Boy Scouts to review its ban on gays

Zach Wahls attends the 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards at San Francisco Marriott Marquis on June 2, 2012, in San Francisco, California. / Getty Images

(AP) NEW YORK - The Boy Scouts of America will review a resolution that would allow individual units to accept gays as adult leaders, but a spokesman says there's no expectation that the ban on gay leaders will in fact be lifted any time soon.

The resolution was submitted by a Scout leader from the Northeast in April and presented last week at the Scouts' national meeting in Orlando, Fla., according to BSA spokesman Deron Smith.

Smith said Wednesday it would be referred to a subcommittee, which will then make a recommendation to the national executive board. The process would likely be completed by May 2013, according to Smith, who said there were no plans at this time to change the policy.

During last week's meeting, the Scouts were presented with a petition, bearing more than 275,000 names, protesting the ouster of a lesbian mother, Jennifer Tyrrell, who'd been serving as a Scout den mother near Bridgeport, Ohio.

Among those who presented the Change.org petition, and met with Scout officials, was Eagle Scout Zach Wahls, an Iowa college student who was raised by lesbian mothers.

Wahls, in a telephone interview, said he and his allies planned a campaign to mobilize opposition to the gay-exclusion policy from within Scout ranks, with the goal of building pressure for the resolution to be approved.

"Up to the day they end this policy, they'll be saying they have no plans to do so," Wahls said. "But there's no question it's costing the Boy Scouts in terms of membership and public support."

The Scouts, who celebrated their 100th anniversary in 2010, have had a long-standing policy of excluding gays and atheists. Controversy over the policy intensified in 2000 when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Scouts to maintain the policy in the face of a legal challenge.

Leaders of several regional scouting councils have asked for the policy to be scrapped or modified, to no avail.

[BapPas]

The sodomites are a determined bunch of God haters. They hate their own filthy lives and then they hate everyone and everything that contradicts their filth. There are a lot of us who don't want boys to be taught that it's o.k. to have their private parts besmeared with human fecal matter or to have their anuses used for the unnatural gratification of domination freaks. Read Romans 1 and you will see what God thinks about sodomites.

[nygurl1]

Drivel needs to be thrown out of here! His lies and nastiness are so stupid he should be committed!
He doesn't know the difference between a pedophile and a homosexual and keeps repeating the same ugliness over and over. He is no use to anyone!

[afweathre]

If a gay organization only had gay leaders everyone would be ok with that, but for some reason it's not ok for a a Christian organization to uphold its values. I respect that they've fought to hold onto their Biblical values and wisdom for their role models and didn't cave in to culture's emotional political plays. It's striking that people compare it to racism, but unlike homosexuality, their are no ex-blacks, or ex-asians. There are ex-gay communities however, which demonstrates the fluidity of the issue, which is reason why it shouldn't be solidified and influenced in other people's children. No one puts thought into the aftermath of the politics and the media only reports the emotional aspects. Truetolerence.org is a site that follows what they're doing to promote one-sided information in schools to children as young as kindergarten and overstepping the rights of parents, freedom of speech, and religion.

[nygurl1]

Your statement is very muddled and I'm not sure what your point is!

[LAD500]

The Boy Scouts of America is NOT a Christian organization. It does not require adherence to any particular religious beliefs or ethos beyond the Declaration of Religious Principal, ie, recognizing an obligation to God. The BSA recognizes religious awards for over 38 faith groups, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam - even though Boys Life magazine selectively publishes only Judeeo-Christian Bible stories. Please get your facts straight before posting on the blogs.

[erzkarlaspern]

If the exclusion of homosexual scout leaders is overturned (apparently for sympathy with this mother), then they must admit homosexual male scout leaders with the danger of their trying to subvert the boys under their control. Young boys are impressionable, and a homosexual leader frequently has his Agenda to fulfill and to create a mentality of biological abnormality. Biological normality is male - female for the reproduction of the species. There have been problems in the past, and this would open the door to Abuses against which there would be No Appeal, because they are being promoted as a "protected minority". Let homosexuals have their private lives as Adults be respected, but do not let them invade the Scouts to spread their Non Scientific opinions and agenda. Their leaders have Fought against any Scientific investigation and they have chosen to Dogmatically impose Their view of things condemning opposing opinions as "hate speech". BEWARE.

[avigil2]

Dude you're crazy! You think every gay man wants to seduce, molest, convert or rape a young boy? Cause that's what it sounds like you're saying. Pedophiles are mostly straight, married men. Get a clue!

[nygurl1]

When my son was in scouts we had a gay leader. We just didn't tell council. Probably more out there. He was great with the kids and we never had a problem. And we were ALL active parents!
Gays are NOT pedophiles dummy! Use your brain for something beside no!

[avigil2]

So very sad that there are people like you in the world who find "regret that they were even born", "disgust", "offensive" and have induced "vomit induction" on an entirely different group of people that are clearly different than you or I. And I hate to burst your bubble but your rants are indeed full of hate and are discriminatory, not to mention bigoted. Gay people are everything: teachers, firemen, policemen, lawyers, doctors and certainly actors. Why you have such a disdain for gay people (or anyone else for that matter) is sad and is on the verge of Nazism.

[Drivelphobe001]

You are so biased I have sympathy for you. No more from me. You can't see the other side of an issue without resorting to your bigotry. Again, have a nice day.

[avigil2]

The Boy Scouts of America is one of the most discriminatory organizations in America. That is why people like Steven Spielberg wants nothing to do with them. Any sort of discrimination against another is morally and ethically wrong.

[Drivelphobe001]

You are so wrong. We discriminate every day when we make a choice. There is nothing wrong with it. You use the term inappropriately, To discriminate is to be selective, making a choice based on what is best for us, most convenient, most efficient, or in our interest. There are valid reasons, not based on hate, but fact, that validate the rejection of homosexuals and their lifestyles. It's laughable that those who raise all the stink feel they are the ones in the right and all others are labelled as haters, bigots or any other childish term they can think up. I find homosexuality repulsive, abnormal, and unnatural. I don't feel hate or superiority. I, and millions of others, don't want to be around them or have them included in our lives. You are the bigot avig112 and all others like you. You think those who share my view are making unjust distinction, but you are doing it yourself.

[atank316]

The BSA can choose for themselves who to accept and who to exclude. As a PRIVATE entity they have that right. If Gays and Lesbians want to start their own Gay Scouts of America- feel free to do it today! I have no problem with it.

What I have a problem with is this: Outsiders that are attempting to dictate to a PRIVATE entity just what their own rules must be- this is absolutely WRONG in every conceivable way! This goes for ANY private group- leave them the heck alone and go start a different group- one that conforms to your own set of rules. But to force another group to bend to the will of the prevailing winds of the times is wrong- period

[matt6052]

Liberals can always begin their own scouting-type organizations.

They may be limited to densely populated liberal areas, like cities (especially the northeast) and the west coast. With the Internet to organize with though, there are certainly enough potential scouts within a subway ride of one another.

I would think that political moderates might fear sending their kids to a troop where the atmosphere is so intensely political that a gay scoutmaster runs the organization. If you have a child who doesn't like to hug strangers, then his standoffishness toward the gay scoutmaster could result in him becoming the one who is always called upon to be the victim in the First Aid demonstrations.

[AOCGUY]

If you would bother to look up the values the scouts teach you will find them quite progressive and liberal.

And you seem to be confusing gay men with catholic priests and Penn State Football coaches.

[matt6052]

AOC, you prove my point exactly.

A kid who doesn't like to hug people might not want to hug a gay scoutmaster -- and then he will be punished as if he were calling the scoutmaster a pedophile.

People won't want their kid in a scout troop where the sexual orientation of the scoutmaster -- and everyone's opinon of it -- is the central focus of activity.

[Jaylah54100]

While I find this highly bigoted, the truth is that the Scouts are a private organization. They can discriminate against whomever they want to.

[AOCGUY]

While you are correct, they do have a charter from the USG and the military encourages it's members to be involved as scout masters, provides buildings for the kids to meet, hosts campouts for the scouts, as do many public schools as well as state and local governments.

[nygurl1]

But they also claim they are a christian group. They don't want non-christians! How very christian of them!

[tryreading]

I have an idea. Why don't the Boy Scouts allow PEOPLE (boys and any adult willing to help) in their organization and set up regulations about BEHAVIOR and CONTENT during scouting events. I agree it may not be the appropriate place to discuss sexuality or controversial topics, but then put THAT in your guidelines instead of just assuming someone who is gay would automatically discusss these things. I don't think learning first aid, how to fish, hunt or identify animals have anything to do with sexual preference.

[AOCGUY]

As an Eagle Scout, former Camp Counselor I can assure you the Scouts do have policies on appropriate behavior. That said the only homesexual or pseudo homosexual behavior I ever witnessed within the BSA was the scouts themselves, usually the bigger boys abusing the younger ones out of eaarshot of the adults. Probably was more exercising power over younger kids more than actually being homosexual.

[tryreading]

Yeah, I know they have policies for appropriate behavior. I don't think I made my point very well, that the Boy Scouts assume that allowing gay people in their organization will automatically mean that sexuality will become a topic of conversation at scouting events. I'm simply saying that won't necessarily be the case, and if it occurs, it can be handled per incident.

[jcnbma]

The BSA will regret this policy years from now. Guaranteed. They should be ashamed. What message are they sending to these boys? It fuels bullying and makes gay kids feel a sense of shame that will last for years, perhaps for a lifetime.

[Drivelphobe001]

So the "sense of shame" comes from the message that the BSA uses discretion in its membership guidelines? Give me a break. Homosexual sense of shame doesn't exist. They seek public attention aggressively with displays of dress and behavior that sicken those exposed to it. They never feel shame but rather a superior, arrogant attitude of entitlement that they deserve special accommodation and all the rights and privileges of heterosexuals. It would be deserving if they would feel shame for homosexuality is perverted, against nature and certainly against everything decent in the decent in life.

[hsinco-2009]

Personally, I would never have anything to do with BSA. Nor would I allow my kids near them either.

I don't want bigoted kids!