would lose their funding. Hell the Catholics throw orphans and homeless people under the bus if a state tries to pass civil unions! Why not the Boy Scouts.
Posted by: Rob | Jul 17, 2012 2:22:23 PM
BSA is not the only scouting organization. They're just the loudest and nuttiest.
I have heard of Navigators USA and Camp Fire USA, which might be alternatives to the BSA.
Posted by: Randy | Jul 17, 2012 2:39:47 PM
So, does this mean that the federal government will be revoking all public funding used to keep this bigotry going? After all, the BSA discriminates based on creed, at the very least, by denying atheists membership, and that is in direct violation of the DoD's own policies on allowing Federal resources (such as facilities) to be used by non-federal entities (such as BSA).
Posted by: Kaylene | Jul 17, 2012 2:39:50 PM
Bad news, obviously. But it could be a last hurray for the anti-gay forces within the BSA. Maybe local chapters will, in time, simply disregard this policy and admit leaders who are gay/lesbian, hoping that whatever the policy is we've reached the point where no one wants to look like a homophobe by making a fuss about it. Trying to look on the bright side here.
Posted by: Mary | Jul 17, 2012 2:46:10 PM
Ugh! I HATE when I make a stupid typo! that should be "last hurrah."
Posted by: Mary | Jul 17, 2012 3:02:09 PM
@MARY never go back and correct a simple typo with new and irrelevant posting. #internetiquette
Posted by: patrick | Jul 17, 2012 3:12:38 PM
The gay "steamroller" has hit a bump. Sign of things to come...
Posted by: Brad | Jul 17, 2012 3:22:16 PM
Hear, hear, SFShawn and DiatribesAndOvations! Preach!
Posted by: Stuffed Animal | Jul 17, 2012 3:50:22 PM
Pure accounting decision: they would collect more donations maintaining the policy than they would changing it. Until donations drop off they won't change the policy. It's more likely that the policy will be ignored on a local level than officially changed.
Posted by: anon | Jul 17, 2012 3:59:56 PM
I was a scout. I have supported the scouting movement for many years since. That stops today. No more support, and not another dime.
Posted by: tropicbill | Jul 17, 2012 4:51:41 PM
We should pressure our allies in government to revoke all federal benefits and tax exemptions from that hateful organization until it changes its policy.
Posted by: ezam | Jul 17, 2012 5:23:11 PM
Stop giving money to United Way--a large portion of boy scout funding comes from United Way. Give your charitable contribution to the specific charity of your choice--Not United Way. Someone should sue to cancel their congressional charter also.
Posted by: cfox | Jul 17, 2012 5:44:09 PM
So the BSA has made their plea. With 7 million members, the BSA loves all but about 350,000 (5%) boyscouts and leaders whom are still in the closet. These 350,000 are self-loathing hyprocrits if they remain in the ranks of these bigots who consider us to be less than animals and certainly not capable of being a member of a human family.
Posted by: Pointed | Jul 17, 2012 5:58:46 PM
No gay scout leaders is like saying no gay Catholic priests. They would have to shut the whole damn thing down.
Posted by: andrew | Jul 17, 2012 10:34:53 PM
Well they're not real boy scouts anyway, are they?
They don't swear an oath to the Queen, so they're just fake anyway.
Posted by: Randal Oulton | Jul 18, 2012 1:58:53 AM
For all you naive people who think the Supreme Court will rule in favor of gay marriage......
The Supreme Court ruled it was OK for the Scouts to enforce it's anti-gay rules because gay people's "conduct, they said, violated the group's values". That tells you EXACTLY what the right wing Supreme Court thinks of gay people.
This is why we need to scrap the corrupt, biased Supreme Court and redesign the US political and judicial systems - they are beyond broken.
Posted by: Icebloo | Jul 18, 2012 2:12:10 AM
@ Icebloo: the nine Justices on the Supreme Court are appointed by a democratically elected POTUS and take their seat when the majority of democratically elected Senators vote their approval. Because democracy doesn't always do what you or I may want doesn't mean it's broken, it may just mean that you and I are out of step with the current majority.
Posted by: andrew | Jul 18, 2012 3:30:22 AM
Andrew, no YOU are out of step because of your homophobia. And we gays are hell bent on making our presence known!
Posted by: IownThat | Jul 18, 2012 6:12:51 AM
Not disappointed. After reading most of these comments I'm glad most of these people are not part of the organization. So much negativity. The modern world doesn't mean you HAVE to cave into everyone else s beliefs just because it's what EVERYONE else believes. Give me a break. An organization should stand for what it stands for and that's the Boy Scouts. Accept it and move on.
Posted by: Julie | Jul 23, 2012 11:14:07 AM
@JULIE
Thank you for proving the Boy Scouts stand for bigotry and hatred. It's people like you that show the true Christianity of teaching young boys to hate and judge people they have never met.
Posted by: ELI | Jul 23, 2012 11:26:25 AM