Boy Scouts approve plan to accept openly gay boys

May 24, 2013 @ 4:17 am


Former Cub Scouts den leader Jennifer Tyrrell, who was ousted from Scouting because she is openly gay, wears a button on her uniform shirt that reads "We Support All Boy Scouts" as she responds to a reporters question Thursday, May 23, 2013, in Grapevine, Texas. Local leaders of the Boy Scouts of America voted Thursday to ease a divisive ban and allow openly gay boys to be accepted into the nation's leading youth organization — one of the most dramatic moves the organization has made in a century. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez) | Zoom

GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) - After lengthy and wrenching debate, local leaders of the Boy Scouts of America have voted to open their ranks to openly gay boys for the first time, but heated reactions from the left and right made clear that the BSA's controversies are far from over.

The Scouts' longstanding ban on gay adults remains in force, and many liberal Scout leaders _ as well as gay-rights groups _ plan to continue pressing for an end to that exclusion even though the BSA's top officials aren't ready for that step.

Meanwhile, many conservatives within the Scouts are distraught at the outcome of the vote and some are threatening to defect. A meeting is planned for next month to discuss the formation of a new organization for boys.

The vote was conducted by secret ballot Thursday during the National Council's annual meeting at conference center not far from Boy Scout headquarters in suburban Dallas. Of the roughly 1,400 voting members of the council who cast ballots, 61 percent supported the proposal drafted by the governing Executive Committee. The policy change takes effect Jan. 1.

"This has been a challenging chapter in our history," the BSA chief executive, Wayne Brock, said after the vote. "While people have differing opinions on this policy, kids are better off when they're in Scouting."

However, the outcome will not end the membership policy debate, as was evident in the reactions of leaders of some of the conservative religious denominations that sponsor Scout units.

"We are deeply saddened," said Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's executive committee. "Homosexual behavior is incompatible with the principles enshrined in the Scout oath and Scout law."

The Assemblies of God said the policy change "will lead to a mass exodus from the Boy Scout program." It also warned that the change would make the BSA vulnerable to lawsuits seeking to end the ban on gay adults.

John Stembeger, a conservative activist and former Scout from Florida, founded a group called OnMyHonor.net to oppose the policy change. He assailed the BSA executive committee for its role in gaining a "Yes" vote.

"What kind of a message are we sending to young people about being brave when its top adult leaders don't even have the courage to stand up to the pressure of a militant lobby when the bullies in Washington D.C., Hollywood or even some of their own renegade councils start pressuring and harassing them?" he asked.

He said OnMyHonor.Net and other like-minded organizations and individuals would meet in Louisville, Ky., next month to discuss the creation of "a new character development organization for boys."

Texas Gov. Rick Perry also expressed dismay.

"While I will always cherish my time as a Scout and the life lessons I learned, I am greatly disappointed with this decision," he said.

The result was welcomed by many liberal members of the Scouting community and by gay-rights activists, though most of the praise was coupled with calls for ending the ban on gay adults.

"I'm so proud of how far we've come, but until there's a place for everyone in Scouting, my work will continue," said Jennifer Tyrrell, whose ouster as a Cub Scout den leader in Ohio because she is lesbian launched a national protest movement.

Tyrrell recalled having to tell her son she had been forced out as den mother.

"He doesn't deserve to be told that we're not good enough," she said. `'We're not going to stop until this is over."

Pascal Tessier, an openly gay 16-year-old Boy Scout from Maryland, had mixed emotions after the vote.

"I was thinking that today could be my last day as a Boy Scout," he said. "Obviously, for gay Scouts like me, this vote is life-changing."

Tessier is on track to receive his Eagle Scout award _ he only needs to complete his final project _ but said he is troubled that on his 18th birthday he could transform from someone holding Scouting's highest rank to someone unfit to be a part of the organization.

"That one couple hours (between 17 and 18) will make me not a good person," he said.

James Dale, 42, who was the first person to challenge the Boy Scouts gay ban in court, agreed, calling the decision "a bit of a step backward" for gay youth.

"It sends a very convoluted, mixed message to gay kids. It says that being gay is a youthful indiscretion, and that there's no future for you," Dale, of New Jersey, told The Star-Ledger.

Dale sued the Boy Scouts in 1990 after he was removed as an assistant scoutmaster because of his sexual orientation. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the organization was within its rights to ban gays.

Tessier has indeed been an exception _ an openly gay Scout whose presence was quietly accepted by local Scout leaders. In general, the Scouts' policy has been to avoid any questioning of would-be Scouts as to their sexual orientation, but to dismiss boys who did speak openly about being gay.

For example, Scout officials refused to grant the Eagle Scout rank to Ryan Andresen, an 18-year-old Californian, after he came out as gay last year.

The vote followed what the BSA described as "the most comprehensive listening exercise in Scouting's history" to gauge opinions, including a survey sent out starting in February to members of the Scouting community.

Of the more than 200,000 leaders, parents and youth members who responded, 61 percent supported the current policy of excluding gays, while 34 percent opposed it. Most parents of young Scouts, as well as youth members themselves, opposed the ban.

The proposal approved Thursday was seen as a compromise, and the Scouts stressed that they would not condone sexual conduct by any Scout _ gay or straight.

"The Boy Scouts of America will not sacrifice its mission, or the youth served by the movement, by allowing the organization to be consumed by a single, divisive and unresolved societal issue," the BSA said in a statement.

Among those voting for the proposal to accept openly gay youth was Thomas Roberts, of Dawsonville, Ga., who serves on the board of a Scout council in northeast Georgia.

"It was a very hard decision for this organization," he said. "I think ultimately it will be viewed as the right thing."

The BSA's overall "traditional youth membership" _ Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Venturers _ is now about 2.6 million, compared with more than 4 million in peak years of the past. It also has about 1 million adult leaders and volunteers.

Of the more than 100,000 Scouting units in the U.S., 70 percent are chartered by religious institutions.

Those include liberal churches opposed to any ban on gays, but some of the largest sponsors are relatively conservative denominations that have previously supported the broad ban _ notably the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Southern Baptist churches.

While the Southern Baptists were clearly upset by the vote to accept openly gay youth, the Utah-based Mormon church _ which has more Scouting troops than any other religious denomination _ reacted positively.

"We trust that BSA will implement and administer the approved policy in an appropriate and effective manner," an LDS statement said.

Utah's largest Boy Scout councils supported the change.

"This is a win for youth and a win for the community," said John Gailey, spokesman for the Utah National Parks Council, which covers central and southern Utah. "It gives all youth the opportunity to take advantage of the values instilled by Scouting."

The National Catholic Committee on Scouting responded cautiously, saying it would assess the possible impact of the change on Catholic-sponsored Scout units

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Crary reported from New York. Associated Press writer Brady McCombs also contributed to this report from Salt Lake City.

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Online:

BSA Membership Standards Resolution: http://bit.ly/185yyXk

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Follow David Crary on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/craryap

Follow Nomaan Merchant on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/nomaanmerchant


(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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Comments (47)


  • Add A Comment

  • po_guy wrote...
    That "woman" in the picture...
    January 29, 2013 10:35 am
    Does NOT look female!!! I found myself looking around the pic to find the woman who had arrived with her son. Then I realized it was that abomination in the scout uniform. UGH!!! Putrid, sick, abominable, filthy wierdos. Freaks.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    That "woman" in the picture?
    January 29, 2013 12:25 pm
    what picture you talking about. They say I'm a day tripper?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • po_guy wrote...
    Guess you caught this story a little late
    January 29, 2013 1:16 pm
    ...there was a pic of the lezzie up earlier...what a brutal looking creature...
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • 2shbag wrote...
    Why dont they create The Gay Scouts?
    January 29, 2013 1:41 pm
    Why do the gays have to push their beliefs on the rest? I said it when they got marriage legalized, they will just find something else to get the attention they crave and bug the crap out of non gays.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • It's me! Ha ha! wrote...
    Keep the regime out of the public.
    February 6, 2013 5:54 am
    The Dear Leader has no right to inject himself and your beloved regime in any of this. This is private sector and this Constitutional breaking King of yours needs to stop.

    2014!

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Jason wrote...
    Why????
    February 6, 2013 6:59 am
    The Boy Scouts is a private organization. I know they won't do this but hold out hope that they won't cave in. Homosexuality is a choice not something you're born with. It's not natural or an acceptable behavior in my opinion. There should be organizations such as this where traditional morals can be upheld and not perverted into what those with perverted values want. The only driving force behind this and gay marriage is that the public at large is tired of hearing the squeaky wheel of the minority.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • WAmovesRight wrote...
    I love the Pacific Northwest...
    February 6, 2013 7:55 am
    ... but it is getting more & more difficult to live here. I know the BSA issue is a national one but, rest assured, if they change their policy to include homosexuals, WA will be one of the first states to openly embrace it... perhaps even faster than CA.

    Thing is, it should be universally acknolwedged that homosexuality is not healthy physically. In fact, it is a very unhealthy lifestyle. For that reason alone, our society should strongly discourage the BEHAVIOR. You discourage it by not legitimizing it. That doesn't mean you want to persecute members of the LGBT subculture but it does mean you discourage our youth from it.

    Then there is the emotional, psychological... and most importantly spiritual objections that come into play. It's an immoral lifestyle and completely unnatural.

    The most incredible thing to me is that poriton of the "christian" community that supports homosexuality. If you are an atheist, I don't expect you to hold to biblical commandments & instructions but if you are going to call yourself a christian then please at least beleive the Bible.

    2Ti 2:19 ...Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • flipper wrote...
    Logistics of this decision
    February 6, 2013 10:28 am
    There's a balance here folks. Scouting has to weigh the potential financial gain from opening up its membership to the loss of its major source of chartering organizations, religious organizations. Note the paradox that large numbers of units that had been chartered by PTA's and local schools converted to being chartered by religious groups because of the policy. I think a number of the religious sponsoring units were taken by surprise by the suddenness of the Scouting announcement last week and need time to understand what that means. Bottom line: Money or Membership?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • HLC wrote...
    I would take it farther yet.
    February 6, 2013 11:02 am
    No homo teachers, youth sports coaches, any positions that gave them control over kids. In Obozos words. If we can do one thing to protect our kid, shouldn't we try it. This would do more to protect kids then a ban on scary looking guns.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    2012!
    February 6, 2013 1:26 pm
    you guys were[are] done in 2012!! When you was in your BS tent with your buddy who blow out the candle? Bet it was you!!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Snout wrote...
    Why do they insist on changing the Scouts?
    February 6, 2013 2:55 pm
    Form your own scout organization that allows this sort of thing if you want. There's nothing stopping you from doing so but you insist on tearing down existing institutions for some reason. Who knows, after years of propaganda, whining, and indoctrination of our young people you might end up with a large organization. Leave the Scouts alone.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }